Bali, beautiful Bali.... Beautiful island and beautiful people! We sailed into Bali and we were met by my old friend Made to begin a two day tour in Bali. Our band of happy travelers headed out to explore Bali.... Mike, Janet, Margo, Harry, Ann and myself, unfortunately Cathy was under the weather and stayed on the ship. It was so great to see our old friend Made... before you knew it we were on our way with our first stop the Batuan Temple. I always love visiting the temples in Bali... just fabulous! Then it was onward to the Waterfall Tegenunganun ... a picture of scenic beauty. Next we went to the village of Pengli where we walked through the original village and the into the bamboo forest...very impressive. Our walk through the Gianyar District outdoor market was excellent.... people photos galore! Our journey continued to the Kubu Bali for pictures of the rice fields, refreshments with some Wi-Fi thrown in....then onto the Tegalalang rice terraces which are spectacular. If you know anything about me, I simply love the rice terraces of Bali... just fabulous works of art! We drove through the artist colony of Ubud with its amazing craftsmanship displayed in the shops. Our last stop before stopping for the evening was the Sarawati Temple. We arrived at our hotel the Ti Amo Resort and were impressed with the location overlooking the stunning rice terraces, the rooms and grounds were beautiful and Mike and Janet were able to take an evening and morning walk through the rice paddies and my two hour massage was a perfect ending to the day. After breakfast, we headed to Sleeping Buddha with a photo stop at the Abadan Pengelola Rice Terraces on Jatiluwih Road...you run out of words for the green ribbons of fields that are a testimony to the respect the Balinese have for the land. Next we had spectacular views of Mt. Agung as we could see puffs spewing from the active volcano. We made multiple photo stops along the winding roads, passing sheets of rice drying in the sun along the side of the road...Driving through Papuan area, the rainiest area in Bali we saw fields of vegetables being grown. On our way to the Sleeping Buddha, we drove through the mountainous area of Bedugul we encountered a macaque monkey population...always a great photo stop. Along the road we stopped at a viewpoint that had a swing...the swing was erected high over the mountain side and of course I had to try it out. Next we stopped at Vihara Dharma Giri, home to the Sleeping Buddha...a beautiful temple, the grounds were pristine...a very peaceful and tranquil place. Driving along Papuan Road we came upon the most incredible rice terraces I have ever encountered. We then drove through Tabanan to Tanah Lot...unfortunately some of the grounds and structures were under construction but we still had a great view of Tanah Lot...I walked through the waves to the temple for a blessing...as luck would have it my camera also was blessed with salt water...still Tanah Lot Temple is simply among Bali’s not-to-be-missed icons. It was a wonderful two days of touring...probably one of my best trips to Bali...it was great seeing my old friend Made again and he provided us with a wonderful Balinese welcome and memorable tour that we won’t forget.... It may take a while to get my blog posted... 5 parts! Way too many photos!!!!
