Travel Day 658 – Driving on Bali by Scooter, INDONESIA
03/09 Balian Beach via Pura Luhur Batukaru to Munduk
Since spending the day at Balian Beach was not really the plan, it seemed best to rather get up early and enjoy the beach in the morning sun…
Lake Temple Pura Ulun Danu Bratan on Bali, Indonesia
It was actually quite amazing but a couple of surfers were also awake and on their way to the beach, trying to catch the first big waves of the day. For me personally it was simply great to see this black volcanic beach during the day and just to stroll along the water. In general black beaches were not quite my thing, but seeing the long shadows of the palm trees and the sun reflecting on the sand crystals made for a pretty great start of the day. But after enjoying the morning at Balian Beach for a while, it was time to jump back on the scooter and to start heading towards Pura Luhur Batukaru…
Unfortunately it was necessary to backtrack the road from yesterday for a little bit, but instead of going all the way to Tabanan, it seemed more interesting to branch off earlier and rather take a smaller side road up north to Pura Luhur Batukaru. This way it was possible to avoid the traffic while seeing some local villages, fields and smaller Hindu temples. But eventually the road was gaining altitude, the fields were turning into dense forest and the sunny weather changed into some cold, foggy, cloudy mist…
Long Shadows at Black Balian Beach on Bali, Indonesia
This climate change was actually quite remarkable, considering that Bali was such a small island. But apparently the temple Pura Luhur Batukaru had been built at the southern slope of Mount Batukaru, Bali’s second highest volcano. The original temple dated back to the 11th century, erected initially to protect Bali from evil spirits. Nowadays the mostly wooden temple structure was still in good use for many different Hindu ceremonies, but best of all, it was off the usual tourist radar because of its remote location…
All the structures of Pura Luhur Batukaru were rather on the smaller side, pretty spread out and covered by green moss due to the moisture in the air. The arrangement itself was broken up and divided by small retaining walls and always accessed through precisely sliced stone gateways. None of these structures reminded me of temples from India or Nepal and it seemed that they were rather representing a local twist of Hindu culture and religion…
Volcano Temple Pura Luhur Batukaru on Bali, Indonesia
After this nice stopover, the ride continued towards Jatiluwih with all its many rice terraces. These terraces were supposed to be famous, but after seeing the ones in Banaue in the Philippines and the ones in the Himalayas in Nepal, the terraces here could not really impress. But at least there were some nice local eateries (Warungs) around, making this the perfect stopover on the way down to Candikuning by the lake Danau Bratan, which was supposed to be my last stop of the day…
But going towards Candikuning meant driving into a high altitude plateau inside a former volcanic crater which was once again cloudy, misty and freezing cold. On top of that, the only listed budget accommodation in town turned out to be an expensive, moldy dump, making it necessary to change the plan of the day and rather carrying on quickly. The next village with accommodation seemed to be the best option and it was called Munduk, a former Dutch colonial hill station surrounded by green jungle…
Volcano Lake on the Way to Munduk on Bali, Indonesia
Nevertheless, one last stop had to be made at Pura Ulun Danu Bratan, another Hindu temple set on one of the three big crater lakes. This 17th century lake temple complex was situated right at the shore of Danau Bratan with the main pagoda set on a little island. With its tall tiered roof, Pura Ulun Danu Bratan was not only an iconic image of Bali, but also the pilgrimage site for many farmers who would pray for their necessary water supply. And as it appeared, today there was a huge ceremony happening…
Dressed up people in local costumes, strange gong music and ritual dancers were making the visit of the lake temple Pura Ulun Danu Bratan an unforgettable experience. But after watching the spectacle for a while, it was time to jump back on the scooter and drive towards Munduk as the sun was already setting. To my great surprise, this last bit of the road simply took my breath away because I got to drive on a winding road on the narrow rim of the former crater with excellent views over the three lakes below. Wow, this truly had been a fantastic day of great sightseeing or rather sight-driving on really beautiful Bali island…
Find all Pura Luhur Batukaru – Pura Ulun Danu Bratan and Balian Beach to Munduk photos here.
Leave a Reply