Angieneering

We started the day at Sari Wisata Budaya for the Barong and Kris Dance, a play on the eternal fight between good and evil. The Barong came out and did a slow dance. Hubby complained it was too slow and long. I hushed him and reminded that you just can’t rush good fighting evil. Soon after, the act was underway. The costumes were colorful and the several acts were quite interesting, injected with humor and playfulness every now and then. The natural back light of the stage, unfortunately did not help in my attempts to take pictures. After the performance, we headed towards Pura Taman Ayun. The drive through narrow roads was at a leisure pace. Our driver was quite a chatty guy, telling hubby about the various festivities held in Bali throughout the year while the rest of us just gazed at passing padi fields and shops. Pura Taman Ayun has been in existence since 1634 as inscribed at the entrance (but my DK travel guide states 1740, yes I know it’s archaic to have a travel book but it makes sense when there’s no wifi and I don’t intend to activate my 3G connection which will cost a bomb). We didn’t spend too long there. Somehow, today’s photo opps, even outdoors are not too good with the back lighting. We head off for lunch next, another good half an hour’s drive away. I am dreaming of a nice cold beer. Mmmm….. We arrived at Warung Lesehan at Tegal Sari for lunch, a less commercialized stop and less crowded. And being such, no beer! Aaargh. So I settled for an iced coffee instead. The gazebo is quite nice actually in the midst of cool mountain weather. The food was good, typical Balinese style. The only thing not spicy was the cucumber and peanuts! My coffee was nyeh but enough to keep me awake. Soon we were on our way with the uphill winding drive towards Bedugul. The dark skies looked threatening and I wondered if it is like this all the time. I had to ask and Komang (our driver) assured us it’s okay. Phew. The breeze was lovely at Pura Ulun Danu Beratan. The whole place was decorated in preparation for an upcoming big holy event even while a holy prayer and blessing session was in progress. The sun kept peeking out to play havoc with my photography attempts, giving me the perfect excuse to voice and justify my need to upgrade my iPhone4 (to the iPhone 5S) so that I can have a better camera. Hubby just rolled his eyes at me and muttered it’s the photographer and not the equipment. Obviously I chose to ignore the obvious. The wind suddenly picked up and I felt a chill. Brrr….. Luckily, we were done doing the touristy thing and off we went to the next spot, Jatiluwih (a UNESCO heritage site) for a quick scenic padi terrace view. Very pretty. And since we were there, we stopped for tea, grilled bananas and fried banana fritters. And still no beer. After the tummy filler, we left at five to head to Tanah Lot to catch the sunset. Fifteen minutes into the journey, droplets of rain came down. Uh-oh. I hope this would not spoil our journey to the intended last place. Fingers crossed. I dozed off during the hour long ride towards Tanah Lot. Unfortunately we missed the sunset by a mere five minutes because we could not overtake a truck carrying chicken eggs, a garbage truck and another slow coach vehicle. Sigh. Poor Komang drove as best as he could and tried to keep cool. Nonetheless, the after-sunset pictures came out not too bad. The dramatic waves made up for it. We wind down the day with yet another half an hour journey, to go have some well deserved ribs before heading back to the hotel. All in all, right before dinner, I managed 9,454 steps, 5.10km and burnt 275 kcal. Not too bad considering most of the time we were in the car. Naughty Nuri’s Warung in Batubelig was packed when we got there! But service was good for we didn’t have to wait long before being seated. Neither did we have to wait long before the food was served. The aroma from the grill teased my senses and I found myself suddenly hungry. And finally, I am getting my beer, Bintang Draft. Yay! Can’t wait to sink my teeth into the juicy ribs! Mmmmm…. Best ribs I’ve had! Beer was a bit flat but after two mugs, I’m not complaining. It was a long day and I wanted a hot shower. Final count: 10,746 steps, 5.72km and 306 kcal, which has been zerorized and probably gone into deficit with the two mugs! Oh well, I’m on holiday…

The Barong Dance.

Pura Taman Ayun.

Lunch at Warung Lesehan.

Our lunch spot!

Bedugul.

Rice terrace at Jatiluwih.

Sunset at Tanah Lot.

The waves at Tanah Lot.

Entrance of Naughty Nuri’s.

Grill chef in action!

Certified by TripAdvisor!

Trust me, they taste better than their looks.

A well deserved beer!

Tags: Bali, Barong, Barong Dance, Bedugul, Bintang beer, DK Travel Guide, Dorling Kindersley, Naughty Nuri's, Places of Interest, Taman Ayun, Tanah Lot, UNESCO