We got a chance to visit Lembongan Island. It's about a 30 minute boat ride from Bali. One can take a boat from Sanur Port to Mushroom Bay.
The Island is pretty small, but has lots of things to do and also a very relaxed vibe.
This is the Sanur Port, and it looks pretty organised.
...however, the Mushroom Bay at Lembongan is not that organised. It is a Bay! That's all. Off you go from the boat to the beach and then hop on a "refurbished truck taxi" to your hotel!
We were staying pretty close to the Devil's Tear & Dream Beach area. Our visit to Devil's Tear was on a morning of high tide. We saw some absolutely huge waves. It's recommended not to swim on the beach during high tide.
We then stood under the splashing waves and cooled ourselves down!
In the evening we saw a beautiful sunset.
With clear skies & gorgeous sea, we did manage to make a time-lapsed video.
The night sky stars were very lovely. I remember, during my childhood in India, we didn't have a lot of light pollution, so saw very clear night skies during summer months.
We also went to the Kuningan Ceremony. Some very well dressed and excited!
The dancers were ready and their dressing was over the top.
A video showing their music and dance celebrations.
We visited Nusa Cenningan and Nusa Penida.
Secret point beach allows some beautiful views and lots of people do cliff jumping.
Ceningan Island had some beautiful yet rustic shallow water beaches.
The Yellow Bridge joins Ceningan & Lembongan Islands.
We also went to Penida Island.
Crystal Bay in Penida Island.
Broken Beach on Penida Island.
Broken Beach on Penida Island.
We were exhausted but the views were stunning.
Lembongan also has restaurants which serve delicious food.
The mangrove forest was very relaxing.
I still don't understand how some trees die in the swamp and how some grow into forests.
Our boatman was very polite.
It was also the time of Seaweed Farming.
Our small hotel was very nice. It had a pool, lovely rooms, outdoor bathroom and of course relaxed vibe.
The owner's 3 year old son was quite funny and he liked touching my beard. He had not seen many men with beards, as the Indonesian men have quite light facial hair. 🧔
We visited Bali for a few days and the traffic reminded us of Bombay and Delhi. However, the temples, culture and nature in Bali is stunning and the beaches (although crowded) gave us beautiful sunsets.
The mountains were visible from Sanur beach, where we stayed.
The fishermen, walked into the sea with their fishing rods and caught massive amounts of fish. Shallow waters allows them stand and fish.
If one get a chance to walk along Sanur Beach, do visit the Turtle Conservation Centre.
Indonesia has 6 types of turtle species and 4 of them were found in Bali.
Sunset at Kuta Beach.
A small video to showcasing the hustle bustle around southern Bali Area. Things to do:
1. Walk along the Sanur beach
2. See the water spray and lights display on the beach
3. Visit the turtle conservation centre (kids would love it, during the feeding times)
4. Visit the number of small temples around the area & see the beautiful temple gates
5. Go to Kuta for an evening sunset
6. Go to Uluwatu for the view of the temple and the cliffs
When walking around the Sanur village, one can admire the beautiful gates each home has. Most homes have this beautiful gate and then a small temple and a house (where they live) inside the four walls.
You can also visit many temples around the area and admire the colourful idols. However please dress up decently.
The South East Asian make the scariest Indian mythological figurines.
Another home, with a remarkable gate!
We admired these gates and the gate keeper!
We also went to Uluwatu Temple. They don't allow you to visit the temple from inside, but you can admire the figurines and the cliffs.
Cliffs of Uluwatu.
A scary monkey statue!
We were fortunate enough to get lovely sunshine, but the heat & humidity was killing us.
Blue skies and incredible waves.
The monkeys stole my wife's prescription sunglasses and they had to be bribed to give it back. It cost her RP 50K to them them back! 🤣
We then went to Ubud. The home of Yoga, YingYang, Cacao Ceremony, Sound Baths, Vegan food, pretentious millennials trying to "fit in the local culture" and scooter traffic.
Another temple and a beautiful gate.
Saraswati Temple in Ubud, it's worth the visit for it gardens and they will not allow you to enter inside the temple.
The actual temple, from outside.
The Ubud Palace.
We were lucky to be in Bali during the Galungan and Kunigan festivals. The have these long bamboo decorations called - Penjor all around the town.
Some of them are quite impressive.
Nature is still raw in some places. As soon as you leave the towns of Ubud, Uluwatu, Sanur, Cangoo, etc; you do find a lot of nature growing wild.
There are actual rice fields within Ubud.
We also visited the Besakih Temple. Its on the foothills of Mount Agung.
I think it is right approach by the Balinese people to avoid tourists to enter temples. They want to completely the situation of "one crazy person"!
The dancers wore stunning colours for the festival. You can se tourist admiring the occasion from the steps, but were rightfully not allowed inside.
The Besakih Temple is a complex of many temples.
Their main temple is the Shiva Temple in the middle of all the temples.
A video of that day and our visit to the temple.
Bali would not be Bali, without the terraced rice fields!
We visited Jatiluwih Rice fields. This is a long drive from Ubud, but was worth going through the villages and towns en-route. This is also a UNSECO World Heritage Site, so worth the visit. It costs around £3.5/person to enter.
