Falling in Love with Bali
BALI, INDONESIA
Day 1 -
Bali is my new favorite place on the planet! I left Singapore, where flights down to the tropical island are only $50 via AirAisa, without really knowing what to expect. I had planned my trip through Singapore and knew that I wanted to stop in Australia and New Zealand before heading back to LAX. When I arrived in Bali, it was hot…and humid. It was a short taxi ride over to the Holiday Inn Express Raya Kuta and that was a good thing because it was after midnight.
Arriving at the hotel, there was a security guard at each driveway entrance that thoroughly checked the car, even in the trunk, under the hood and used a mirror to look under the car. It was like being in a war zone. When I asked the driver about the practice, he said that a lot of the hotels have been doing it since a series of bombings earlier in the 2000s. It was hard to tell what kind of neighborhood that he hotel was located in since it was dark and with the security, I started second-guessing my choice of location. Once inside, the lobby was bright, cheery and open-air with a décor that made it look like a swimming pool. It was a brand-new hotel, or at least newly remodeled (I can’t remember which). The front desk staff were friendly and the rooms were really nice. Being Platinum with IHG, they upgraded the room to an ocean-view which didn’t make much difference at midnight. In the morning, though, the view was amazing. Looking over the Holiday Inn Resort that was located right next door with all of the amenities that you would expect from a resort hotel, the beach was a welcomed sight.
A good night’s rest was what I needed before heading out to find a motorbike to go exploring on. Now that it was daylight, the street wasn’t bad and there was plenty of tourist shops within walking distance. The first shop happened to have motorbikes out front for rent. Having done some research, the 100,000 Rupiah/day price (less than $8) was a little high but the bikes were brand new and in great shape so I took it. During my research on renting motorbikes, I found out that the local police were very strict on requiring helmets and checking for International Drivers’ Licenses (with a motorcycle endorsement). This wasn’t because they were concerned about safety or the laws but because they wanted to pressure people into bribing them. Everything that I had read said that you should wear the helmet and if you happened to get stopped at a license check, offer them 50,000 Rupiah (less than $4US). They will ask for more, much more; some people have said that they have had to pay over 1,000,000 Rupiah ($75US). Just make sure to carry 50,000 Rupiah separate from the rest of your money and tell them that is all you have. That was my plan but that what actually happened – you will have to wait for part two of my Bali trip to find out more about that.
The plan was to check out the southern peninsula of Bali and the first stop was Uluwatu Temple. The traffic getting around Kuta is pretty crazy but this wasn’t my first time on a motorbike in SE Asia. The trick is to go with flow and pay attention. It is much quicker getting around on the motorbike because you can go down the sides of the road and slip through places that the cars can’t fit. Once outside of the city, though, the Bali roads are quiet and make for a nice ride. A lot of places in Bali require you to pay an unofficial toll to either pass or park (only as you get close to a tourist spot), usually only 5,000 Rupiah (less than 50 cents). There was a small admission fee to get onto the temple grounds at Uluwatu. You also had to wear a wrap that was provided. There are wild monkeys at Uluwatu and they are mean. You are warned to keep all objects in your bag or close to you as they will steal them from you. As you make your way down the path from the entrance, you come to a dead end at a sheer cliff that drops off into the ocean. There is a path that runs along the cliff in both directions that lead to different structures within the temple. It is a great place to just sit atop the cliffs and look out over the ocean. While I was able to get some video of the monkeys and keep my camera gear safe, I did have one encounter that was a little sketchy. As I was leaving, I saw a few monkeys on the side of the path so I decided to get some close ups of them. All was going well until one lunged at me from a tree and I jumped back so quick – and probably screamed like a girl! That was my signal that it was time to go.
On the ride back to the main road, I noticed a sign that said beach access with an arrow leading down a dirt road. I decided that since I had nothing better to do, why not check it out. There was a small dirt parking lot on top of the cliff with no tourists in sight. A group of locals were there doing some paragliding. It reminded me a lot of the Gliderport in La Jolla. After watching a few of them take off and land, I asked about the beach access and they pointed to a steep set of switchbacks leading down the cliff. The beach was deserted except for a few locals. The water was covered in tide pools and you see the reef through the crystal-clear water. It was awesome to just sit under a shade tree and take it all in. Of course, I had to fly the drone. I met a couple local girls that were taking pictures for their Instagram and asked them if they wanted some shots from the drone. They posed and I was able to get some pretty awesome shots from directly overhead with them in the tide pools. They were surprised that I had even found the beach as it must be a local secret. Not sure, why someone would put a sign on the main road pointing to a local secret (Nyang Nyang Beach). It was time to make the climb back up the cliff to go look for a spot to watch my first Balinese sunset.
Using Google Maps, I was able to find a beach on a western-facing shore that looked like it would provide an epic sunset. It took a while to get there but I found many places to stop and check out along the way. The first of which was a place called The Ritual Bali which is an event location for weddings. It has a spectacular building sitting on gigantic cliffs overlooking the ocean. For my future wife – I think I may want to get married in Bali! I was able to find a little dirt road that led down to the cliffs overlooking some great surf spots, including the Uluwatu Surf Villas and Pantai Uluwatu. Naturally I had to get the drone in the air for some more shots. You may begin to see why it takes me a while to get from place to place. Finally, the sun was getting low and there was still some ways to go. With 30 minutes to spare, I found what I thought was a short road leading to a nice rock outcropping but it turned out to be an incredibly rocky path that was not fit for the motorbike. I took the motorbike down it anyways and made it to the beach with just a few minutes to spare. One last time for the day, I launched the drone. I got some incredibly beautiful shots along the rugged, rocky coast so I was super happy. The battery was getting low and the sun had set so it was time to bring the drone back. I just happened to look down and realized that I had not been recording the whole time. This is getting to be an issue (not technical, but personal). At least I had my memories of the sunset…just then a man in a black suit arrived with some sort of pen device… (just kidding – MiB reference).
It was dark by the time that I made it back to road and time for dinner. Since there was a famous place called Rock Bar just around the corner, I decided to check it out. It sits at the luxurious AYANA Resort and I will tell you, it is very nice! Everything about that place was beautiful. You take a lift down the cliff to a bar that is situated on top of a natural rock formation in the ocean. There are a series of pools, restaurants and bars along the cliff that you can dine and relax at. It is quite pricey and I was not impressed by the service but I would suggest that you at least make a visit and check it out for yourself. It is such a unique and spectacular place, that it may be worth the splurge.
Day 2 –
The day started with an ambitious idea to ride to the Blue Lagoon on the far SE corner of the island. It was about a two-hour motorbike ride away. Again, the traffic in the city is a bear to deal with but you just have to be very observant and go with the flow. Once out on the highway, it was smooth sailing. It was a nice ride along the southern coastline. I don’t know if it was the light or the weather or what but I came to one spot along the tree-lined highway that was awe-inspiring so I had to stop. There were rice patties running into this valley between the mountains. Sitting on the top of one of the mountains was Pura Bukit Buluh Temple. I took the drone out and sent it exploring the valley and the temple. It was just spectacular! Back on the motorbike, it was on to Blue Lagoon.
The place was packed with tourists! This was a port where you could catch a boat to some of the other islands, such as Lombok and the Nusa Islands, so there was a bunch of people coming and going. At the far end of the beach, however, there was this incredibly steep road that led up the mountain and down the other side to a secluded bay called Blue Lagoon Beach. There was only a handful of tourists, yet it looked like a tropical paradise that I could stay forever. There were several places to get some food and just hang out on the beach. I ordered some food and can you guess what I did next? That’s right, flew the drone. It was really the only way to get a perspective of the place. After lunch, it was nice to just relax with such an awesome view after that long motorbike ride.
Not wanting to miss a single sunset, it was time to head back west and check out Tanah Lot. The ride over included many Balinese backroads through rice patties and made for an enjoyable ride. Tanah Lot is one of the most popular temples in Bali and because of such, is overrun with tourists. I have heard stories of the place being very natural before the internet made it Insta-Famous. It is now a maze of souvenir and food vendors as you make your way down to the cliffs along the beach. This, however, doesn’t make it any less awesome. I found a spot to launch the drone and get some video and photos from the air (I found out a few days later that they will charge you a video fee if they see you flying). There were so many people that had gathered to watch the sunset and take pictures. Since it was low tide, everyone was out exploring the tide pools.
There was one beach, between the two temple structures that looked like you couldn’t get to it but I saw a few photographers down there with their cameras and tripods. I asked one of the workers and they pointed me to a sketchy climb down the cliff to the beach. I had to go. I learned that the photographers were locals and they were there to capture the sunset. I decided to do the same. I sent the next hour or so capturing a spectacular sunset and blue hour. Right at sunset I heard a noise coming from behind me and I couldn’t make out what was making the noise. When I turned around, I saw a cave and a massive number of bats streaming out. There was just a constant flow that lasted for minutes. I was able to get one photo but it was hard to make out what was happening. After all of the pictures, I made the climb back up to the top of the cliff and then had to take some night shots of the temples before heading back to Kuta.
Day 3 –
The next day was an adventure to try and locate the abandoned 737 in a rock quarry. I have seen this thing on YouTube and on Instagram but needed to see it for myself. I have read that you can’t get down to it anymore because the owner has hired security to sit there full time. To my surprise, locating it was easy. I simply typed Abandoned 737 into Google Maps and it came up so it was time to go. It was really in the middle of nowhere and you could not see it from the road. I parked on the side of the road next to a snack stand that looked like it was there just for people that stop to see the airplane. As far as I could tell, there was no security but I didn’t try and go down into the quarry. I took pictures from the top and flew the drone all around it. It was a crazy sight to see a full size commercial airplane in the middle of a rock quarry.
The next stop was Pantai Pandawa which is a beach on the eastern coast of the south Bali peninsula. It is very touristy and I was not a big fan. The beach is lined with souvenir vendors and snack stands. They rent lounge chairs and beach toys. It was a great spot for lunch but there are a lot of other great beaches with fewer people and without an entrance fee to visit.
It was that time again to go in search for a sunset spot. Tanjung Balangan was the location. This is such a unique spot. There is a giant rock formation that has all of these caves in it and it is a popular spot for wedding photos. There was a dozen or so wedding parties taking pictures all over the formation. It seems that there is a company that offers complete wedding packages in China and this is where they bring them. Of course, I got lots of shots with the drone. It was another sunset in the books and a night ride back to the Holiday Inn Express Raya Kuta.
The next morning was a flight to Labuhanbajo and Komodo National Park. Stay tuned for more adventures at Komodo and part two of Bali and the Nusa Islands. If you made it this far, you might as well click here for my final thoughts on Indonesia.
Take a look at some of my other stops on my 2017 Around-the-World trip.
Doha - Dubai - Singapore - Bali - Komodo - Sydney - Auckland
