Bali Day Two

Ok, here is more.

Second day is the busiest day of all. Ji Ric had actually laid out our itinerary, sourced from a few budget traveller's book from the bookstore and he printed out a copy for each of us. We even had the maps of Bali island and the road map of the Kuta area (where we stayed during our trip). It is always good to have someone free to do all these, i guess he was unemployed at the correct timing :P

We got another tour guide and driver this time around, cos we all thought that the one we had on the first day wasnt good enuff. Ari, a young man (but he is actually in his thirties, though he doesnt look like one) who is very suggestive and well versed in English. We had no problems communicating with him, but he is a "F1 driver". U dont wanna see how he overtook the cars and lorries on a super narrow street or how he sped on a long winding road. Our heart almost dropped in fear of falling off the cliff or banging on ppl's hse.

Nevertheless, it was fun having him around. I cant imagine whether we could finish our list of places to visit if we were to hire the previous driver. He drove damn slow..

Firstly, we went for the Barong Dance performance in Ngurah Rai. The play is about an eternal fight between good and evil spirit. Barong, a mythological animal represents a good spirit and Rangda, a mythological monster represents an evil one. The show is quite costly, for an hour show but for experience sakes, we just gotta sacrifice abit.

Sari Wisata Budaya - Barong Dance
Ticket : Rp 50,000


The Barong Dance.

Next, we dropped by to Batubulan which is famous for its Batik processing. We had a lot of batik shops here in M'sia already so we dont even bother to take a second look at them. Celuk on the other hand is the center of gold and silver production. We made a brief tour inside their shop before heading to Mas to check out the wood carving shop.

Then, we were drove to Goa Gajah (Elephant Cave) in Ubud to visit the solemn temple there. We were asked to wear a sarong to respect the temple, and so we obliged. Never say no when it comes to prayers and stuffs, i tell u.

It was just a short stop, so there is nothing much to write about.

Goa Gajah
Entrance fee : Rp 6,000






Goa Gajah.

Gunung Kawi is a peaceful place, surrounded by rushing water and local farmers harvesting terraced rice paddies. It is also famous for its ancient monuments carved during the old days. But one thing, u have to go thru a long stair case. Be prepared, for those weak knees folk.

Gunung Kawi
Entrance fee : Rp 6,000


Terraced rice paddies.


Walking to the waterfall.

Finally we headed to Gunung Batur (Mount Batur) before going back to Kuta. Located at Kintamani, it is a famous double crater volcano (still active, and we were told that it was last exploded last year) with Lake Batur just next to it. We were only able to snap photos from a viewing area, so im not sure if that is counted as a visited place...

Gunung Batur
Entrance fee : Rp 25,000 per car (we have 6 person)


Mount Batur.


Lake Batur.

On our way back, we specially requested Ari to drop us to eat Babi Guling, a popular local Balinese roast pork. It tasted erm.. ok. Very strong pig's odour, not bad, but i am not going to have that for the second time, if i were given a choice. Not my type of food.


The famous Babi Guling @ Ubud Palace.

We wanted to include Pura Besakih, Bali's Mother Temple into the itinerary, but Ari told us it is at a different route. We have to spend another day just to go there, looking at the strict schedule that we have on hand. Sigh, what to do, gotta scrap the idea once and for all.