Island of the Gods

You only have to hear the word Bali and the mind itself wanders into a dreamlike place where worries are cast adrift and the sun and sand are life’s only concerns. Its an iconic island, an alien yet relaxing part of Indonesia that’s home to fascinating cultures and perfect desert-island days. While I was tempted to spend my entire trip lying on the beach and drinking out of coconuts with a straw, I knew there was a whole lot more worth exploring. It would be a shame to come all this way and not delve into this remarkable culture, though, something that’s easy enough to track down in the form of traditional dance performances, ancient theater customs and plenty of must-have souvenirs. The dreamy underwater world with a chance to see tumbling turtles and gaudy reefs, is an equally other-worldly taste of this tropical delight. The famed Island of the Gods, with its varied landscape of hills and mountains, rugged coastlines and sandy beaches, lush rice terraces and barren volcanic hillsides all providing a picturesque backdrop to its colourful, deeply spiritual and unique culture, stakes a serious claim to be paradise on earth.
Towering volcanoes, verdant tropical forests full of monkeys, dramatic steep sided ravines, startling crater lakes, holy caves, fast-flowing rivers and paddy fields seem to stretch on forever.
We are May 1, 2013. Back home in the small country of Belgium, my family & friends are celebrating the birthday of my nephew & godchild Julian in the garden. He’s so proud… He’s already a big fellah now with his 2 years of age! I couldn’t miss to be part of it so I made a video call to have a glance of him at the party and to be in a way, present at his birthday party. I’ll never forget the happiness in his eyes and the big smile on his face. Heartbreaking! Happy Birthday, Julian!
Kuta is also the perfect getaway for day trips. Most daytrips were about 50$ so Lili, Louise, Connie & myself decided to rent a car with driver for the same price and explore the island at our own pace. First we attended a Balinese traditional dance in Batubulan. In fact it was more like a play called ‘The Barong Dance’ I don’t want to offense any culture but in my view it was the worst play I ever saw. Next stops were the red rice terraces in Jatiluwih, Lake Beratan, Lake Buyan & the Gitgit waterfalls. Many monkeys on the way! We meant to end our trip with the famous sunset at the temple of Tanah Lot but unfortunately… we missed it!