Beautiful Bali

I first went to Bali some 20 years ago. Then it was a magical place. Over the years, I've been back often, sometimes alone, sometimes with friends. Even though I'm not a religious person, I've always been attracted to spiritual places.

Some how along the way, it has lost some of it's magic, at least for me. Maybe because it has become so commercial. Maybe because it has become so crowded that I can barely walk on the sidewalk without being pushed out onto the streets, which then puts me in danger of being run over by a speeding scooter. Maybe I'm just a little jaded.

Even so, it's still a beautiful place & here's what I still love about Bali.

The spectacular sunsets.
This one was taken in Seminyak from Ku De Ta

This one take from the Ayana Hotel @ Jimbaran

The Taman Ayun Temple in Menwi. A royal temple with beautiful grounds.

I never seem to get tired of seeing the many temples in Bali. The family temples, the village temples, the big ones, the small ones - they are all beautiful. You can't walk more than 10 meters before you encounter one.

Pura Bratan - a scenic temple along the shores of the Lake Bratan in Bedegul

I've not been to Tanah Lot in over 10 years & since then, the road leading to the entrance is now filled with street vendors. One has to jostle for a spot to take a photo of Tanah Lot & that can't be good.

A lone fisherman

One of many beautiful doors & their guardians that you seem to find everywhere in Bali

Sadly, many rice fields have now made way for hotels & restaurants so unless you are prepared to drive out further, it's hard to come across terraced rice fields.

Terraced rice fields just outside of Ubud

Amazing what the women can carry on their heads as they go about doing their business

There's beauty in the most unlikely of places

Workers restoring the Museum Puri Lukisan

A lotus in a pond in Ubud

We were invited by our driver Komang to visit a cremation at his village & even though it is a joyous occasion for the Balinese & as much as I would have wanted to witness the ceremony, we didn't think it would be appropriate for The Girl.

Coming next - the rest of the Bali chronicles - where we stayed, what we ate & what I'd recommend for kids,