Bali Trip 2009 – Day 1 – Land of Gods

After 4 days and 3 nights of holiday in Bali (last day was for going  back), I am finally back to Singapore, bringing lots of nice photos and sceneries from there. Well, I didn’t bring any figurines there for any shoot since traveling was with my gal and schedule was packed for a proper time with my figs (yes, i don’t like to be rushed)

For the first part of my post, I will be posting pictures of the places I went (cultural events, acts, and popular spots) for the first 2 days of my travel in Bali, with the last post dedicated to the 3rd day which is full of beach and water love. ;) . Everything started on Monday morning where my gal and I took the cab to the airport – the usual traffic jam on the highway greeted us. Luckily, everything was smooth and we reached the airport on time.

clouds and land.. ?

spotted a mountain of clouds faraway.

Budget airlines was for me – AirAsia, travel took about 2 hours and 20 minutes to reach Bali. As it is the dry season now, the clouds was not enough – it was darn hot.

traffic is heavy in bali too

Notice the sky ? It is so clear that you can literally feel waves of heat hammering on you. I had a travel guide attached for me in this travel where he will bring us around the popular spots. The first day, however, was our free leisure time.

the clear blue sky – billboards like this are pretty a common sight in the city area.

The airport is located in Depansar, the capital city for the province of Bali in Indonesia. Bali is an island with a population of around 3.1 million with most of the population influenced by Balinese Hinduism while the remiander follows Islam and a specific few with Buddhism and Christinity.

Travelling is by vehicles and there is no railway or rapid transit in Bali. The currency in use is the Indonesian Rupiah and most shops will accept other currency due to large amounts of people coming from other countries. Do take note to always remember to bargain and know your currency rates well. There are many money exchanges around so there are no worries you cant find  any.

a public telephone booth

Before heading to the hotel, the guide took us for a city tour on the travel bus. Over there in Bali, buildings are not allowed to exceed a certain height or number of storeys due to the culture implementation and possibily due to earthquake reasons.

heavy traffic on the opposite direction

some walkway

power lines…

A god statue?

Take a closer road at the roads of Bali and you will notice there is always a statue of a god at major junctions or T- junctions. Indeed, junctions means a thing to the Balinese culture and they have a god statue facing multiple directions at cross roads.  Minor roads and slipways are not included but it was mentioned that processions take place during festives.

arriving at the first location…Bali Museum

To be honest, I didn’t remember some of the places’ name that we went except a few.  :P Over here in Bali, there are many images of Hindu gods and temples around. As such, Bali is also given many names, one of which – Land of Gods.

some tower…

a closeup macro of a nice looking flower…

many gods, demigods can be found in Bali

fyi: that god statue up there is made of pure gold. of course, nobody steals it yet. no one dares to incur the wrath of a curse.

nice flower spotted..that’s a lotus if i am not wrong

nice …art :P

some open air theater which is only in use during festives

no, that door is not for you to enter

equipment donated by Govt. Of Japan.

Weather was hot, no drizzle ..nothing. clear blue sky with the occasional drizzle. While it was relaxing, it gets a lil hot.

hmm?

a war chariot..well..of course the guy and the girl in the pic is me and my girlfriend.

a close up of the horse

in the hotel…

After bringing us to some places in Bali, it was already evening, hence we headed towards to the hotel in Kuta. The hotel is near the beach which is plus and along with the facilities with it. Kuta is located south of Depansar which is full of night life and tourists. As such, many food restaurants, stalls and hotels are all over the street. It is a lively town of its own.

yummy dinner..paid in Singapore dollars :P

The first day ended in a tiring fashion but recovered shortly after a nice dinner in a  Irish styled restaurant. Steak on a hot plate is a yum yum. Stay tuned for Day 2 of my post.

For travelling to Bali, do not worry about not having enough local currency but what is more important is keeping track of the money you have. Always negoiate if you can pay in your currency and always have your mind ready when they start telling you how much you should pay. Always tally it between your currency and their currency. Of course when you are in the restaurant, bargain is not the question. It only applies outside.