Bali Day 6 (Fri 12th June) - Tanah Lot

We had the usual routine of breakfast with all the usual trimmings including pancakes, bacon, sausages, fruit, baked beans, orange juice and coffee. 

Next we bundled into the vehicles and headed for Tanah Lot, a famous Hindu temple on an island in the sea. Tanah lot means 'land In the sea'. The drive took us from the sophisticated boutiques and eateries of Seminyak and out into the countryside. We passed rice paddies, vegetable farms, nurseries, even saw watermelons being grown. This is how most of Bali must have looked before the advent of mass tourism and commerce.

Our drivers Rama and Giday paid the entrance fee to the temple and parked. Hundreds of little stalls selling tourist trinkets and food flanked the road leading to the temple on the sea. We followed the main track but soon realized the stairs at the end were too high for the wheelchair, so we backtracked and soon found the alternative path. Leaving the bustling shops behind, we entered the temple grounds covered with beautiful gardens. The path led us along the edge of the steep cliffs. The Hindu temples on the cliffs were made of black blocks, typically enclosed by a wall with decorated shrines within. Making our way along the cliffs we eventually caught sight of Tanah Lot, perched atop a rough outcrop of rock. With the tide out, the tourists swarmed around the temple. We made our way down to get a closer look and found a spring at the base were some holy men were blessing devotees and tourists by sprinkling water on them. The rest of the temple was off limits and we could only catch a glimpse of the temple buildings above.

We stopped for lunch at a very busy restaurant, called something like "Warung Gueek" (sound of the duck). It was situated in a platform surrounded by rice paddies, and was very serene and relaxing. Almost all of us ordered the special, pork ribs and Nix ordered the crispy duck. The food was amazing and we understood why it was so popular.

After we go pt back we relaxed a bit before the guys headed down to double 6 beach for some surfing. I hired a board for surfing and the brothers found a cool bar called cocoon. Nix went for a walk on Seminyak beach and took photos of Ku De Ta, another funky beach club.

That night we had dinner at the villa. Gado gado, satay lilit on lemongrass sticks, delicious spring rolls, rice, soy bean crunch, rendang curry, and a variety of other Indonesian specialities. Afterwards we surprised Dave with a birthday cake and sang happy birthday. The cake was yummy, frozen chocolate mousse, which Ani had organized for us. Grandma giggled with glee as she and Dave tried to blow out the candles.