30 NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC TRAVELLER INDIA | JULY 2019THE ITINERARY INDONESIAANDRAS JANCSIK/MOMENT/GETTY IMAGEStaste of it in Ubud, an hour-and-a-half ’s
cab ride north of Kuta. Branches of
banyan trees hug ostentatiously carved
archways, temples dot the roads and
a stream warbles under moss-coated
bridges. More modern facades have
sprung up, with museums and arty
cafés dotting the topography. This is a
place where traditional Balinese culture
inspires every waking moment, where
a penjor—an ornamented bamboo
pole that vaults up above roof level, its
end weighed down with offerings—is
erected outside every house. The
soothing tune of gamelan is the
background score to everyday life.
What it lacks in beaches, Ubud
compensates with waterfalls and
forests. Kanto Lampo waterfall in
Gianyar village is easy to get to and
fairly tourist-free. Sunlight filters
through a dense canopy of trees and
settles over the rock-topped 33-foot
waterfall, forming a semi-rainbow.
“When I clamber over the rocks,
you hit record.” Knee-deep in cold
water, Hannes directs me in a thick
accent whilst handing over his GoPro.
Having met earlier at the hostel, the
German gap year student backpacking
through Asia became my travel
companion for the next two days.
Slapping on sunscreen, we set out on
a rental scooter in Bali’s scorching
heat, flickering past green, gradient
rice paddies.
We temple-hopped in a time warp-
like journey. We passed through the
portal of the 11th-century Pura Gunung
Kawi, a collection of 10 candi (shrines)
cut out of rock faces, all believed to
have been carved in one night, beforecapering to the purification ritual in
holy waters of the 10th-century Tirta
Empul. The Hindu temples of Bali
resemble no other in the world.
Wandering through the 27-acre
Sacred Monkey Forest Sanctuary is like
walking into a folkloric jungle. Some
700 Balinese long-tailed macaques
live here amidst the verdure—some
vying to snatch gadgets and food from
unassuming visitors, others impassive
to human encounters. There isn’t much
to do here, but that’s part of the charm.
On my final evening, we headed to
the Instagram-famous Tegalalang
Rice Terrace. Subak, traditional
Balinese cooperative irrigation systems,
punctuated the stepped valley. The
rice field crackles under a drizzle.
Drones fly overhead and cameras
shutter to capture the landscape. As for
me, I put my phone away at one of the
most photogenic locations in the world.
Pink skies and warm company were
better enjoyed in the absence
of technology.A walk through the Tegalalang Rice Terrace reveals expansive views of gradient green rice paddies at the UNESCO World Heritage Site.Bali is an unbashed
cliché—a harmonious
paradox of cultural
rawness and over-
cooked tourists