Tuesday 8 December 2015

Tanah Lot to do here - 4/12/2015

Tanah Lot lies about 20 miles from Ubud, but thanks to Bali not having the straightest of roads, it takes about an hour to get to by car. The couple I had stayed with now earned their last little bit of money from me giving me passage to the "Natya" hotel I had reserved online, and at just after 3pm the formalities of checking in were all completed by the humourless "Lurch" like character on reception.

I had shortlisted my potential hotel selection to the final 2 on the previous day, and despite this one having the air of the "Crossroads Motel" about it I decided this was the still going to be the better choice. It wasn't that reports of the Natya were stellar or anything so conducive. It was more that one of the reviews for the other hotel that was vying for my business described the place as just "Creepy", and that one word was enough to sway my decision away towards "Natya".

It Costs money (30,000 idk) to get into the Tanah Lot complex where my Hotel was located. For that you get a little paper ticket with the price you paid printed on it and the freedom to peruse 3 streets of bargain laden clothes shops. A small market area that mostly consists of paintings and more clothes is also crammed in, as well as coffee shops, various Warungs which lead to gardens that front onto "Pura Tanah Lot", "Pura" meaning  Temple, "Tanah Lot" meaning "Land in the Sea".  It was around the beach in front of the temple that I spent the next couple of hours, trying to line up a good position to take a picture later on against a plain ocean backdrop without the crowds getting into shot. It's nice to have a picture postcard / iconic photo of a place, but it's easy sometimes to lose sight of what else these places can be about, and in the end I was happy enough to grab a couple of selfies and other random shots before my battery became exhausted and I just sat there watching groups of all nationalities, colours and faiths, gathered and mingling together for the one simple pleasure of watching the daylight draw to a close in a picturesque surround.



As the masses dispelled I went back to my hotel, past vendors hurriedly shutting up shop which in hindsight should have been a warning. After a quick shower I made my way back up to the main street which by this time now lay in complete darkness and devoid of any sign of life or activity, everything abandoned. Spying a lone security guard I quizzed him if there was anywhere still open that I could possibly get something to eat and he marched me back down the road to the hotel just up from mine, "This is good, not expensive" he said and then disappeared back into the night before a young waiter came over to take my food order which consisted of an indoesian dish for the main, a couple of fried bananas for afters and to wash it down, a compulsory bottle of lager.

When the food arrived it looked almost good enough to eat but as soon as I bit into one of the chicken satay sticks I knew something was amiss. I took the plate back up to the counter and asked them as politely as I could whether the food was supposed to be hot or not and the older gentleman barked something at the young waiter who then snatched my plate and disappeared from view. "We'll get you another" the old man tried to assure me but I was already past assurance. When the same plate returned a couple of minutes later after a quick blast in a microwave, I decided to skip the main and just tuck into dessert to minimise any risk, but still the next few hours were spent praying that no unwelcome side effects were going to come from this event, and filling myself up on a Diet Coke in the comfort of my air-conditioned room in attempt to appease the hunger.

In the morning I headed out early to the "Gloria Jeans"coffee shop which lay on the corner of "street 2" and "street 3" where I squinted ineffectively at the menu to see if there was anything other than blurred lines on offer. The waitress behind the counter tried to help by handing me a menu with writing so small that I actually tried to read it by touch, but being ineffective I was left with no choice but to go "Old School" and just ask if they had anything "breakfasty" available.  Thirty seconds later I had been sold the dearest "breakfasty" thing within a 5 mile radius, but it tasted ok, ws properly cooked and was the first proper food I had eaten in nearly 24 hours. I drew that breakfast out through a few long coffee's and a couple of hours, there was very little else to do here. It was kind of like that "now what" feeling of being in Tenby when it's raining outside, except here it was 30 degree heat with barely a cloud to shelter under.


Late afternoon was spent just people watching really, from the couples taking pictures together in front of any of the cliff top views to the surfers being thrown about on the crashing waves below, before I slowly ambled up towards a different vantage point than I had been at the previous night. As I climbed the up the winding narrow street lined with trinket stalls I became aware of a pair of eyes looking intently at me and I glanced over to what initially seemed to be a couple of soft puppet toys placed up in the tree beside me, until they both moved. It was only then I also noticed the giant bat hung upside down below them with large wing unfurled, nibbling his fruit contently in front of the sign that said "Luwak Coffee - 25,000".


Now Luwak coffee is expensive, maybe double that price in Bali and more than that overseas, mainly due to the unique way it's sourced. The coffee is made from the beans that have been passed through the animal itself and I think I read somewhere that this came about because the planation owners barred the workers from using any of the coffee beans to make coffee with, but some clever soul obviously worked out that the beans would go through through digested system of this animal unscathed, the in joke being that from this bean you can make "catcrapcinno".  Most of the places I had seen around Bali selling this coffee would have one of the cats in a small cage as a form of advertising, and it's not the sort of thing i'm ever happy seeing, but this guys Luwaks were treated as pets, left to roam free and play in the rafters and it was clear he had a lot of affection for them. Of the 3 he had 2 were playful, agile and active. The other was just lay around on which ever flat surface he could find to do so, it was still daytime after all and these are supposed to be nocturnal, but his eyes still watched you intently, he wasn't going to let a bean get passed.


SO how did it taste? Well, it tasted just like coffee, very nice, very smooth and not offensive in taste or smell in anyway imaginable, unless of course you get offended by coffee. Still one cup was enough for me and as the light started to dim again, I found carried on up to my vantage point before finding a table for one that looked over Pura Tanah Lot as the night closed in around.

No crowds,

No fuss.



No light.








   




1 comment:

  1. hai :) did you rememmber me? , i see this blog from fb. nice story, i tbink you know about indonesia'place more than me. have a good vacation james, Terimakasih

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