One thing i've learnt about the Indonesian tourist sector is that they'll always try and make money out of you honestly or dishonestly. And its not a small amount on top of local rates. They'll try and charge 3 to 6 times as much. Its a real shame the tourist sector's like this, as this country has some of the friendliest people i've come across.
I started the tour in a grumpy mood, but the driver 'Nyoman' really did try to teach me stuff and i eased up as the tour progressed.
We first went to the 'Elephant cave temple' complex.
Dating back to 1000 AD, it was a hindu temple and had 2 baths, one for men and the other for women. Washing in the water is supposed to bring luck, so i dipped my head in it for a while..
However, the only luck it brought me was that an 'instant friend' appeared and started showing me around. He then said he was a guide and he could show me round for 30 dollars. I was thinking
, 'oh only $30, how would you like a punch in the face for free..' but instead told him politely, to get stuffed....and paid him 35p for what he had showed me... he should have considered himself lucky to get anything at all considering the mood i was in...
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This is the entrance to the cave...
Inside the cave, there were statues of 4 Hindu gods and arches where priests were said to have meditated..
Here's my instant friend, saying a little prayer himself...
The temple also had an older Buddhist part attached which was beautiful...
Next, we drove to the 'Holy Spring Temple', another Hindu temple, which has water springs said to be holy, so people prayed and bathed there. Again this was really beautiful..
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Next we went to a coffee plantation. There's a type of coffee sold in Indonesia called 'Lemuk' coffee or 'Civet cat coffee' (slang= poo coffee). Basically they keep these palm civets, which can select the best coffee seeds, eat them and pass them out in their poo. They then collect the seeds and sell them at extortionate prices. The coffee itself has no caffeine (due to digestion) and costs up to £5 a cup in restaurants. I was offered some, but politely declined.. :0)
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Next we saw, one of two active volcanoes (from a distance, thankfully) - Mount Batur & lake Batur. You can still see the lava when it erupted in 1963, to the left, killing 10,000 people...
Next we saw the biggest Hindu temple in Bali, 'Besaki', where more 'instant friends' appeared, but the driver had fore-warned me and i agreed a price of £2 to show me around..
If you were wearing shorts, you have to cover up with a sarong in each hindu temple, ie dress respectfully...
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We rounded the tour off with lunch at a restaurant next to stepped rice fields which are common around here..
The meal was a buffet, so i made sure i got my money's worth and ate for 2 people :)
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Had a really nice waiter who posed for the camera at the end ..
All in all, i ended up really enjoying the tour..
The next day i set off on a ferry to Lombok and the Gili islands...
