A Day in ULUWATU, BALI | Uluwatu Temple, Ramayan Dance, Sea beaches Uluwatu, Indonesia
I like the fact that this eatery allows you to prepare your own Campur. We are eating Nasi Campur. You can pick whatever you want.
Namaskar friends! Welcome to Visa2explore! This is your host, Harish Bali. Right now, we are in Uluwatu! You already know we're travelling in Bali and we've shot several episodes too. Tourists visiting Bali make it a point to visit Uluwatu as well. Along with the temple visit, they love to watch the Kecak dance performance. We've already purchased the temple entry ticket.
Per person price of ticket is 50,000 Indonesia Rupees (IDR). That would be Rs 250 per person in Indian currency. We've got the tickets. Let's go and visit the temple. The tickets for the Kecak dance are available at another place. We'll buy that ticket as well.
Right! Come, we'll have to wear a sarong like this to enter temple. Once we entered the temple,... ...we thought let's do one thing first. Let's watch the sea view first. Let me also show you the temple from a distance & then we'll go to the temple. This is a popular photography point for everyone who visits here. But at the same time, they also fear these monkeys because they seem aggressive.
You won't even know when they will snatch your spectacles or food item. I mean it is risky to carry any food item around here. I am not feeling courageous enough to go further and click a photograph.
Okay, that is enough! I am getting to the side now. See, I am enjoying such a beautiful view of the sea from here. So beautiful! Awesome! Everyone clicks photographs from here only, no one goes down because there's no beach.
Lovely! We need to climb 40-50 stairs to reach the temple. Each stair is a little more than half a feet in height. Earlier, I was standing on that side of the mountain. You can see people clicking photographs from atop the cliff. From there, we climbed stairs for 7-8 minutes and... ...now we are looking at the sea from a different angle and height. We are particularly watching this viewpoint.
It is looking wonderful! Around here are several spots where you can enjoy the view & click good photographs. This place has two temples. One is here, which you can see on your screens. And the other temple is there, in the distance. On that side.
Outside the temple, they have written "Do Not Enter. Only For Worshipping!" This means tourists cannot enter. Only the locals can go in for worshipping.
Among the surroundings here, obviously, there is the temple, which I showed. On this side, we can see... ...a dense forest. One reason why there are so many monkeys around could be that this is a forest area. There is one thing noteworthy about this place. Outside the temple, there is a statue of Bhagwan Ganesh. In Bali, I've seen Ganesh idols outside temples as well as people's homes.
While you are on your way to watch Kecak Dance after the temple visit... ...you must stop here for a while. The sea waves look beautiful from here. The waves are crashing against the mountain-side. It feels spectacular to watch the changing colours of sea water during the evening time. Now, look there, that is where the Kecak dance will be performed. The time is 10 minutes to six.
It would be good to book an online ticket in advance. If you want to book a ticket here, it will take you half an hour in a queue. Tourists start gathering at the entrance to where the performance would take place.
Come, let us go down there and pick our ticket. We will now join you once we reach the venue. As soon as we entered the amphitheatre to watch the Kecak dance... ...we saw a group of people sitting there. They were sitting in a circle and emanating a continuous sound 'chak-chak, chak-chak!" The literal meaning of Kecak is...
...replacing music with sounds created through mouth. Kecak means a musical performance without using musical instruments. The performance begins with Bhagwan Ram and Mata Sita living in exile. After that, Bhagwan Ram is shown going after the golden deer. On hearing Bhagwan Ram crying for help, Sita Mata sends Lakshman for help. Before leaving, Lakshman draws a 'Lakshman Rekha' around Sita Mata. Then, they show Ravan's entry.
When Ravan kidnaps Sita Mata and is on the way to Lanka,... ...the stage set up is changed and performers also change costumes. And they keep making the same sound 'Chak-chak, chak-chak." That sound continues throughout the performance. Then it is time for the entry of Hanuman Ji. Hanuman Ji is carrying Bhagwan Ram's message.
There, he is captured by the demons and... ...when he sets Lanka on fire before escaping... ...that scene garnered a huge applause from the audience. The next scene shows Bhagwan Ram killing Ravan. And conquered Lanka. The key highlights of this whole performance are - Facial expressions throughout the performance. And the entry of Hanuman Ji, for which the audience applauded profusely. In order to engage the audience,...
...the Hanuman Ji went and sat among the audience at times. Or he started scratching an audience member's head. This helped the audience enjoy the performance even more. Right now, the show is over and I am standing outside the arena. If you visit here, try to book tickets for the first show of the day. That way, you will be able to enjoy the view during both day time and night too. Overall, this visit was worth it! We will now meet tomorrow morning.
Tomorrow, we will together go on a tour of the famous tourist places of Uluwatu. For now, it is good night! Hello! In Uluwatu, we are starting our day with sightseeing at... ...the Suluban Beach. This beach is more famous for surfing. We parked our car about 100 meters from here. There are cafes on both sides of the road. This looks like a resort.
Wow! Wonderful! Terrific! The aerial view of the sea is magnificent. Now, on that side, some tourists are boating. And many more are doing surfing. Look at the view where surfing is going on! I've been observing for the past few days... ...that there are several places in Bali... ...where one can have a drink while gazing out at the sea. What a wonderful experience it would be! Come, let us walk down this path.
After walking down 50-60 stairs, I came across several shops... ...from where you can rent surfing boards. Come, let us go down. We've already walked down a lot but we still have to go down 20-30 stairs more. It feels good to be here.
Look at this! A huge mountain and a natural arc at its bottom. Nice! When the water flows backward here... ...it doesn't feel like anything at first. But when a huge wave comes in, this whole area is filled with water. So much fun! See how lovely this looks! Oh man! Crazy! Amazing! We have walked a little further after walking down the stairs. But from here, you cannot go up to the sea.
There are some cafes where you can enjoy the sea view while drinking or eating. If you enjoy while standing by the sea... ......for that, I am taking you back to the place where I was 5 minutes ago. This is the place where you can enjoy the incoming sea waves. This is a good photography spot! You can see people standing in between two huge mountains. One can click beautiful pictures at this spot.
Right now, it is high tide. So, we cannot go further on foot but in the afternoon, when it will be low tide... ...tourists can go further and stand in front of this huge mountain. Those who want to surf, of course, can just take their boards and go. We spent a good time here. Overall, I liked this beach.
Now, we are going to Padang Padang Beach. From the parking, it will take us hardly 10-15 minutes to reach the beach. Let's go now. In Bali, I see tourist experiences are available zone-wise. If I talk of North Bali, it has lots of waterfall. North Bali also has lots of greenery and peaceful environs.
But still, there aren't many tourists who go to North Bali. Most of the tourists visit Ubud, go to Kuta or Nusa Penida. Talking of Ubud, here you'll get to visit many temples. It is said that Ubud is the 'Cultural Capital' of Bali. In Nusa Penida, we saw numerous sea beaches. We enjoyed our time there.
Mostly, tourists choose Nusa Penida for a day trip, they go & come back the same day. But I don't think it is a nice idea. One must spend at least a night in Nusa Penida. Now, in Uluwatu, we visited a temple.
We also saw the dance performance in the evening. And now, we are visiting all the sea beaches in this area. Now, we are going to travel for 3 KM from here. Thereafter, we'll reach Padang Padang sea beach.
We are near Padang Padang sea beach. The parking area here is huge. The sea beach we visited earlier is famous. And this sea is beach is also famous in Uluwatu.
To go to the beach, we bought ticket worth Rs 80 per person in Indian currency. Do not tear this. Yeah, okay! Thank you! This entrance looks like I am entering a cave. Really...
...I have never seen such a path to reach the sea anywhere. Tourists visiting here bring their own sheets or purchase sheets here. They spread the sheets on sand and lie down for sunbath. Great! Oh wow! What fun! Look at how clean the seawater is! Right now, I am standing in water that is at least 2 to 2.5 feet deep.
I can see even small, tiny stones lying beneath the water. The water is moving in a way as if a current is passing through it. Oh wow! Highly impressive! There is one highlight of this beach. People are enjoying swimming even in 4-5 feet deep water. So far, I've understood that if you want to enjoy these waters... ...you must prefer peaceful waters to the rough waves. You can see tourists surfing on that side! The Suluban beach we visited earlier is also famous for surfing.
And so is this beach. I tried talking to several people to find out that... ...which country sends most tourists to Bali and I found out... ...that before Covid pandemic, the top 5 countries were Australia, China,... ...Singapore, France, and India. India was the 5th country to send most tourists to Bali. But as of today,... ...although Australia is still top on that list, India has progressed to the No. 2 position. Then come France, England, and China. As of now, lesser tourists are visiting Bali from China.
Peak season to visit Bali would be between July and September. There isn't any plus point of visiting during the peak season. Because the heat you will face in April, May, July or September will be the same.
This is because this place enjoys only two seasons in a year. It is either rain or summer season. Now let me tell you, between July and September, hotel expenses will be higher. Air-fare and local transport will also be higher.
Besides everything, the traffic situation locally is also going to be an issue. The amount of traffic doubles during peak season. You saw while we were travelling to Nusa Penida on a ferry,... ...we booked our tickets offline instead of booking tickets in advance. We got to board the ferry at a notice of 30 minutes.
However, during July-Sept, you'll compulsorily have to book tickets in advance. So, I am not talking of just hotels, but also of services like ferry. Let me add more to your knowledge.
That way you can better plan your tour. By the way, March and April are also good months to visit. March is a monsoon month but that won't affect your mobility.
You will still be able to move around. Here, more people prefer to sit, lie down, or relax by the seashore. Or to drink and enjoy! Let's roam around for 10-15 minutes and click a few photographs. Then, we will go for lunch. I am enjoying here. Now, let us go back the way we came.
We'll have lunch now. For lunch, we've come to Yeye's restaurant. Now, this is their menu! It is special because... ...it allows you to prepare your own version of Nasi Campur. You can select options in both vegetarian or non-vegetarian Campur.
For instance, they have available mushrooms, roasted pumpkin, quinoa, and much more. They've written veg and non-veg options so let's start looking around. I am familiar with the Tempeh and behind it are corn fritters.
On this side is Toge, which I also ate this morning for breakfast. I have had Tempeh several times but never in coconut curry. Great! This is a curry made with Moringa leaves. This is whole Moong dal. Red Bean curry or, as we know it, Rajma! I won't be able to eat all of this but I will choose 3-4 options.
I like the fact that this eatery allows you to prepare your own Campur. We are eating Nasi Campur. You can pick whatever you want. Now, let's see what all we've got on our plate.
Rajma, Baingan (eggplant)! Moringa leaves (Drumstick leaves) cooked in coconut milk! Indian vegetable curry! Tempeh! The curry of Tempeh is made with coconut milk, and I am also eating plain rice. First, let me taste the Rajma and see how these are different from Rajma back home. The Rajma that we eat at home! It is difficult for me to tell how these Rajma are different from the ones we eat at home. Rajma is something we eat at home on weekly basis! But this Rajma curry tastes different! This Rajma has a certain sweetness to it. I am talking of the gravy, not Rajma as such.
I won't be surprised if they have added sugar or palm sugar to the Rajma! I have seen palm sugar is very popular here. In the past 10 days, I've observed that if you go for vegetarian Nasi Camput anywhere,... ...this is the only way you will be served eggplant. It would taste the same -simplistic! Salt is minimal and no chili at all! I have had Moringa leaves in a dish several times in the past. But it is for the first time I am eating it in coconut curry. I never got such a chance earlier.
Coconut milk lends a different flavour to the leaves. As earlier, this dish also has no trace of spices. It means this food is suitable for people of all age groups.
And those who don't want chilies at all, this food is the best option. Without really planning for it,... ...in the past 10 days, I've eaten Tempeh at least once during the day. The only difference here is that it has been cooked in coconut milk. To be honest, I don't like Tempeh in coconut milk as such... ...but if they are serving here, it means there are people who like this dish. To sum up, I liked the food served here. In Bali, I saw that Tempeh and tofu are part of several food items.
I wasn't able to discern the difference between the two. So, I decided to visit a unit to understand the whole process of making Tempeh and tofu. That recording is part of our 3rd episode of this series.
So, if you want to learn what is tempeh and tofu as well as the difference between them.. ....you should watch this series' third episode. During the 3rd episode, you will also see that we went to a famous restaurant for lunch. The eatery's name is Sun Sun Warung. If you visit Ubud and have time at hand, you can go there for lunch.
I've often been asked how I locate such Warungs, Dhabas, or eateries. The reason behind it is that... ...I start thinking of my options right after my breakfast, even while I am sightseeing. Since morning, I am excited about where I am going to have lunch. Once lunch is over, I start thinking of dinner.
It is in this excitement that I keep finding such eateries. This is the lighter side of things. But on a serious note,...
...I think I do more food-based research than sightseeing research. Now, let us leave Yeye's Warung. And let's visit another famous beach. No surprise! Now, we are going to visit Pandva Beach, which is 20 minutes away. Eventually, it took us 30 minutes to reach the Pandva beach. It is a huge parking space where we've parked our car.
By the way, we've already started seeing the sea from here. Lot of my subscribers told me that... ...I shouldn't miss visiting Pandva Beach on my trip to Uluwatu. That means there is something special about this beach.
Wow! It is looking nice! We've reached the Pandva Beach. It is looking good! Since it is evening time, the sunlight doesn't feel harsh anymore. I am thinking of doing some Kayaking here.
That's why I am wearing this jacket. The kayak charges are Rs 500 per person in Indian currency. I will get to do kayaking for 30 minutes.
Where has he gone after making me wear this life jacket? Oh! There he is! Though it isn't required, I still asked him to accompany me, to feel better. He can at least save me if I fall into the water. We are going that side? Oh lovely! Wow! I had so much fun! Yeah! Thanks! Our ride from here till that point was interesting! The water was not at all deep. Hardly 2 feet deep maximum! The sea view from there was also good! One can feel the sea waves at that point, and not here at all. The specialty of this beach, in comparison to the beaches we visited today...
...is that here you get to sea water plants. You also get to enjoy a kayaking experience here. And there is also a long sea line. Therefore, you can walk along the sea for a long distance. So nice! It was good! We are now leaving for Kuta and the time is 5 in the evening. It will take us an hour to reach Kuta.. If we are able to reach Kuta by 6 PM...
...we will be able to catch the sunset view. It means we don't have much time to waste. The sun usually sets around 6.15 or 6.20 PM. Now, we have only today and tomorrow... ...to enjoy these beautiful sunsets. Let's go now.
While passing this road earlier, we didn't stop anywhere untill we reached the beach. While returning, we wanted to enjoy the aerial view of the sea, which is wonderful! A while ago, we were standing by the sea. I even went further into the sea in my kayak.
And now watching the same view from a height. Wow! What a beauty! There is a lighthouse in front of us. Here, you will see, by the mountainside, the statues of...
...5 Pandava brothers and their mother, Kunti Mata. Let me show you those statues closely. Here, you can see, 'Dharma' is written. So, this statue is Yudhishthir's. Then there is Bheem's statue. And, there is, on that side, you can see, Mata Kunti's statue.
These beautiful statues are placed into alcoves carved into the mountainside. This is why, the beach is known as 'Pandva Beach.' We've reached the Kuta Beach.
I am standing in the parking right now. First of all, take a look upwards. What you see is a statue of Varun Devta (Hindu God of sky, oceans and water). When we reached the parking, the first thing I saw was this statue. So, we had to stop our car and take a good look at the statue.
Beautiful! Let's go! We were able to reach the beachside at least 15 minutes before the sunset time. We will be able to see the sunset from right where we have parked our car. It is looking good! Nice! Looking at the clouds, it seems we won't be able to see the sun dropping into the ocean. The sun will hide behind the clouds before that. That is what I feel, anyways,... ...let's see how far we can watch the sun setting. As of now, that is where I can see most of the tourists gathering.
We have reached half a kilometer ahead while walking on the beach. Right in front of me, a little upwards, there are lots of eateries. This could be the reason why more people are gathered on this side of the beach. I was apprehensive about the kind of sunset we will get to watch here.
What we call the best sunset view! Still, it is okay to watch the sun going down behind the clouds. In another 15-20 minutes, it will be completely dark. See, those boys are playing my favourite sport! Although now, it has been 2-3 years since I stopped playing football. Especially after I got done a surgery for my meniscus tear.
From here, if we start walking straight for about 2 to 2.5 KM,... ...we will reach Seminyak Beach. And before that falls another beach. So you can keep on walking like this. And enjoy the sea like we did, while walking for about a kilometer close to the water.
It feels good! There is low tide in the sea right now. That is why people are venturing deeper into the sea. If it would have been high tide, people would have preferred to stay closer to the beach. We are going to finish our episode here. Let me tell you our plan for tomorrow.
We will do sightseeing for some time in Kuta. Surroundings! We will also spend some time in Seminyak! As for our Bali tour... ...today would be the second-last episode and tomorrow's journey would be the last. We are returning home day after tomorrow. It is time to say goodbye now. Thanks for your time! Oh God! Today...
...has been an exceptional day! In India, I have done jet-skiing several times. But never have I ever travelled so deep into the sea. I mean, they let us do jet-skiing for 2 minutes, or maximum for 2.5 minutes. Today is the first time I am on a jet ski for 15 minutes and...
....for most of that time, I was riding the jet-ski and... ...that too at a full-on fast speed.
2024-06-03 00:36
