Out of all the places I had been in Bali, I think the natural salt mining farm was the most interesting visit in my itinerary. The place was well-maintained, and it was unexpectedly impressive. I'm glad that I had included this in the trip, along with other places that even my driver had not been to. In fact, I felt like he had discovered a lot of things from this trip.
It was quite ironical, considering that he is living in Bali, but he has not explored much of Bali. Well, thanks to my sense of adventure and also the power of the Internet, which enabled me to do all the research that I wanted to do prior to the trip!
The first thing that I noticed about Kusamba beach is its black sand. I wanted to go barefooted at first but I had to abandon the idea right away. Walking on hot sand was like walking on hot coals - the sand was hot! Upon our arrival at Kusamba around noon, the lady at the farm was drying rice seeds on the beach.
I could see that the weather here was indeed favourable for salt mining, besides its close proximity to the sea. I bet it would only take 1hr to dry my washed clothes here.
And look what I've found here. These look like the place mats commonly placed on the dining table. They were left to dry too before they were to be sold in the market.
The lady, who seemed to be the only one around, brought us to the area where she mined the salt.
She said that salt water was left to dry for 2 to 3 days and the residue collected could be seen here. What amazed me the most is the salt - it is the whitest, purest salt I had ever seen. Under the sun, it seemed to be sparkling like crystals.
I circled to the small hut and saw more salt, along with containers filled with saltwater. I could not resist not buying salt from this place. The salt here looked so perfect!
After looking around, I went to the ocean to collect saltwater with this simple equipment.
It looked so easy when the lady carried the saltwater, so I decided to do the same thing. My shoulders were screaming from the weight the moment she transferred the load on me. It was so heavy! Imagine having to walk up and down across the sand to get to the hut. I wondered how the lady could do it. Despite her small frame, her shoulders were really tough and steady. It was quite embarrassing actually for me because I didn't last even 2 minutes.
The lady spilled some of the saltwater so it wouldn't be too heavy for me to carry.
This trip was educational and I loved discovering new things. Although my parents were quite puzzled as to why I would want to go to this place, it seemed that they too had enjoyed themselves by the time we set off to another place in my itinerary. Yahoo... I was glad that they had learnt something too.
Well, that's all I have this time. Until then, ciao.
While in Bali, we visited Taman Nusa, a cultural park - featuring a collection of traditional houses found in different parts of Indonesia. In total, there are about 34 provinces in Indonesia and each of them has its own unique architecture and tradition. Hence, you can expect an extensive showcase of architectural exhibits and cultural displays here.
There is a lot of walking to do though because the park itself is very huge. I would spare myself at least 3 hours to explore this place, with a hat and sunglasses on, of course. The heat here is quite unbearable. There were times whereby I kept thinking of my nice cool sanctuary back at the villa while I was walking around. Imagine that!!
Well, here are some of my photos in Taman Nusa.
There's a miniature Borobudur right at the entrance of the park. I have always wanted to go to Central Java to see the real thing, but didn't have the opportunity yet. So seeing this mini Borobudur in Bali is quite a consolation for me.
Over here is the house of the Papuan tribe in Papua, formerly known as West Irian Jaya. The Papuans are really good in wood-crafting and even the exterior walls of their homes were decorated with interesting wood crafts. Presently, the Papuans still live in small villages and follow traditional tribal customs.
We met a Papuan couple in Taman Nusa and meeting them was quite awkward for me. Somehow I had in my head mental images of headhunting, cannibalism, and deadly sorcery.
I find this door interesting. Unfortunately, I couldn't remember the name of this traditional house or from which province it belongs to. It was such a hot day on that day and the sweltering heat was making me really uncomfortable.
There were quite a number of traditional houses that caught my attention. The house of the Sasak tribe, for instance, can be found in Lombok. The uniqueness of the house is its roof. It is shaped like a mountain and is made of woven bamboo. There is only one window in the house so the interior was quite dark and musty. There's, however, a verandah right beneath the house, so I guess people spend most of their daily time there.
Another interesting structure in Taman Nusa is this conical house, which belongs to the Wae Rebo community, in the Flores Island. Made of wood, bamboo and rattan fibers, this house has five levels. Starting from the first level, the house consists of the family's living quarters, followed by the storage for food and goods, then the storage for seeds, then the reserved storage for food in times of drought and lastly, the place for the offerings of ancestors.
Currently, there is an ongoing project to preserve this traditional house in Flores as there are only about 8 such houses left.
This is one of the simple interior decorations that make a kampong house looks presentable and tidy.
The art of weaving mat using screwpine leaves is also shown here. When the mat is complete, it will be used to sit on or sometimes, to sleep on.
Here's another tribal house, which has some interesting features. There were some animals' skeletons right at the front of the house. These skeletal display marks the status of the person living in the house, so it seems that the more skeletal display hung outside the house, the higher the status of the person is.
And that's not the only interesting thing about this house.
Me: Where's the door?
Guide: This is the door.
Me: What? Isn't this the window?
Guide: No. This is the door. (Then, he placed his hands on the ledge, elevated himself from the ground and pushed up his body to get to the small opening which he claimed to be the door. After that, he brought his knee up, so that he could enter leg first into the house
Urghh.. I don't think I want to do those acrobatic moves just to enter this house. I guess this is the way the tribal people prevent intruders from entering their homes. And to some extent, it works!
Of all the houses which we had seen, I like these two houses the most. The house of Sulawesi and the Gedang House of Minangkabau are really unique especially their rooftops.
Overall, I would really love to go to Taman Nusa again. It will be nice to wander on my own, without a guide, and then read the information board without having to feel rushed. Also, the best timing to visit the park is at 4pm, when the weather is cool and the sun is not directly above your head.
That's all for now. Ciao.
This is my second time in Bali. I just can't get out of my mind the many unexplored places which I have missed the other time. Also, I have yet to experience the Indonesian culinary, which I didn't really indulge previously. So here I am in this island again; this time with my parents.
This is my meal on-board SQ. I have opted for a vegetarian, lacto-ovo meal and I didn't know that veg meal is so-so much more appetizing than any other meals. Swiftly, I made up my mind in between bites that I'm going to go for vegetarian the next time I'm flying.
The villa where I stayed in Jimbaran was worth the money spent. I must admit that I have splurged big time in this trip, opting for something different for my accommodation. This is my holiday treat to my parents for all the things they have done for me.
Actually, it's quite hard to plan the itinerary when I travel with my parents. Both are into shopping and it is kind of like a pain in the butt, but it's worth it I guess when I think of the quality time I got to spend with them. Family times are becoming rarer these days, especially when everyone is so busy with their own things.
And the villa comes with a private swimming pool. Yahoo.... Until now, I can remember a lot of good memories spent with my parents at the pool.
On the first day, I spent most of my evening on the beach, watching the locals tending their boats. One good thing about the villa is its location. It's smacked right in the middle of the fishermen village and so we find ourselves with the Balinese as our neighbours. The Balinese are really nice people.
Every evening, children will get together to play soccer. The youngsters will sit outside their house and discuss about whatever interest them. Some of the elderly males will also be at the veranda, enjoying the cool air.
An elderly grandma actually approached us on our fourth day. We chatted and she invited us to her home. For me, living among the Balinese was a great experience, even though our stay was really brief.
This man makes a living by selling corns, roasted on charcoal. We bought some and the corns were really sweet to munch on. I've not had corns that tasted this good. Each corn costs about 10,000 rupiah; its price is slightly a bit more for the foreigner, but if you think through, the meager profit he is earning will be used to feed his family.
We had dinner at Lia Cafe after that. It was packed at the cafe and I realised that most diners had made their bookings earlier on as there were quite a number of reservations on the table.
Lia Cafe is certainly famous in this area since there are so many good reviews about them online.
While admiring the sunset, we waited for our food to be served. It took them quite a long time. From being really hungry, I ended up being moderately hungry. I think the waiting time is one of the shortcomings of the cafe, as my anticipation level dipped with each passing moments.
Finally, our food arrived. We have ordered the set meal consisting of crabs, prawns, fish and squids. It was a satisfying meal overall and the price was reasonable.
A day past just like that and I'm looking forward to enjoy my time here. Will be posting more of my travels in Bali. Stay tuned.
This was what I did when I was left to my own devices. Yippee.. I got myself surrounded with flowers. Away from the crowd, and as close as possible to nature. When I was in the "unexplored" places, I felt like the whole world belong to me. It's so rejuvenating.
Just as I was squatting next to a new patch of flowers with my camera, the wind carried the words spoken by one of the staffs. I was actually amazed because they were situated quite far. I was referred to as 'the girl with the flowers'. Seriously, I hope I don't look like a flower maniac at that time. But then again, even if I did, I have no regrets because my photos turn out to be quite good.
More flowers to come...
There were quite a lot of purple flowers at Sovereign Hill. I'm not sure why. Perhaps, the gardeners love this colour?
The flowers were absolutely fabulous. I do love Sovereign Hill. Although it is man-made, it offers quite a lot of nature and I am a great fan of the many gardens that could be found there.
These are my two favourite photos because I spent a great deal of my time in here.
As you can see, there's no human being in sight. It was so peaceful and tranquil. Voices, especially incessant talking, loud wailing or crazy shouting were absent. Human activities that always drive me crazy were null too, like the banging of doors, the loud music from someone else audio players or the shrill honking of impatient drivers.
In that moment, it is so enjoyable just listening to the sing-song chirping of this bird, along with the occasional rustling of some leaves and branches. A very rare moment for me and it's something that I will cherish. Well, I hope you enjoy this post as much as I recall my memories at Sovereign Hill.
Got to go for now. Ciao.
