After two days in Bali, Diana observed that at home, people decorate with paintings and photos of distant beautiful places like Hawaii and Paris. In Bali, all the artwork is of Bali.
"I guess you don't need pictures of other places when you're already in Paradise!" she said.
However, the Balinese aren't content with the natural beauty of their island. They like to create beauty offset by Bali's beauty. The 15th century priest Danghyang Nirartha decided to use some of Bali's most striking places to form the backdrops of the great temples he designed.
He positioned his two masterpieces, Tanah Lot and Uluwatu on the cliffs of Bali's southern shores so that muslim sailors passing by would see the grand temples and know Bali was a Hindu island.
Niratha was one of the brilliant, artistic minds the Majaphit royalty took with them from Java. As Islam took hold of Java and the Hindu rulers were forced out, they fled to neighboring Bali bringing their culture of music and art with them. The Majaphits and Niratha transformed Bali into a Hindu island filled with architectural treasures.
On a lazy Sunday after a fantastic organic brunch in the middle of Ubud's rice fields along the Tjampuhan River, Jacob, Diana, Emily and I set out for Tanah Lot, located in the Kingdom of Tabanan on Bali's southwest coast.
The drive from Ubud to Tanah Lot is unassuming. We passed along small roads through a series of indescript villages. However, the closer we got to Tanah Lot, the better the scenery as eventually the small road runs is completely surrounded by unending rice terraces cascading all the way down to the sea. Many of them were being harvested and Jacob and Diana were able to see the browner stages of rice farming as well as the hard labor that goes into scything the fields and separating the grains from the stalks.
Entering the Tanah Lot complex is like arriving at Disneyland. Cars and buses pull up to multiple lanes of toll booths where they pay entrance and parking fees before finding their spots in any one of sections A through L.
Throughout the parking lot and pathways leading down to the temple entrance are rows upon rows of shops and food stands. With people walking the streets eating freshly roasted ears of corn and sipping fresh juice drinks, it felt very much like an amusement park – until we entered the temple gates.
Tanah Lot is a huge complex with several small temples along the sea cliffs. The largest and holiest of them is on a large rock cut off from the mainland by the tide. Worshipers and priests can either cross by foot at low tide or take a small boat at their peril.
While the temple structure itself isn't as ornate or large as Uluwatu on Bali's southern tip or even Ulun Danu at the volcanic lake in Bedugul, the way the temple meshes with the incredible giant trees and the rock itself is breathtaking. Niratha had staircases, steps and a place to dock boats carved right into the rock.
With the roaring, crashing waves and unending sea sea behind it, Tanah Lot puts on a show 24 hours a day. It is one of Bali's great sites and a phenomenal piece of Balinese cultural achievement.
While admiring the temple, both couples walked hand in hand, admired the views, the incredibly manicured grounds and felt the magic and wonder of Balinese culture.
The one point of sadness was a sign at the entrance of the temple acknowledging and thanking the government of Japan for it's generous aid in preserving Tanah Lot by establishing defenses against large waves. It was a sadly ironic moment and a reminder of how linked we all are.
After a great Sunday brunch and an architectural and spiritual wonder, the next step was obvious – get massages. We all headed back to Ubud where we got various spa treatments to see just how far four people in Bali can unwind on a Sunday.
And then we did what we all do best – eat. My favorite meal in Bali, too – Cafe Wayan's Sunday night buffet of traditional Balinese festival foods. It also happens to be Jacob's most memorable meal from his previous visit here and so good that it also got its very own blog entry. So, we'll leave it at that.
Except to say that at the end of a busy, fun and relaxing weekend in Bali, we're still having fun. We continue to catch up, learn about each other, enjoy each other's company and laugh. And that's the real paradise.
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