Purifying my Mind, Body and Soul in Bali

Mary, Jennifer and I, decided to take a day trip outside Ubud and act a bit touristy for a change.

Mary organized the driver to pick us up at 8am and I came up with a list of places we should explore. After discussing with the driver, Gede, we narrowed down to top four places, this would give us a lot of time to relax at each place without rushing ourselves.

The drive through the rice fields and small towns while listening to stories about Bali from our driver Gede, made our trip so much more fun and informative.

First stop, Telagannga Rice Paddy Fields –

It is simply breathtaking and a visit to Bali is not complete until you’ve not been here. If I visit again to Bali, I would opt to stay around here so I can wake up to this beauty.

I know the swing ride is so touristy and instagramish but I wanted to feel the adrenaline and flying over the rice fields, so yes I hopped onto one of them. Be ready for being cheesy 🙂

Walking through the fields and becoming one with nature is a feeling I can’t describe in words. It was getting super hot so we decided to order some juices at the cafe on top of the fields and did spend a long time enjoying the view. Our driver called us to make sure that we were ok since most tourists are in and out but not us.

Just a side note – You’ve to pay an entrance fee to enter this area but also have to make a donation for entering and exiting the fields. It’s not much at all but the process is annoying but since it helps the individual field owner maintain the path for tourist is worth the frustration.

Holy Springs of Tirta Empul –

By the time we got to the temple grounds, we were fortunate to see the festival ceremony procession. It was beautiful so to see the locals dressed into colorful dresses and sarongs carrying offerings while the musicians played their various instruments.

Tirta Empul is the place where the locals have been coming for nearly 1,000 years to purify their souls. The water into the spring flows from Pakerisan River. According to legend, Indra, the Hindu god created this spring that feeds the springs 13 fountains and infused it with magical powers, each fountain has specific meaning and reason, so make sure you know them or else you might be doing last rite ritual for a recent deceased family member or seeking blessing for fertility, unless you do want more kids, just saying 🙂

Before we took a dip in the holy water, we explored the temple complex, which was beautifully decorated for today’s ceremony.

What can I say about the springs… well, we did have a wonderful spiritual experience in the holy water as we moved from one fountain to the next. There was truly some magical feeling as we purified our souls and got rid off the evil energy. I did feel much lighter as if I had dropped off all the life’s baggage that was weighing me down.

Lunch in the rice fields –

After Tirta Empul, our driver took us to a really nice restaurant set in the midst of rice fields. Had a delicious Indonesian Vegetarian platter.

Pura Gunung Kawi Temple –

Gunung Kawi is an 11th-century temple and funeral complex set in the Midst of rice fields and forest. You have to walk nearly 400 steps to get here.

What’s spectacular about this place are the 10 rock-cut shrines that are carved into some 7-metre-high sheltered niches of the sheer cliff face dedicated to King Anak Wungsu and his favorite queens.

What’s really cool is that President Obama visited this temple when he and his family holidayed in Bali in late June 2017.

We did end up spending some time here enjoying the serenity and chatting with Gede. Listening to his family life, local customs and outlook on what’s happening in Bali.

No waterfalls today –

We had initially planned to visit the waterfalls as our last stop but decided to skip it since it was nearly 5:30pm. We opted to head back to Ubud and have a nice meal instead.

Today was a perfect balance between exploring, enjoying each moment rather than rushing and spending quality time with new friends. I’m so grateful for our friendship on this spiritual journey.