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Bangli
 The
district of Bangli has some
of the most superb scenery on the island of Bali. The
mountains of Abang (2152 meters) and Batur (1717 meters)
tower high over a mountainous territory and the deep
calderas lake, Danau Batur lies tranquilly below.
A ridge top
road with stupendous views on either side passes through
windswept mouton villages where dwell a mountain people
who through centuries of struggle for survival in a
climate of extremes have developed a distinctive nature:
a spontaneous humor and fiery temperament which
dominates the rough dialect of Balinese that they speak.
The altitude of these upper slopes precludes rice
farming, and two thirds of the region’s land is
utilized in dry land farming: sweet potatoes, peanuts,
vanilla, cloves, coffee, oranges, lemons and cabbages.
The more gentle slopes
surrounding Bangli, the major towns of the regency are
lush in comparison to the mountainous areas, and the
southern lands drop in a terraced staircase of rice
fields towards the sea.
The former capital of a kingdom
that evolved during the fragmentation of the Gelgel
dynasty, Bangli is a sleepy little town which comes to
life every three days on market day, when the villagers
from the surrounding area flock their wares and produce
and a bustling thoroughfare develop on the eastern side
of the town.
There are three major markets in the region
that alternate on consecutive days, that of Bangli,
Kayuambua, and Kintamani.
Ancient lontar and stone
inscriptions dating back to the century indicate that
the earliest known kingdom in Bali. Nothing remains
today of this distant past, and today’s village is a
jumble of wooden houses with tin roofs that show little
mark of the traditional Balinese architecture abounding
in the rest of the island.
There is an ancient hilltop sanctuary,
Pura Tegeh Koripan, several kilometers past Kintamani on
a winding road, thought to have once belonged to the
Pejeng Kingdom. This is actually a series of temples,
scattered at different levels on a steep stone staircase
that often disappears into the swirling mountain mists,
where a number of different village clans come to
worship.
At the upper level is a bare courtyard with a
number of simple shelters containing ancient statues of
Balinese Rajas, divinities and lingga stones. These
statues have been traced back to a number of different
periods, ranging between the 11th and 15th
Centuries.
Mount Batur has lain
semi-dormant now for over ten years, the occasional wisp
of smoke from its crater and the hot springs at its base
the only indication of volcanic activity. The original
village of Batur, at the base of this mountain, was
covered by lava in 1927 during the last major eruption.
Earlier eruptions had given ample warning, and the flow
of molten rock even paused exactly at the temple gates
at one stage, in what seemed like a miraculous
deliveration by the gods. However, when disaster became
obvious, there was still time for the villagers to
remove the sacred temple icons and their few precious
belongings high up on the ridge where the present
village and its "transplanted" temple, Pura
Ulun Danu, remain today.
The Town of Bangli
Once the capital of a kingdom
descended from the early Gelgel Dynasty, Bangli is still
the major administrative town of the regency. Here the
air is fresh and cool compared to the lowlands of south
Bali. There are two home stays, one a youth hostel, the
other a converted part of the old palace.
Bali’s main
psychiatric hospital is situated on the road, which runs
westward from the centre of town, on spacious grounds
where it is not unusual to see patient’s busy
gardening. At Banjar Pande there is a family of smiths
who make silver and gold jewellery as well as the fine
hand-beaten silver bowls that play a large part in
offering presentation, and other religious
paraphernalia.
Pura Kehen
 The original state temple, Pura
Kehen can be found on the northeastern boundary of the
town. Ancient records prove this temple to have already
been in use during the early 1200’s. Steep stairs lead
to the major entrance door, which is topped by a huge
demon’s face, Kala Makara, guardian of the temple.
On
either side of the steep flight of stairs are a line of
towering stone statues on pedestals the heroic
characters of the Wayang stories.
The first and lower
courtyard has a towering banyan tree, and the walls are
set with inlays of antique Chinese porcelains that have
been covered with moss and lichen over the centuries. In
the upper courtyard is a towering eleven tiered Meru
shrine and a Padmasana with thrones to the Hindu
trinity.
Penglipuran
Village
 Two
kilometers from Pura Kehen is the small village of
Penglipuran which has been restored by the local government
as a "typical" Balinese village.
Sasana Budaya
Just past Pura Kehen is a large
cultural centre consisting of a number of pavilions in a
beautifully landscaped garden, sometimes used for
exhibitions of local crafts and performances by the
local gamelan and dance groups.
Bukit Damulih
As the road climbs northwards
out of Bangli a little hill comes into view, known as
Bukit Damulih. This is well worth climbing, as it has a
picturesque little temple at the top with a stunning
view over central Bali " Damulih" means
"don’t go home ", so be careful not to fall
under magic spell of this place.
Bamboo Forest
The road climbs up from Bangli
passing thorough bamboo forest and dry upland terraces
at the village of Kayu Ubi women make the finely woven
bamboo baskets which are used all over the island for
carrying goods and offerings on the head. Tangahan and
Penataan, nearby, are also basket-making villages. Hats,
lampshades and flower baskets are made in these little
cottage industries.
Penelokan
After climbing an extremely
steep gradient the roads suddenly arrives at the top of
the hill, where a wide vista of crater, mountain and
lake take one completely by surprise. This is Penelokan,
the lookout, where an entire panorama stretches out as
far as the eyes can see, changing continually in colour
and light with weather conditions. It is very often in
the clouds, which roll across the entire caldera in a
blanketing mist, then suddenly disappear, revealing a
serene blue lake and the mountain of Batur in the midst
of its giant crater where streams of black lava scar the
landscape.
Another surprise to be prepared
for can be the sudden appearance of local souvenir
sellers, who enthusiastically vend their wares to all
and sundry, shouting in their excitement and waving
wooden carvings and shell necklaces through the bus
windows.
In an effort to tame these avid dollar seekers,
who range from preschool age to mothers with babies, the
local government is at present building additional
parking and shopping amenities, and making efforts to
teach the local people the merits of
"soft-sell".
Humor is of the essence, and it
helps to ask your guide a few words in the local dialect
to cope with such situations. For those who have time to
spend indulging in the view, there is simple home stay
accommodation close by and fresh lake fish for sale at
the local restaurants.
Toya Bungkah
A roller coaster road leads
down to the shores and around the western edge of Lake
Batur, transferring the hardened lava to the Hot Springs
of Toya Bungkah. Volcanic mineral springs seep into the
lake, and a splash in the public bathing area is
entirely medicinal. The more intrepid may wish to climb
the mountain, a short hike of up to one and a half-hours
and look down into the steaming crater.
At the Hot
Springs there are a number of small homestays as well as
an Art Centre created by a well-known Indonesian
novelist and philanthropist, Takdir Alisjahbana. A
resident orchestra and dance troupe give regular
performances of both traditional and modern Balinese
dance in the evenings, and there are comfortable
cottages for rent with all modern conveniences. This is
a hideaway for travelers in search of culture and
tranquility.
The local villagers eke a living by
planting vegetables in the stony volcanic soil at the
lakeside and fishing the lake in their dugout canoes.
Trunyan
 It is a short motor boat ride,
or energetic paddle by canoe to the other side of the
lake, where the village of Trunyan lies in total
isolation on a narrow piece of land backed by razorback
hills.
Accessible from either Toya Bungkah or Kedisan, a
village on the southern shore, this tiny village is an
enclave of Bali Aga people, who retain a social code
similar to that of pre-Hindu Bali.
Cremation is unheard
of here. The dead are simple laid out in a nearby ravine
with a minimum of fuss and ceremony. Strange customs
exclusive to this community are focused around the Pura
Pancering Jagat, "Temple of the Navel of the
World", involving the reenactment of ancient legend
regarding Dewi Danu, the goddess of the lake.
The
village takes its name from the Taru Menyan tree, which
gives out an incense like perfume, the very perfume, in
fact, which lured Dewi from the heavens. The people of
this village, having no rice fields to provide their
staple diet, have since ancient times relied upon
begging missions around the island to obtain their rice,
and despite government efforts these habits still
prevail. Observe and try to understand a way of life
totally foreign to all western values.
Batur
Pura Ulun Danu, the vast temple
complex in the centre of the village of Batur, is one of
the major temples of Bali. It has been under
construction since it was moved out of the way of the
lava flow during the 1926 eruption.
Towering gateways
lead into spacious courtyards laid with black volcanic
gravel, connecting with further inner areas in a maze of
pavilions and shrines that ends with row upon row of
black palm fiber capped "meru" towers that
stand out in stark outline against the backdrop of
volcano.
Kintamani
 The village of Batur has crept
up the ridge to almost join Kintamani, the local market
town. Market day here brings about a deluge of local
produce from the surrounding hills: coffee beans,
onions, cabbages, oranges and lemons in great piles.
There was once a popular government rest house here, and
in the 1930’s the KPM. Dutch Steamship Line took this
over and used it as a stopover for passengers en route
to south Bali from the port at Buleleng. The buildings
still remain, rather dilapidated. Today there are a
number of small hotels with simple facilities.
Penulisan
The road to Singaraja climbs up
beyond Kintamani to its highest point at Penulisan,
where ancient and modern stand side by side in striking
contrast. A television receiver on the peak of one hill
picks up programmes relayed from Jakarta. On the
adjacent hill the shrines of one of Bali’s oldest
temples, Pura Tegeh Koripan, act as a receiver of
messages from the ancestors of a bygone age.
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