Today we went to a rice paddy, a coffee and tea plantation and a really cool buffet in front of a volcano(Mt. Batur) and an awesome temple. The rice paddy (a similar one as the last time we went to Bali) was in a beautiful valley. Na only made it halfway down but the rest of us went all the way down and back up the other side.  On the way up the other side we saw this giant swing and both me and jay went on it and I don’t know about jay but I thought it was AMAZING!!!!!!!!!!

Next we went to the coffee and tea plantation  that had a giant nest and you could climb up a ladder and sit inside.  At the end of the tour we got to try all of the teas and the mangosteen tea was AWESOME!!!!!!!!!!! (we ended up buying some of the mangosteen tea …and I know it’s all in caps but I did that on purpose)

Then we drove up to a restaurant hanging off the edge of the hill with an awesome view of Mt. Batur.  Highlight of the food was fried bananas- but the view was the true star.

Our last stop for the day was Titra Empul, a huge temple with a sacred pool.   Folks taking ritual baths going from one fountain to the next as they proceeded through 20 different stations.  Was also interesting to see the special type of sarongs they wore for their baths.  Temple had very cool statues, some awesome banyan trees and we even saw a few priests decked in their all white outfits performing different rituals.

Here’s the day from Na and No’s perspective:

Our pretty villa was adjacent to a rice paddy, and it was a pretty landscape. But nearby was another rice paddy. It was steeply terraced, up both sides of a valley. Na didn’t follow Jay and Bee down and up the other side. Na: Was I surprised when I saw them swinging over the terraces! My vantage point wasn’t as exciting as where they were, but it gave me a great spot to video their crazy ride!  I needed coffee after watching that adventure! What better place than a coffee plantation. (Well, it didn’t seem like we’d find a winery…)

This property was planted with herbs and flowers in every corner. Our coffee tasting, with some sweets, was on a balcony overlooking a forest. Then we visited another temple, Tirta Empul.  As in other temples, we first stopped to put on the traditional skirt, called kamen, and sash. In one section of the temple courtyard was a pool, with 13 spouts, where people gathered before 11 of these spouts for purification. The last two spouts were reserved for people to fill containers.

Na: I learned that the water from the two spouts is taken home to be used for other rituals. The statues around the courtyard are unique, perhaps a bit scary, maybe to fend off evil spirits. But the grounds are beautiful. I love the banyan trees on these sites and around Bali.