Day 150: Ubud, Bali - Storybook Temples

Ganung Kawi Temple
On our next morning in Bali, Nyoman, Chris and I traveled to Ganung Kawi, an approximately 1,000-year-old Hindu temple complex about 45 minutes' drive from Ubud.  To reach the temple, we hiked down into a river valley, passing by some beautiful rice terraces and local villages:

Heading to the temple

A beautiful vista as we hiked down to the river valley

Passing through bright green rice terraces

Plumeria flowers & rice terraces

After walking downhill for about twenty minutes we reached the entrance to the temple complex.  You first encounter massive stone sculptures carved into the mountainside.  It is believed that these were carved in honor of King Anak Wungsu and his favorite wives.  A more popular piece of Balinese folklore holds that Kebo Iwa, a mythical giant, carved these in one night using his fingernails.  

Stone carvings in honor of King Anak Wangsu and his wives at Ganung Kawi temple.

Nyoman & me at Ganung Kawi

Next, we went downhill and into the heart of the temple complex.  The temple is still used for important ceremonies today, and we observed two lay priests preparing offerings.

Crossing the river into the heart of the temple complex

Entering the heart of the temple

Within the temple are even more of these massive sculptures

The inner-most core of the temple is reserved for the priests, who use it to meditate. It is the oldest and quietest part of the temple, consisting of a series of small rooms and caves. We had to remove our shoes before entering.

They used the natural flow of water through the area to build fountains and pools.

We passed by this small shrine built around the base of a tree. Nyoman explained that many people believe these large trees harbor mischievous spirits, and build these shrines to limit their powers.

View of the rice terraces on our way out of the temple

The Ganung Kawi temple was amazing and incredibly beautiful, and our pictures do not do justice to our experience there.  We would highly recommend a trip here if you are ever in Bali.

Klungkung Palace
We next visited the remains of a former royal palace in East Bali, built during the 1700's. Sadly, most of the palace was destroyed when the Dutch invaded in 1908.   Many of the people who lived in this area were the last holdouts against Dutch conquest, and perished while making their final stand.  

What remains of the palace compound are the Taman Gili - a beautiful water garden - and the Kertha Gosa Pavilion, which features a beautifully painted ceiling depicting scenes from a famous Hindu epic, Bhima Swarga.

The 'floating' pavilion

Entering the pavilion

The ceiling is covered with paintings depicting scenes from a famous Hindu epic

Scenes from the great battle in the epic.

Another pavilion featured other Hindu teachings, including several of the penalties one might expect for various evil deeds done in life.

This is the fate that awaits those who gossip.

We think this one is the punishment for the unfaithful.

This one is a catch-all for any evil deeds that don't have specific penalties associated with them.

A temple that was part of the former palace.

Chris played a song for me on the wood xylophone.

The beautiful water garden

The Other Side of Bali
On the way home, we stopped off to visit Nyoman's former place of employment - he managed Bali's only recycling center.  This was a very unusual experience, but I think it's worth its own post, so stay tuned for more on this.

Cafe Lotus
That evening, we had dinner with Paul and Nyoman at Cafe Lotus, and met Paul's friend and tennis partner, Hans, an Austrian expat who manages the restaurant.  The setting of  Cafe Lotus, is very unique, as it's open to the outside and the back overlooks the Ubud palace, where you can see a nightly dancing show performed from across a large lotus pond.  It was a beautiful scene!