Northbound

We had heard from Theresa, my friend who had traveled to Bali for a summer many years ago, that she had a magical experience at Danau Bratan. We traveled to this lake with her driver, Ketut, who took us first to Munduk where we saw a gorgeous waterfall. The feeling of being in the mist of the waterfall was “joyous”. It was a gift from God.

Then we drove to Danau Bratan which was in the mountains near Bedugul. The lake had a serene feel and a temple rested at one end of it. The weather was cool and crisp and clouds rested on the mountains over the lake. The setting was gorgeous. Yogesh described the setting as magical. It reminded me of Hunza/Gilgit (in the mountains of Pakistan) in the fall…rugged, crisp, basic.

And onto the next set of mountains and the lake called Danau Batur as well as scenery on the way:

On the map, it seemed as if the two lakes were maybe an hour or so apart. What we didn’t realize is the only way from one lake to the next was to travel all the way back south to Ubud and then back up north to the next lake. The cultural/language barriers sometimes result in these types of run-arounds. You just have to let go.

When we arrived at the second lake, we were tired and not happy with our choices of accommodations because the area was pretty rustic. We had dinner at a lake-front property which was picturesque. Amani and I hopped on a boat while waiting for our meal. The men on the boat were going fishing close to shore. Amani observed every move they made and I could see dreams of becoming a fisher-girl playingo out in her mind. I just prayed we wouldn’t tip over (we didn’t). We ended up staying at the hotel attached to the restaurant and slept pretty well even though it was the first place that didn’t have sheets between you and the quilt. Oh well.

That night, we walked to another property that had harnessed the natural hot springs into their pool and enjoyed a nighttime dip in the hot pool. Afterwards, we had dinner there – spicy french fries were the highlight.

The next morning, Ketut drove us to Sanur and we boarded our fast boat to Nusa Lembongan. You’ll remember that this is where we began our trip and where Amani became a local. We looked forward to introducing my parents to Wayan and Wayan (the owners of Segara Beach Inn at Jungutbatu Beach) and their family. Amani was thrilled to go back to see everyone, especially Kakek (her Balinese grandpa) and Lookie the dog.