Bali Tour Guide

For USD 10 you can have your face sketched on a piece of paper in 10 minutes. Maybe you can pay less if you bargain. You can get this service in Ulun Danu Temple, close to the two tall shrines that stand on small islands on Lake Bratan. Arriving in this place, you will notice the sample of the sketch being displayed around in the garden of the temple. This is not a proper business place. The sketcher and his wife open his business under the tree in the garden of the temple. The quality of his sketch is quite good. You can see the sketch of Obama, Shah Rukh Khan,Nelson Mandela or Mikail Gorbachov. But not so many people use his sketching service. Maybe you can try to have your face sketched.

I know you can find this anywhere in the world in any tourist destination. But if you happen to see this in Bali, and you want to try to take your photo with these poor animals, you can. You have some selections: the beautiful python, the handsome bat, the cute iguana, and some other animal which you can usually spot in Bali’s tour destination. Places that have this “additional” attractions are Tanah Lot Temple, Kedaton Monkey Forest, and somewhere close to Lake Bratan (Ulun Danu Temple). It is a chance of life time, to conquer your fear by having the python around your body. Remember that python don’t bite its victim, but they swallow it. And also, before taking photos with you, the python has big breakfast already and may not be interested in swallowing anything for hours. So, no reason to worry. With the bats, you can feed them. They like papaya, mango, banana, and other fruit. In Bali, they are fed with Fanta. They like it. Well, hug the python, or cuddle the iguana, kiss the ba...

For centuries, the number three is very important in Bali'nese Hindu in Bali island. For example, the number 3 can be clearly seen in the brand new logo of Bali introduced in June 2007. First, the shape is a triangle. The triangle actually means stability and harmony. Besides, it also represent the three manifestation of God, Brahma (the creator), Wisnu (the preserver) and Siva (the sin destroyer). The Balinese belief in the existence of 3 worlds, called Bhur, Bwah, and Swah which is also indicated by the triangel. There is three stages of life, birth, life and death. Next, the popular concept of Tri Hita Karana (three that causes happiness) does underlie the idea of the new logo of Bali. It is the THK that actually is believed to be responsible to the peaceful feeling and harmony the visitors feel when they step their foot on the Bali island. What are those three creating happiness? The three things that causes happiness are Parahyangan : the harmonious relationship between men an...

This is a photo of a Dwarapala statue. "Dwarapala" is derived from Sanskrit language meaning "door guardian". As it name suggests, you will find a lot of this kind of statues in front of temple gates in Bali. Besides temple, you can find this in all traditional building such as the village hall, puri (palace) and houses. At a quick glance, it may look scary, but they are the good characters (or the good guys). Being a visitor, sometimes you don't know which is good guy and which is bad guy because it looks similar. On the big holiday, those statues are wrapped in yellow and white fabric or black and white checkered cloth. The main purpose of this wrapping is to show respect to the spirits that guard the temple. You can see also there are offerings presented for the spirits made of coconut leaves and varieties of flowers. So, next time you are in Bali, remember this is the good guy... Technorati : Bali Temple

Mas village is a welknown village for the woodcarver. Many of the famous wood carver come from this village. I was lucky to meet one of the wood carver. His name is Pak Tiru. In the photo that I took from my phone, he was working on his wooden statue. It is going to take six months to accomplish such a statue. It was two meters high and the material is local wood called Suar wood. The statue he is working on now depicts the Goddess of knowledge, Saraswati. Indeed, Mas village and surrounding villages like Kemenuh, Ubud, and Tegalalang has many wood carver artists. If you drive to the Kintamani , you will see a lot of them displaying their works by the street. The statues have many varieties, from the classical statues depicting deities, or contemporary theme like dolphin. The material used are mahogany, ebony, hibiscus, and crocodile wood. If you visit Bali, make sure you witness the wood carver in action, if you have time.

You have many options for staying in Bali from homestays, budget hotel, star hotel, or villa. Depending on what your purpose and length of stay, or most importantly, budget you can choose any accomodation you need. Some people prefer to stay in villa than in hotel. Here are the reasons to stay in villa. Staying in a villa can be more economical compared to staying in hotel but with the equal luxury. You can stay in a villa with beautiful private garden, air conditioned bed rooms, spacious living, dining area, private swimming pool for the cost less than staying in good hotel in Bali. (It can cost US$100 to US$600 per room per night. staying in the hotel). You can choose to stay in villa that reflect the Balinese lifestyle. For example, floors and wall are made form local wood. Other part of building are natural stone. Large and airy living room, gardens with full of flowers and plants are also part of the Balinese style. This is all private. Many varieties of services are available to ...

October is the start of the rainy season in Bali. Normally the rainy season will last for six months from October to April. Meanwhile, the dry season is from April to October. Actually it does not rain every day during the rainny season. In fact, rain will usually start on December or January. So, there is no need to worry the rain will spoil your holiday if you are planning to visit Bali. So far there is no rain today in Bali. Even the weather is hot. It's about 29 degree Celcius with some clouds in the sky. Many adventures activity can be enjoyed during the rainy season, especially white water rafting or kayaking. Maybe it is not good time for shopping, because the street will be wet and muddy in the traditional markets.

Today I took picture of Durian, one of the most popular tropical fruit. It is notoriously known for its bad smell among the westeners or tourist. For Balinese or Indonesian people it smells nice. And it tastes delicious as well. You can find people selling Durian in the local markets, by the streets of Denpasar, and in many villages in Middle and North Bali (Bestala Village). Related Post: The Fruit That Smells Like Hell But Tastes Likes Heaven

Today I went to Tanjung Benoa (a tourist area in Bali island) with my fellow driver, to pick up two tourists to go on a tour in Denpasar. It took me half an hour to arrive in Tanjung Benoa from Denpasar where I live. And yes, they were waiting for us at the Club Mirage lobby, the hotel they stayed. The tourists/clients that I went tour today were from California , from such and such county. It took them nineteen hours to travel to Bali .( I can’t remember the name of the county). The day was bright and not so hot. Well, this morning was quite a surprise for me, and I think for many Balinese. It rained! For so many months, starting from October, we have been expecting some rain to pour on our beloved island, but it rained only today. This morning, at five. It was like listening to our favourite music. Any way, the rain did not last for long. But that’s okay, because it’s all we need. And, fortunately, the day turned bright as I went touring. As we drove, I explained to them ab...