Approaching from the south along the coast beyond Klungkung, the traffic thins and the pace slows as the main road finally meets Bali’s east coast. Undulating irrigated ricefields give way to the sun’s blazing heat on this arid stretch of road which passes fishing villages, beachside salt processing factories, the old harbor of Kusamba and the holy bat cave of Goa Lawah.
Just before entering the bridge at the entrance of Amlapura, the capital of Karangasem Regency, a left-hand turn takes you seven kilometers northwest to a former raja’s retreat, one of the prettiest and least known large pool complexes in all of Bali.
Perfect for relaxation, Tirtagangga, meaning literally "Water of the Ganges,” was built by the last raja of Karangasem, Raja Anak Agung Anglurah Ketut, in 1947 with corvee labor on the site of a sacred spring emerging from under an ancient banyan tree.
These formal, Italianate-style water gardens were only one of the old raja's weekend retreats, who seemed to been prone towards a water fetish; the others lie at Jungutan and Ujung (considered his masterpiece).
With its ornate fountains, shallow pools and channels, bizarre statues, pleasant cool weather (500 meters above sea level), great beauty, quiet star-filled nights and the constant sound of splashing water, it’s a sublime experience to swim laps in big flower-strewn reservoirs filled by freshwater mountain streams.
Although open 24 hours every day, the ticket office is open from 7 a.m. to 6 p.m.; entrance for adult/child is Rp3100 which allows you can come and go all day; camera Rp1000. Pools are drained on Monday mornings, but are completely filled again by afternoon. The water is spine-tingling cold, so wait until noon to plunge in. After 6 p.m., swimming is free of charge, but the water is too cold.
Accommodations & Food
During the tourist season, Tirtagangga's seven hotels fill up quickly. Tirtagangga's accommodations all have restaurants serving filling, nutritious Balinese meals including fresh fish taken right from the pools. Across the road from the entrance way to Tirtagangga is the simple but immaculate Homestay Rijasa (tel. 0363-21873) with eight rooms. Tarif: Rp40,000 s with cold water, Rp75,000 s, Rp125,000 d with hot water; both classes of rooms include breakfast. Clean, small library, laundry service and excellent food next door in the warung of the same name.
Just east of the water palace, up 99 steep steps, is quiet Kusuma Jaya Inn (tel. 0363-21250). Its six bungalows, built in a semi-arc along the side of a hill, cost Rp70,000 single, Rp100,000 double with big beds, nice mattresses, fans and big open-air bathrooms. Sometimes you can bargain lower rates. Superb 180-degree views take in the glittering sea. Service is excellent, the food well-prepared and reasonable.
Around the bend from the Kusuma Jaya is Prima Cottages (tel. 0363-21316) with nine comfortable rooms: Rp100,000 for family room (one double bed and one small bed); Rp60,000 single or double for standard rooms. Breakfast included. Ibu Agung, the proprietress, speaks excellent English. Nice atmosphere, great restaurant over rice paddies where people gather in the evenings to chat and play the guitar.
Vicinity of Tirtagangga
With Bali's biggest and most sacred mountain towering above, this whole area has fantastic scenery. Climb the hill in back of the water palace, following the water source of the pools, for about 1.5 kilometers to a small village, then walk back via a winding road through the valley by coconut groves, brilliant ricefields and the distant sea beyond. Bring binoculars. Another superlative walk is the path leading uphill to the villages of Tanahlingis and Ababi.
Three kilometers west of Tirtagangga is Puncak Sari with a panorama over rice fields. The 92-kilometers three-hour run to Singaraja takes you through a sparsely populated area which lends itself to dramatic photographs. Just before Culik there's an explosion of vegetation - you can smell it coming. After Culik, not much grows except Poinciana, stunted palm trees, kapok and cacti.
For Bukit Lempuyang, the site of an important temple on Bali's easternmost hill, drive to the parking lot about halfway up. About eight kilometers from the main highway (see signs pointing the way to the temple) is a tollgate; from where the road ends, it's about a one-kilometer walk to the first small temple, Pura Telagamas at 768 meters. From there it's 4,000 steps to Pura Lempuyang (1058 meters) or to the top of Mount Serayu (1175 meters) through a forest. Start early before it gets too hot. If you go in the afternoon, the mountain is covered in clouds. On clearer mornings you'll see not only Mount Agung but all the way to the islands of Nusa Penida and Lembongan. This is one of nine major sad kahyangan spiritual points on Bali, right up there in stature with Uluwatu and Besakih.
Bali’s Lost Coast
The highlight of this whole area is the undeveloped coastal strip northeast of Tirtagangga. In the Amed area you can finally find peace and quiet, enjoy simple but delicious food, inexpensive accommodations, unobtrusive massage ladies, few hawkers, just one or two boat trip guys who leave you alone after asking a couple of times.
The area offers some of Bali's best snorkeling, the island's most splendidly located self-contained dive losmen and homestays, quiet unpeopled beaches, and Bali's largest concentration of traditional fishing jukung.
Snorkeling off the black-sand beaches here is considered by some to be superior to Tulamben, the variety and numbers of fish perhaps the best on Bali. The snorkeling begins just east of town where the currents are calm year-round, visibility is 10-20 meters and the hard coastal reefs superb.
Dive along the reef wall to see schools of cardinal fish, triggerfish, black snappers, pyramid butterflies, bannerfish and damselfish among the sand slopes, table corals, big fan gorgonians, and magnificent staghorn Acroporaand Dendronephthyatrees, dense growths of sponges, crinoids, and sea fans - all within 20 meters of the shore!
E-mail : pakbill2003@yahoo.com
Copyright@2005 PakBill
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