Traveljunkieindonesia.com – Hey everyone! I get invited to a LOT of traveling events – which is very cool. I don’t go to all of them. Just the ones where I can make it to AND to the ones that sound really fun and interesting.
Tirta Empul temple areas – which is on the other side of Ubud, Bali. 1 hour flying time away from my home town of Surakarta. Guruh Gipsy Album became our theme songs for this trip.
A well-signposted fork in the road north of Tampaksiring leads to the holy springs at Tirta Empul. Founded in 962, the springs are believed to have magical powers, so the temple is important.
The springs are a source of Pakerisan river, which rushes by Kawi mountain only 1km or so away. The actual springs bubble up into a large, crystal-clear tank within the temple and gush out through waterspouts into a bathing pool. Despite its antiquity, the temple looks glossy and new – it was totally restored in the late 1960s – but you still need to wear long pants or a temple sarong. The bathing pools can be visited, but you probably won’t be able to bathe in them.
Overlooking Tirta Empul springs is Soekarno’s palace, Istana Negara. It’s a simple single-storey structure build on a ridge, and was designed by Soekarno himself. It was erected in 1954 on the site of a Dutch rest house. It’s sometimes open to the public.
The exit route from the temple is through a lengthy warren of souvenir stalls – grit your teeth and follow the painted arrows on the ground to find your way out.
The whole praying experience certainly took me out of my daily routine. It was grand, spectacular and quite exotic.
So yes, a lovely and simple day. Travel like a Balinese – it was FREAKING AMAZING!!
A big thank you to my friends Bli Kadek & Oke for the excellent piloting.
Happy Green Travels!
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