Sometimes a distant world that you think of in your mind to be one of the best places across this planet, happens to be exactly what you thought of. While many of us realize our travels and escapades bring us closer to the elements of nature and ourselves, it is hard to imagine what it would be like when you are caught away in a place that never ceases to amaze you. Well, to me, Bali was that experience. As soulful and as divine it has been made up to be, it was truly as enchanting as I thought it could be. While the beaches that stretch across the coasts of South Bali give you an experience that would seem like any other island destination, if you look at the nitty gritties of it, it brings you closer to tranquility and rediscovering yourself among the horizons of the ocean.

Seminyak, Kuta, Bali

Ubud Paddy Field

Amazing as it may see, the journey across the diversity of these islands bring you very close to different aspects of nature. Be it the humid, sunny and warm beaches in South Bali or the cold and pleasant breeze hitting your face at Lake Bratan while you take the boat across the lake peeking into the hiding sun across the huge mountains, you are always amazed by the beauty of every granule around you. At sunset if you take a look at the mesmerizing rays at Purah Tanah Lot you will re-imagine your own, a look below the steep sea waves across the mountains of Uluwatu will give you a heavy feeling that you cannot fathom simply because the beauty that you seek to reach out to is so near, yet so far. The trip in Bali gave me a beautiful experience of a land that was clean, magical, enchanting and yet, so very melancholic that you might feel that you’re in heaven but know that some places on our planet can have the beauty and the experience that you wouldn’t get on any ordinary day.

Uluwatu Temple, Lake Bratan

Tanah Lot

Monkey on our way to Uluwatu Temple

Uluwatu Temple

The Hindu culture that Bali has is rich and divine and has a unique add and flip to it, be it the Barong Dance or the popular Balinese dance that the women execute beautifully with their hand movements, everything has a taste of Bali to it, pretty much like the taste of beauty that the food in Bali has. Of course while it may seem a little different from any other attributes that the culture has, it has a unique yet enticing similarity to a lot of oriental performances that it gives you a feeling of the historic Asian culture.

One experience for me was the Deep Sea Walking in Nusa Dua. It was the first experience of that kind for me, and while I certainly thought it would be something out of the ordinary, I didn’t imagine it to be this beautiful. It didn’t last long, but whatever few moments I had beneath I thoroughly enjoyed them. It felt as though I was out there somewhere in a different realm of space and universe, and pretty much like the Star Trek quote, “To boldly go where no man has gone before” sums it all in the right spirit. Nusa Dua beaches have to be one of the most exotic beaches and the finesse that adds to this place with the exotic resorts that this beach has, will get you to stick to the sand and stay there forever. Didn’t really stay at Nusa Dua, but if I do go there again, certainly, this place calls for a stay over for sure.

While one side of Bali is laden with the most beautiful beaches, the other side or the country side if I may add brings in a joy that most nature lovers seek to enjoy every day of their life. With small roads, paddy fields on both sides of the horizon and huge palm trees to engulf the rays of the sky, Ubud is a place for a quiet and peaceful encounter with your inner sanctity. If you go there during the beginning of the year, you can always rely on the raindrops with the smell of petrichor to engulf your senses and help you breathe in the soaking joy of this beautiful little town if you may. While Goa Gajah is a beautiful place to visit, when you are at Ubud and many Kopi Luwak plantations will reach out to you, one thing you would enjoy in Ubud is but of course, the cycling across the inner roads of this small and quiet country side. Although, I didn’t spend a lot of time in Ubud, I feel, if you have been to a lot of beaches across the world, Ubud is a place you need to spend more time in, when you’re in Bali!

Without the imagination of an artist, you cannot carve or paint a picturesque memory of the island of gods or bring the joy that God’s paradise in Bali brings to you. So when you’re down there, just forget everything that you know about anything else out there in the entire world. Just let the magic seep in to you in a  heavenly fashion and let go! Rest I trust, the Island of Gods, Bali will do for you.