Made picked us up this morning at 6:30 a.m. and drove us to the
little village of Kastala where we headed up some stone steps to start our 4 k
plus trek to Tenganan along the lip of a rice field channel.
I have to take a moment
here to explain the farming history of Bali. Over the years Bali has been one
of the most efficient rice growers in the Indonesian archipelago. The land has
been cleared of forests, the hillsides terraced for rice growing, and water
from the 150 or so rivers has been channeled into an elaborate system of
irrigation canals to irrigate the land. This success of the rice growing is due
to the co-operative water management system of these canals and weirs known as
“subak” which dates back to the 9th Century. A “subak” is made up of
all farmers sharing the same water source. Apparently, the members of the subak
meet regularly to coordinate plantings, to control the distribution of the
water, and to plan building and maintenance of the weirs and canals. As the
rivers and streams flow at the bottom of deep gorges, tunnels have been built
to divert water to the rice fields. Watch in future posts for one of these
tunnels, some of which are over a mile long, in the picture. The irrigation system is Bali is part of the temple culture and is
deeply embedded in religious life. Throughout the rice paddies you can see
little shrines and temples for ritual offerings to the gods, and there are a
number of beautiful water temples dedicated to the goddess of the lake, the
rice goddess, the earth mother, and other agricultural deities. Our walk on
Tuesday took us through the rice paddies and along the sides of many of the
channels. We saw the weirs, the various “junctions” of channels, and the
tunnels that make up this elaborate system. I encourage you to read more about
this system. It is fascinating: http://whc.unesco.org/en/list/1194.
We dilly dallied along the route, marveling at the view of Mt
Agung which gradually revealed itself to us through the clouds, the extent of
the rice paddies, and the intricate system of irrigation, and after about 2
hours arrived at one end of the little village. We ambled slowly down the main
street stopping in some of the artisan stores to admire the weaving, painting,
and basketry. We saw the beautiful cockerels trapped in their baskets while
they waited for the next “coq fight”, supposedly illegal, but still very much
active. We experienced the peace and calm of living in a small mountain valley
village.
Our driver was waiting for us, and took us back to the Puri Bagus
where we devoured coffee having been started of it due to our early morning
departure! Then it was time for a shower, and we were on our way to lunch at
the Amankila. To say that this hotel and its view were beautiful is an
understatement. It is one of the most stunning places I have seen in a long
time. Built into the hillside above the azure ocean, with a three-tiered
swimming pool “tumbling down the hillside like a cascading rice field” it takes
your breath away. We sat outside on the terrace and enjoyed a delicious and
well earned lunch.
Then into the car for our journey back to the villa.
Then into the car for our journey back to the villa.
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