Sunrise at Mount Batur - The early bird catches the worm (Bali Part 7)

At 2 AM we were picked up to drive from Ubud to Mount Batur. There we were supposed to start the ascent in the dark so that we could admire the sunrise over Mount Agung, the currently very active volcano in Bali.

We had already taken a breakfast box from the hotel, which we consumed on the drive. When we arrived at the starting point of the excursion, there were warm drinks and a little something to eat. After the sunrise, we even had a third breakfast on the mountain.

Since it was still a bit chilly, we could warm ourselves by the hot steam rising from the volcano before continuing our hike along the crater rim.

Because of the many people who were here in the morning, it was sometimes a bit crowded and adventurous. We then continued downhill on sand and gravel, half sliding.

Along the way, we enjoyed beautiful views - including the black lava field that remains from one of the last eruptions.

For relaxation, we then went to a swimming pool fed by hot springs from Mount Batur. There we could relax in the warm water. This is also said to have healing effects - although we forgot to ask what we were supposed to be healed from...

View from the restaurant

Refreshed, we continued our journey to the Besakih Temple, the largest Hindu temple in Bali. It consisted of 32 different-sized temples arranged side by side.

Every Balinese Hindu must travel to this temple to pray at least once in their lifetime. As our tour guide noted, this is much easier for Hindus in Bali to realize than the trip to Mecca for Indonesian Muslims...

Our last stop that day was the village of Tenganan, where descendants of the indigenous people of Bali, the Bali Aga people, live.

Double Ikat as wall decoration

From there, it was not far to our hotel in Candidasa, where we stayed right on the east coast of Bali.

After a little exploration on the beach, we ended the long day at the hotel on our balcony with a beautiful view.