12/06/2019 - Bedugul & The Secret Gardens of Sambangan / Bali / Indonesia

The plan: Go out on the boat at 5:30 AM to watch the sunrise on the lake. So we woke up at 5 AM and there were already many clouds in the sky. We went to the boat dock and the captain confirmed that our romantic idea would not work. So we went back to sleep until 9 AM, had breakfast, and went to the Pura Ulun Danu Bratan temple by the lake. It's still quite cold at 1200 meters, so we even put on jackets today. The large water temple appears very mystical with the cloud-covered mountains in the background. The temple is dedicated to the god Shiva, but there are also some Buddha statues inside. However, we can't enjoy the special atmosphere alone. The complex is used for various offering ceremonies, but nowadays it is also very tourist-oriented. After an extensive visit, we packed our things and continued to Sambangan. Here we visited the Secret Gardens of Sambangan. We walked through rice fields, made a stop at a nice local family to drink a fresh coconut, and then we reached the blue lagoon. We enjoyed a refreshing swim, our guide took some photos of us, and then we went to the Aling-Aling waterfall. The water plunges over 30 meters. Swimming is prohibited here as the water is considered sacred by the Balinese. Then came the adventurous part of our afternoon. We went to the 3 consecutive waterfalls Kroya, Kembar, and Pucuk. Here is a natural water park. Our first challenge was a jump from a height of 5 meters. At the same waterfall, we put on a life jacket and went down a water slide at a rapid speed of 12 meters. At the next two waterfalls, there were jumps of 10 and 15 meters waiting for us. But we skipped those as we already had enough adrenaline. We found accommodation with a view of the rice terraces in Sambangan and ended the exciting day with a beautiful sunset and a delicious drink.