Sea of solitude.

Tanah Lot was more or less the first sight (in a classic sense) that I visited on Bali. By chance, I spent the first 1 or 2 days in Canggu, probably one of THE hotspots of the global social-media influencer scene (…which i didn’t know at that time, lol). I walked the streets, lay on the beach and watched the way things went. Which led me to the conclusion that everyone there is busy doing nothing. Or drinking coffee. And at the same time, everyone is looking like stepping out of an Instagram dream… well, at least the scenery actually invites you to do so.

But back to Tanah Lot.

The Hindu temple is one of the most famous landmarks of Bali, probably mostly because of its exceptional location. It lies on a rock off the coast and can only be reached on foot at low tide. Access to the temple is, however, only withheld from the faithful, which is why most of the tourists simply visit it as a beautiful photo spot around sunset. And that was actually my plan too, which I unfortunately put together without watching the weather forecast.

So when I drove off with my rented scooter in the early afternoon, after having my Gado-Gado for lunch (indonesian salad with peanut sauce), the sun was still glorious. But as soon as I got to the temple, clouds were already rising. Not that it would rain, but very cloudy and dark… The rush of tourists was still amazing and, as I always do, I was looking for a place to stay a bit away from the crowds. Off the beaten track, so to say.

I found that place not far away. You just had to walk a bit on the shore and along a rotten golf course, where a couple of protruding rocks invited to linger. A wonderful place with a view along the coast and a roaring surf. There was just a handful of people with me.

I asked a man if he could take some pictures of me, sitting there and pondering amongst the stunning scenery. It turned out that he was a photographer and so of course he had no problem to do so. When I looked at the pics on my cell phone later, I didn’t find them so special as I might have hoped at first. But now, with some distance, I have to say that they capture the situation and the moment quite well.

I would have sat there for two, if not three hours. I just couldn’t get enough of the sound of the waves and the somewhat rough atmosphere. And just when I wanted to go, the sky opened up again and I could experience one of the most beautiful, because one of the most unexpected, sunset.

The next day I got to know another balinese celebrity: the Bali belly. I literally lay flat for a whole day…

It must have been the Gado-Gado. At least that’s my guess, lol.