Friday, August 16th and Saturday, August 17th, 2024 - Last Days of My Photography Trip - Another Rice Paddy, Fish Market and Sanur Sunrise

Rice Paddy, Tabanan

Our hotel in Tabanan, bordered on a canal, delivering water to local rice fields. As you see, the fields are less steep than the valley we had visited yesterday and was verdant and intensely green in the morning sun. It was closer to maturity - you could see the rice grains already forming. However, they will need to turn yellow before its time to harvest.

Canal With Walking/Biking Path

Unlike yesterday's paddies, this field had robust canals carrying water, with an easy, surfaced walking path to follow. There was very little gradient, so my knees were happy.

Flags as Scarecrows

There were numerous flags of different colors scattered about to scare off the birds. You might notice that these fields are not flooded. Rice can grow on dry land, but tolerates flooding, which is used to control pests and weeds. 

Altars in the Fields

Rice farming and religion are deeply intertwined here in Bali. Much of the management of the water, through the subak system, is conducted by the temples, as co-operation needs to occur over many regional boundaries. Dewi Sri is the Hindu goddess of rice, fertility and prosperity here and the fields honor her with shrines and altars like the ones you see here.

An Altar in the Rice Field

According to Google's AI, every step of rice cultivation is accompanied by religious rituals, which they say reinforces bonds between families, villages and regions. This altar bears the signs of a ritual with the hanging offerings.

A Lock Makes a Great Place to Stretch

We were not the only ones enjoying a morning stroll. We saw women doing laundry and bathing in the canal, cyclists, children going to school, and this man, who was following a robust stretching routine using one of the locks that controls the water flow. Most likely he came from the neighborhood that bordered these lovely fields.

Sanur Beach - 'A Peaceful Sanctuary'?

Following our morning saunter through the rice fields, we packed up and headed directly for Sanur, a popular beach area near Denpasur, the capital of Bali. It is a busy place - lots of hotels, vendors, a bike and walking path. It is also worth noting that is was the beach where Barack Obama retreated for several months in 1993, to write his first book - Dreams From My Father. I suspect it might not have been such a hectic place back then, as it is said that he 'sought a peaceful sanctuary with no phones'! 

Jimbaran Bay Fish Market

After a few hours of 'down time' (rare on this trip), we headed off to Jimbaran Bay to visit the fish market and catch the sunset. 

Collecting Fresh Seawater for the Fish

There were people going down to the water and bringing us very heavy looking buckets of  sea water to keep their market fish fresh. This man gave us a nice 'thumbs up'. 

Peanut Seller

Fish markets can be a bit unsettling - they can smell and are often crowded and wet. It was the end of the day, the end of the trip, so I was grateful to dally outside the wet area and enjoy the vendors in the surrounding area. I rather liked this way of carrying peanuts, but feared that light-fingers might help themselves when the vendor's attention was elsewhere!

Roasted/Steamed? Corn

The color of this fresh corn, was striking in the low evening light.

Enjoying Life

It looks as if the work day was done for this man and he was just enjoying life. My 'permissi photo' energy was very low, so I was grateful that another photographer from our group approached him for permission.

Knife Seller

I must have mustered up the courage to approach this woman myself. I loved her rosy face hovering behind her impressive collection of knives.

A Busy Place

Once I was within the wet area of the market, I was somewhat overwhelmed. There were lots of slippery, slimy looking things - some I recognized, some I didn't.

A Barrel of Fish

 I did like the glimmer of the late afternoon light on these fish.....

Painted Lobsters

.....and I have never seen such colorful lobsters! Wikipedia says it's panulirus versicolor, and is a variety of spiny lobster that lives in the tropical reefs of the Indo-Pacific.

Proud of Her Fish

The vendors we saw outside the wet market did not wear clothing which suggested a relisious affiliation. This changed when we entered the market, where many of the women were wearing hijab. I did not have to muster up my 'permissi photo' energy for this picture, either. The woman approached me with her fish held high. Maybe it was her way to Instagram both beauties!

Golden Rays of the Sun

Back on the beach, the golden rays of the sun caught the spider boats

Airplane, Setting Sun and Spider Boats

Jimbaran was near the airport, so we were able to watch the airplanes land. The sky was cloudy, but about a third of the sun poked its head out near the horizon as it set. This was our last sunset. Tomorrow morning we hoped to catch a sunrise before most of the other people went on our tour went about their own travel plans.

Sunrise Sanur Beach

Although the sunrise Saturday morning was lovely, that volcano that we were supposed to see - Mount Agung again - continued to be elusive! Never mind, we had enjoyed so many wonderful experiences and sights, the missing volcano didn't dampen my spirits.

Greeting the Day

Seeing this man on the beach performing a holy ritual in the glow of the morning sun felt like a sweet way to end this trip. He was ringing his bell, chanting and meditating. The 'For Rent' sign is a peculiar invader here - no doubt it refers to kayaks or beach chairs. Is it symbolic of Bali's approach to tourism? I was glad he was going about his business regardless, in a very focused and disciplined manner. I don't believe he was the object available for rent!

Although my photography trip ended here, I still have several weeks of travel ahead of me. Knowing I would need a respite from the hectic pace of Nathan's itinerary, I planned five nights on a small island nearby - Nusa Ceningan - a time during which my two daughters, Robyn and Sarah will join me. 

More on that in the next blog.