Geria Semallung Guest House

Food to die for

Rice terraces of Bali

TIRTAGANGGA, BALI     After fighting the crowds of Ubud, I headed to Tirtagangga following a friend's advice.  It was pretty well off the Ubud tourist track.  Actually, it wasn't even a village.  A sultan from long ago built a water garden there.  Next to the garden were a bus station, a few sort of restaurants, and several hotels.  There were no homes in Tirtagangga.  All the local people lived in small houses scattered across the rice fields.  I was delighted with my arrival there.  There was only one hotel to stay at in my opinion.  Geria Semallung was on top of a mountain overlooking Tirtagangga.  No place compared for food, service, and view. 

One day I headed to Amed, a beach area in the east of Bali, that several Balinese people had recommended as a quiet, non-touristy location.  I didn't know why until I arrived.  The beach wasn't much.  I expected palm trees, but most of them looked typhoon damaged.  I stayed one night and fled back to Tirtagangga.

On another day trip from Tirtagangga, I went to Tenganan, another traditional village.  Yes, it was touristy but nothing like the high pressure/low attraction of Lake Batur's traditional village.   The place was low key and peaceful.  There were several artisans who displayed their crafts and how they were made. 

One day I stayed around Geria Semalluung Guest House and learned how to make one of their vegetarian meals, Balinese Cassava Leaves.  All of their food was so incredible. 

I stayed in Tirtagangga until the last possible moment when I had to go.  But, in Jakarta I almost didn't get out of the country.  Two valuable pieces of paper were missing from my passport.   The first was the Indonesian departure card which was solved by a $15.00 bribe that was called an "administrative fee".  The second was my my Philippine residence card.   That story is too long for this space.