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Geria Semallung Guest House Food to die for Rice terraces of Bali
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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. |
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Copyright
1998 by Phillip Martin All rights reserved.
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