Day 62: To Lovina

Staying only one night in Padang Bai, I took off on my scooter for Lovina in the north of Bali.

(My actual route took me through Besakih and by Mount Batur)

Before leaving, a German and Canadian girl (where are all the guy travelers?) convinced me the white sand beach, a 10-minute walk from the main road, was worth seeing.

I can't tell if this is paradise or just the shoreline of everywhere I go these days

The ride to Lovina took perhaps 4 hours and continued to cement my belief that Bali is just a giant web of interconnected small towns and villages -- and that whatever natural wonders the island contains are confined to not-yet-developed pockets or national parks. This is, of course, in contrast to Lombok where vast swaths of agriculture or lightly farmed hills often dominate the landscape. To be fair, I still have yet to see outside of the more heavily developed central strip of the island, and scooters can only drive on paved roads 😅

The drive offered this view of Mount Batur and its lake of the same namesake.

Mount  Batur, to the left, is not pictured

A rather difficult exposure for an iPhone to get in one shot! Click the photo to see full screen.

Apparently, no tubas are allowed outside of the observation point

The elevation is so great and temperature cool that coniferous trees are able to grow. Luckily, the rain clouds you see to the left in the above photo kept their moisture to themselves during my descent.

Lovina, technically an area consisting of six or so small towns that blend into one over 10 kilometers of shoreline, has a name that was coined in the 1950s specifically for tourism. Being on the north shore of the island, it's quieter than the south of the island or Ubud -- which was its main appeal to myself and my last days in Bali. But I didn't exactly get a sense of quietude after having men on motorbikes try to engage me in conversation while I was driving down the street to sell me an overpriced tour package on two different occasions. Another pulled up beside me while I was stopped by the side of the road consulting my map in an effort to sell me a dolphin watching tour for four times the going rate. Stay classy, Lovina.

I was extremely glad to finally make it to the bed and breakfast I had booked for the next four nights. After a wash and a meal I spent the evening lounging in the shade with the fan blowing on me.