All posts tagged: Uluwatu

Paradise found: Bingin Beach and Uluwatu, Bali

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Forget Queensland, Uluwatu on Bali’s Bukit Peninsula is the real surfer’s paradise. From curving lush cliffsides, watch the endless Indian Ocean bring in the sets. Whether drinking a Bintang at surfer babe bar Single Fin, swerving round the coast by motorbike, bowing namaste in yoga class, or lazing beachside with a turquoise view, there’s much to love about Bali’s laid back southern coast. Surfers started coming to Bingin Beach and Uluwatu from the 1960s when surf legends the likes of ‘Mr Pipeline’ Gerry Lopez started coming here. My gal Kelly here knows what’s up when it comes to Bali, as she’s been coming here with her partner Adam – a keen surfer – for over 10 years. She suggested we stay in Mick’s Place, run by one of the original surfers to move to the Bukit peninsula. Recently opened, the Acacia Bungalows just behind the main hotel was where we set up to chill out, and thankfully we made it to the cliffs in time to watch one of the most spectacular sunsets (or is …

Kecak fire dance, Uluwatu Temple, Bali

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On a clifftop temple overlooking the southern coast of Bali, curious travellers gather at dusk to witness a ritual fire dance and chanting performance called Sanghyang that takes place over four acts. Presented at the front gate with a sash to tie our sarong, we are lead by a warm old local man along the cliffside. The Uluwatu waves roll on below. We take a front-row seat and wait with anticipation for the performance to begin. I am a tad excited as I’ve wanted to see a Kecak ceremony since witnessing this strange Balinese monkey dance in the documentary Baraka in the early 90s.   Quiet overcomes the temple as a white-robed man lights fire to a central stone carving. We can hear a growing chorus of chuck-a chuck-a chuck-a chuck-a chuck-a chuck-a as the chanters near the temple theatre. Seventy male dancers arrive through the cliffside entrance, arms raised, clucking in unison. They create a circle around the central carving and seated, they continue the trance-like incantation, arms waving left and right, then thrust …