Jatiluwih, Bali, Indonesia 2018

The picture I longed to create!

It wasn’t the obvious choice to experience something so Balinese but as we rode hours beneath the hot sun and inhaling the sticky air, dodging between traffic and absorbing the towns quite often unseen by travellers such as ourselves we knew that it was an opportunity and day we would find hard to forget.

Whilst Ubud is famous for its rolling green rice fields, and whilst most people in Bali opt for visiting said grounds once in the center of the island, we wanted to try somewhere a little different. It was quite the long (much longer than anticipated) scooter ride to Jatiluwih from Canggu, but with google maps, no fixed schedule and an eager sense for adventure we set off.

We passed by such incredible spots and towns, we ate lunch with locals where nobody spoke any English on dusty roads, we stumbled across incredible sights such as Garuda Wisnu Serasi (you must google this incredible place as I didnt have a chance to take a snap!!!), stopped and listened to local music, enjoyed fresh coconuts, and got to see parts of Bali I had never planed or thought of.

Once arriving in the surrounding areas of jatiluwih the landscapes are breathtaking, the air so pure and a beautiful array of greenery as far you can see. Up amongst the mountains the air is moist, and the white bright skies with slight overcast that greeted us were ideal for our trek through the rice fields that day. I had longed to walk barefoot through the rice fields of bali and as I squeezed my knees together and I rested my head on his shoulder and we drove down deeper into the fields of green I felt an overwhelming sense of gratitude and excitement to explore.

We payed a small entrance free and parked up, the first thing I looked for was a Conical Hat, the traditional rice farmers hats. As rain looked as if it may be on the horizon and I was exceptionally burnt from the long scooter journey it seemed only appropriate. Plenty of little family run business offered various hats and with a specific photo in mind that I wished to create (see above) I not only wanted but needed a hat just like this for our trek infront of us.

We set off into the rice terraces, green in every direction, if it wasn’t my favourite colour before, green definitely stole my heart in this moment. With endless fields, and trees, and an array of shades I felt overwhelmed. I kicked off my flip flops and we headed into the terraces with our creativity running wild and me even wilder. Opportunity upon opportunity to create perfect imagery, we wandered along the tracks and even headed far into the fields and to play with the local cows nestled between the rice plants.

Getting mindlessly lost between the plants and stumbling across a rustic take on a tuc shop with friendly locals you could spend hours daydreaming and discovering, Jatiluwih rice fields may not be as renowned as those of Ubud but they sure do offer some uncomparable sights, often shadowed by the fame of Ubud I feel maybe these rice fields offer a refreshing energy, interesting routes and plenty of photo opportunities that are overlooked.

Thinking of heading to Bali and wanting to learn about an important part of the national economy whilst frolocking through fields suckled into the mountains of the center if this beautiful island. Take a chance with Jatiluwih.