Bali - Rice Terraces

As part of my day long trip through the interior of Bali, the taxi driver took me to look at some rice terraces. The ones I saw were at Tegallalang. They were stunning. They're built into the sides of a steep valley to increase the arable land in what is a very hilly area of Bali. They're well established on the tourist trail, but there are a few things to watch out for.


The rice terraces are about half an hour out of Ubud, or about an hour out of Kuta. A road runs along one side of the valley, which makes getting out and having a look very easy. The locals are well aware of the attractiveness of the view, so they've conveniently built a whole lot of viewing terraces next to the road. These terraces usually double up as shops.

The view is pretty similar to whole length of the valley, but there are some variations. What I did was get my driver to drop me off at the start of the valley and pick me up at the end. It was good to walk the distance and see the different terraces the locals had built. As usual for Bali, the sellers were quite persistent in offering you handicrafts for sale. Surprisingly, everything seemed to cost one dollar! "One dollar, one dollar" was the cry along the length of the valley. Except, strangely, at the end of the valley. There, the call was "two for a dollar". I guess they get desperate by that stage!


I can't emphasise how pretty the scene is. There's row upon row off terrace, palm trees, green rice, farmers working the soil and temples dotted in amongst the fields to protect the crops. It's amazing. IT did make me wonder, however, what the relationship is between the farmers who provide the spectacle of the rice fields and the shop sellers who profit from it. I'd imagine there all in it together. I can imagine the farmers getting militant otherwise. If the farmers stopped their farmer, there'd be nothing to look at and no tourists! I hope the farmers are making a mint!


There are, obviously, lots of rice fields dotted throughout Bali. The road to Tanah Lot also has loads of pretty rice fields. You do need a car or a driver to get to them, but they're well worth the trouble.