Tanah Lot temple is undisputably the grand icon for Bali and even though we were severely short on time, i couldn't help thinking it would be sacrilegious if i didn't manage to check it out in my inaugural trip to the Indonesian island.
As we were would be departing for home that very evening, i decided to rent a car with driver for just half a day in the morning. This would give me some time in the afternoon to try out new eateries and explore Jl Legian Kaja.
Arrival at the ticketing booth after a ride of about 45 minutes; this would be considered fast given that we didn't encounter any traffic jam which was like the norm in our 4 days stay.
Purchasing the adult ticket at 60,000 rupiahs each for foreigner and if you have a car, as we did, there would be another 5,000 rupiahs. Given the immense popularity of the temple, i wouldn't be surprised if entrance fees inch up in the near future.
Before crossing over the ticketed section, do release your bladder (and bowels, if you must) at the above toilet with a huge Indomie banner. Why?
Simply because you don't have to pay a single cent! It's ridiculous that we were made to pay about 2,000 to 3,000 rupiahs per entry to use the toilets at notable tourist attractions.
Pretty entry archway to Tanah Lot - please remember to keep your tickets and take them out at this point as someone would proceed to check them for admission.
3D effect woah.
Hm.... for a moment, i wondered if i have gone to the wrong attraction as this was more a shopping street than a temple! I did recall that Tanah Lot is a temple by the sea and i guess we have to walk further in, towards the coastline.
As it wasn't even past 8.30 am, many stores remained close even though a few had already started operating to catch the early customers.
Main shopping street with nice pavement and flanked with trees on both sides.
More decorations adorned the street; as indicated on the subject title, the place would be much more happening in the afternoon when most tourists visit for the spectacular sunse (if weather permits).
Even though i left before all the shops were open, i can already sense that the shopping street offered a wide variety of goods and services; be it provision stores, souvenir shops, boutiques, restaurants and even a 5-D experience!
Haven't had your breakfast? Get them at Dewi Sinta; it's already open that early in the morning. Pricing would be on a high side, as expected.
Canang Sari - traditional Balinese flower offerings that are commonly seen on the streets! Want to know what they are here? Check out here.
About to reach the seaside!
Always research well and keep your eyes open. From the moment you step into Bali, you would have known what Tanah Lot temple look like; hence, don't act surprise by the rather simple temple on the right.
Tanah Lot is accessible only when the tide is low and it wasn't the case when we reached. Therefore, my gut feeling told me that devotees would use this compound on land to offer their prayers instead.
Bale Gong? Seems to be a shelter for musical instruments.
Stroll further in to where most people were heading to. Even if you are the first customer for the day, you can follow the melody of strong pounding by the waves.
Wore covered shoes? Don't venture further!
Waves can be insanely powerful and have the ability to knock you off your feet if you are not careful. I can see kids falling and people with wet shoes. That's why i always recommend Crocs shoes!
Almost forgot - this is Tanah Lot temple, ladies and gentleman! An interesting outcrop with a house-like structure with patches of greenery. Actually, one third of the rock was fake due to restoration funded by the Japanese government back in the 80s.
Observe your surroundings; to get a better view of Tanah Lot, going up is the best option and i can see a long line of cliff on the coastline right where we came from.
Strong waves!
Did you see the tiny crabs scrambling around on the surface of the rock? Before i proceeded to the cliff top, i might as well make use of this elevated rock to take some pictures.
Like the above photo with the scene opposite me. p.s. not going to take the other side as it's just a huge panorama of nothing but boring sea water.
And of course, another photo of Tanah Lot temple which was claimed to be built in the 1500s by a highly regarded religious figure who was drawn by beauty of the rocky island.
So many people there can only mean one thing; it must be a good spot for photo taking!
Guess was correct but there were just too many people. I cannot imagine the scene at sunset as it's a definite to get a few "heads" in your photos.
Being impatient individuals, frustration came quickly when visitors couldn't seem to decide if the digital photos were perfect and choose to take again and again, without any regard for those waiting for them. In the good old film days, the situation wasn't as bad.
I got a shot using my iPhone!
Want a quieter spot? Turn right (with your back facing the seas) and go up the above lane. For those who wants to go straight at the end of the shopping street leading to Tanah Lot, you can look for the lane on your left.
This lane would bring you to the top of the cliff that i mentioned earlier!
Better right?! Not only was the spot quieter with lesser crowd, it also allowed us to look at Tanah Lot from another angle; like the section under the rock with the words "holy spring water". Wouldn't it be mixed with salty seawater already?
Restaurants made up most of the commercial entities on the clifftop and for good reasons too.
You can comfortably have your dinner while the sun slowly sets behind Tanah Lot temple! Well, i think people who plan might have already known about it; hence, do come earlier if you want to take a good spot!
Come to think of it, the experience would be so shiok! If you are counting, this would be the second reason why my subject title advises not to visit in the morning.
From this angle, you want to make a guess on what the rocky island looks like?
A boat! Anyway, throughout the period i was there, i didn't see anyone on the rock. Shouldn't there be a caretaker or something? Darn, i am so curious to explore it yet i couldn't do anything about it!
Pounding waves, just to prove my point. haha.
Now to make my way down the lane as this tourist attraction appeared to have more than just the temple. As you should have recalled, there was the shopping streets and i did notice people walking towards the right after coming to the end of the main shopping street towards the temple.
Want a small, wooden statue?
A devotee offering her prayers to the gods.
This gentleman more power as he gave us the impression he had the ability to summon something from underneath the waves!
Yes, i have a rich imagination. :)
A music monument?
Tanah Lot temple again - as you can see, i am now on the other end that's also further away from the temple.
A live python! I obviously steered clear from the path of the snake handler; is the snake of any connection to the temple? Apparently, it's rumoured that poisonous snakes guard the temple "against evil spirits". The connection is weak at most since pythons are non-venomous.
A small shrine, i presume?
Mini waterfall; no thanks to the rain that had continued for the past few days.
Another nice natural structure; you may not see much from this angle as this is a rather big cavity that's pretty much hidden at this point.
Scary waves even though this didn't stop thrill seekers from surfing on such choppy waters! For more photographs, check out the posting here.
Does this statue remind you of any Chinese mythology gods? For me, i draw similarities with the mischievous Nezha!
I was wondering how the surfers got into the water!
A clearer view of the cavity i mentioned earlier that's a result of natural erosion from the pounding waves over possibly hundreds of thousands of years!
Bumped into a group of Balinese ladies and saw a lot more after that. Think it was related to a festival held in the compound. For more photos, click here.
Back to the shopping street again; albeit a less crowded branch. 
Tempted to get some breakfast and being the unadventurous sort (unlike the Great Kon), we decided to go with barbecued corn which turned out to be very nice! 
The prevalence of signboards in Chinese only points to one reason; there must be a lot of Chinese tourists visiting Bali!
Need a toilet? Pay 3,000 rupiahs first. If you can hold on to your bladder for a bit longer, you can wait until you are out to the carpark where the free-entry toilet is.
Satay... would love to have some but it's not open for business yet. There were rumours of dog-meat satay and i guess that's why the owner had clearly indicated chicken meat, in Chinese.
Pretty realistic face masks for sale; similar to what i saw at Sukawati Art Market in Ubud a few days ago. You can click here for the posting.
Decorative items and wind chimes made from seashells. Nice to have although it's a huge draw for dust and i ain't got any maid to help me clean up. So no thanks!
He didn't have enough corn (blame me for eating too much, in fact) and excitedly ran over when he saw this kiosk with barbecued corn for sale too!
It was a happy expression on his face as he strolled back to where i was. The expression changed soon after when he realised the corn wasn't as good as the first one.
The end of the long Tanah Lot post!
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Location
Jl. Raya Tanah Lot,
Kawasan Pura Tanah Lot,
Desa Beraban, Kecamatan Kediri,
Beraban 82121, Bali, Indonesia
Operating Hours
7am till 8pm
For the itinerary of my four days, three nights Bali trip, click here.