Bali District > KARANGASEM
Karangasem (capital: Amlapura)
The Regency of Karangasem is one of the regencies in Bali , covering an area of 839,54 sq, kilometers. Karangasem itself consist of eight districts namely: Karangasem, Manggis, Rendang, Selat, Sidemen, Bebandem, Abang and Kubu District.
Karangasem has an extraordinary variety of charming landscapes. Low and high mountain ranges intermingle with upland plains, tropical forests, terrace rice fields, beautiful beaches, culture and historical remains, traditional "Bali Aga" village their way of life make Karangasem is worth visiting.
In fact it is too easy to reach all of the interesting places in Karangasem. Supported by fairly good road condition accommodation and other facilities such as hotels, restaurants, moneychangers, souvenir shops and others, which you expect in tourist environment. In order to make your trips more effective in exploring the tourism objects, we suggest you to choose one of the routes below;
1. Klungkung (Semarapura) - Bukit Jambul - Besakih - Telaga Waja - Iseh - Putung - Sibetan - Tirtagangga - Tulamben - Jemeluk - Taman Ujung - "Water Palace" - Amlapura - Puri Agung Palace - Candidasa- Tenganan - Padang Bai - Yeh Malet - Klungkung (Semarapura).
2. Klungkung (Semarapura) - Yeh Malet - Padang Bai - Tenganan - Candidasa - Amlapura - Puri Agung Palace - Jemeluk - Tulamben - Tirtagangga - Sibetan - Putung - Iseh - Telaga Waja - Besakih - Bukit Jambul - Klungkung (Semarapura).
The eastern district of Bali is Karangasem, which is dominated by the mighty Gunung Agung (3142 metres). The east has many places of interest and some great beaches. The most disastrous volcanic eruption took place on 17th March 1963 when Agung literally blew its top. Streams of lava and hot volcanic mud poured down to the sea in the southeast of the island, covering roads and isolating the eastern end of the island. The whole island was covered in ash and crops were wiped out. It obliterated many villages and temples, and killed thousands of people. Most of those killed were either burned to death or suffocated by the searing clouds of hot gas rushing down the volcanic slopes. It wiped out the entire villages of Sorga and Lebih high on the slopes of Agung.
Surprisingly, Besakih, just six kilometers from the crater, suffered little damage.
These days Mount Agung is quiet and the mother temple Pura Besakih perched 1000 metres up the slope attracts a steady stream of devotees and tourists. Pura Besakih is Bali 's most important and probably best-kept temple, comprising about 30 separate temples in seven terraces going up the hill. Every district in Bali has its own shrine or temple at Besakih and just about every Balinese god is honored.
If you want to climb Mount Agung , you must request permission from the temple authorities, as no one should stand higher than the temple when a ceremony is being held. You can ascend the mountain from behind the temple or through the village of Sebudi village, near Selat. It's a tough 6-8 hour to climb and you are recommended to leave in the early morning and hire a guide.
Padang Bai is the port for the ferry service to Lombok. It's sleepy fishing village's situated in a perfectly sheltered bay. The beach is picturesque and quaint with a long sweep of sand where colourful boats are drawn up on the beach. From Padang Bai the road follows a beautiful stretch inland and turn off at the mountain village of Tenganan . Tenganan is a Bali Aga village, one of the few Balinese communities to resist the Majapahit invasion of 1343. It is a walled village consisting of two rows of identical houses. This is the only place in Indonesia where double-weaving ikat, Geringsing, is produced. The village is also famous for its lontar sacred books, traditional Balinese palm-leaf books.
On the coast just north of Tenganan is Candi Dasa, a temple after which the seaside resort is named. But the resort is better known for its marine and night life than it temple, and temple-goers are likely to pass it by on the way to Besakih, Bali's most important temple complex, which is located on the slope of Mount Agung, its highest peak. Visitors are not allowed to enter the interior of the huge temple, but the view from the outside is gorgeous anyway, and the mountain air refreshing. There is also the Silayukti sea temple at Padangbai, from where the ferry leaves for Lombok . The main town and capital of the district is Amlapura. Puri Agung Karangasem palace is an imposing reminder of the time Karangasem was a kingdom. It has a three-tiered gate and beautiful sculptured panels on the outside.
Six kilometers from Amlapura you will find the Tirtagangga water palace. This palace, built around 1947 by Amlapura's water loving king, is a place of beauty and solitude. The palace contains a network of pools and a swimming pool fed by a natural spring, surrounded by some of the most beautiful rice terraces in Bali . North of Tirtagangga is Tulamben. SS Liberty, the American war ship sunk by the Japanese in 1942, lies just off the beach and is accessible from the beach. It's a long way from anywhere on this barren coast, but worth a pause on your travels.
In recent years, snorkelers and divers have begun to tread a steady path past Candi Dasa, north-east of Tirta Gangga to Amed, a sleepy fishing village with a series of small beaches nuzzled into rocky coves and several outcrops of colorful coral reef. For divers, the shipwreck offshore Tulamben, nearby Amed, has become renowned as one of Bali 's best sites. Karangasem also welcomes keen mountain climbers to Mount Agung , Bali 's highest peak. The climb takes between 5 - 8 hours, and must be undertaken with a guide. The view from the summit makes the
grand Besakih temple look like an anthill!
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