You are currently viewing Tegalalang Rice Terraces

Tegalalang Rice Terraces

Don’t Go To Canggu!

So many influencers and visitors go to Bali and go to Canggu. If you are serious about Bali, explore Bali and do not get stuck in the tourist traps. Unless you are into the party scenes or hanging around a bunch of “digital nomads,” this is not for you. Enjoy Bali by exploring Bali.

You have a choice to wake up surrounded by coffee shops, restaurants, gyms or beautiful ricefields. Choose the ricefields. Wake up with peace vs chaos!

Choose Peace

Imagine waking up to layers of emerald green rolling down hillsides, mist still clinging to the palms. That’s Tegalalang, Ubud’s postcard rice terraces. Tourists swarm it, sure, but slip in before six thirty and you’ve got the whole valley to yourself. No filters needed – the place already looks edited.

It’s not just pretty. The terraces follow the ancient Subak water-sharing system, a thousand-year-old Balinese trick for rice farming. UNESCO loves it. Locals wake at dawn to tend the fields – ankle-deep in mud, swinging sickles – while you sip ginger tea from a roadside warung. Respect the rhythm, tip if you climb through private sections.

Best angle? Swing bridge over the canal. Crouch low, let the bamboo stalks frame your shot. Sunrise hits different here; golden light turns every puddle into a mirror. If you’re artsy, bring a sketchbook. Painters love how the rows bend like soundwaves.

Tread Carefully.

Downside: motorbike gangs by nine. Go early or late, golden hour again. Rent a scooter, dodge the main road, park near the pumpkin farm. Walk the hidden path left of the big viewpoint – quieter, same vibe. Locals sell young coconuts for fifteen thousand rupiah. Drink, drop it back, they plant the shell.

Eco tip: use the restrooms, skip the plastic straws. Tegalalang floods if everyone litters. Bring cash, no cards up the hill. And hey, pose on the ropes – classic Bali flex. Just don’t be loud; farmers aren’t extras.

End your day at a guesthouse nearby. Wake tomorrow to birdsong and dripping palms. Bali’s rice terraces aren’t going anywhere, but they do look best when nobody’s watching.

Zsolt Zsemba

Zsolt Zsemba has worn many different hats. He has been an entrepreneur, and businessman for over 30 years. Living abroad has given him many amazing experiences in life and also sparked his imagination for writing. After moving to Canada from Hungary at the age of 10 and working in a family business for a large part of his life. The switch from manufacturing to writing came surprisingly easily for him. His passion for writing began at age 12, mostly writing poetry and short stories. In 1999, the chance came to write scripts. Zsolt took some time off from his family business to write in Jakarta Indonesia for MD Entertainment. Having written dozens of soap operas and made for TV movies, in 2003 Zsolt returned to the family business once more. In 2018, he had the chance to head back to Asia once again. He took on the challenge to be the COO for MD Pictures and get back into the entertainment business. The entertainment business opened up the desire to write once more and the words began to flow onto the pages again. He decided to rewrite a book he began years ago. Organ House was reborn and is a fiction suspense novel while Scars is a young adult drama focused on life’s challenges. After the first two books, his desire to write not only became more challenging but enjoyable as well. After having several books completed he was convinced to publish them for your enjoyment. Zsolt does not tend to stay in one specific genre but tends to lean towards strong female leads and horror. Though he also has a few human interest books, he tends to write about whatever brews in his brain for a while.

Leave a Reply