Life in Amed
Made it to Amed, which is the name of both a small village and the string of villages it is part of. Amed is on the Eastern tip of the Island and is known for its great snorkelling and diving.
The landscape in Amed is very different than the parts of the island we have seen so far. It is very arid. Hot, dusty and not tropical at all. Quite a contrast to the southern tip of the island. It is also in the shadow of Gunung Agung.
We can attest to the beauty of the coral and the fish as all three snorkelling excursions we took were wonderful. The first two excursions were only meters from the beach and accessible to anyone who could swim a few feet into the water. Our first trip was right off the black sand beach across the road from our hotel in Lipah which is just down the road (east) of the villages of Amed and Jemeluk. To get to the water we had to cross a dirt field that was inhabited by a few people but mostly chickens, cows, goats and dogs. This spot had no coral but did have a wide array of very colorful fish.
The second spot was further southeast and across from a hotel called Eka Purnama that is apparently run by an American. There is a Japanese “shipwreck” about 10 meters off the coast. It is well marked and hard to miss if you are headed there. There is also a small “warung” (diner) called Maharasta directly in front of the dive site. The “shipwreck” is more like a dingy-wreck but was still very cool. Several meters west of the shipwreck is a couple of small coral reefs. Also really beautiful.
We made arrangements with one of the many boat captains strolling the beach to take us snorkelling the following day to a small Gili (island) about 20 minutes away. The captain, his gilligan and the two of us found our way to some of the most beautiful coral I’ve seen. The fish were also amazing. To see, up close, the almost fluorescent colors of some of these plants and fish is stunning. Having not snorkelled often, Terra and I were thrilled with the experience.
We can also highly recommend our hotel. Tresna Yoga is located in Lipah on the hill side of the road as you are headed southeas away from Amed. It is directly across from the White Sand Divers shop and the Vienna Beach Bungalows. This hotel was designed and built by the Managers brother and is really a cool structure built into the side hill. The vegetation was beautiful and the staff was very personable. We stayed at Tresna Yoga for three nights. During that time, we ate some of the best food of our lives, experienced great snorkelling and visited with some truly wonderful and gracious people. We hope to return some day.
The next stop…Lovina (the north coast area)
Tags: Bali
Weiser Wander
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