Once I saw the coconut trees on the beach, my tiredness evaporated. This beach was just by the street, and I decided to stop driving to enjoy the view of the beach. This was Yehleh Beach, located between my hometown (Negara) and the Bali capital city of Denpasar.
I have passed this several times, and every time I pass this place, I remind myself to stop. But I never really stop. Until this time.
It's been years since I came here. Things have changed a lot. It seems that this place has become more popular.
I saw many people stop at this place. Some of them parked their motorbikes by the street near a statue of people racing in a bull race. The bull race called Makepung is a traditional buffalo race in Jembrana (where my home town is).
It was about 5 PM, so the sun was not so hot. No wonder people sat down by the pavement to see the view of the beach and not worry about the scorching sun. Some "punk" kids who ride Vespa also stop there. I noticed some Vespa were old and dilapidated but looked cool. It was quite interesting. All those young kids just relax as if they have no problems in life.
I walked along the pavement and passed the statues of the bull race. The view of the beach can be easily seen from the street, but the easiest access to the beach was only from a foodstall nearby. The foodstall was called "Warung Pantai' which means beach stall.
Seemed to me, there were a lot of people stopping in this stall. I saw my motorcycles and cars parked on the stall yards. This must be the people who just stop and have a rest stop in the middle of their journey. It's indeed an ideal place to stop. They offer cheap food and toilets for free.
I walked into the foodstall's front yard, skipping the food offer because I was trying to locate the opening to the beach. Easy to find.
The beach, like most of the beaches in this region, has black sand. Well, it's because Bali is a volcanic island. Volcanic rocks and volcanic sands are black.
The beach was peaceful, and the waves were subtle as I gazed at the far horizon. On the west side, along the beach, were bushes and coconut trees. Because of the heat, I think the water along the beach evaporated. From a distance, it looked like fog.
One of the concerns was the rubbish on the beach. This was natural rubbish from dead branches or coconuts that fell from the trees. Still, the beach looks peaceful.
