St. Martin De Pons: Tengudak, Bali

It had been a while since I had visited Pura Luhur Batakaru and I wanted to check out a few places along the way. One of them was a very interesting Catholic church.

I took the main road Tabanan to Wongayagede road which is a scenic route passing through shrub-lined villages and rice terraces, the road lined with a mixture of tall trees and coconut palms. At the village of Buruan I turned left at the fork in the road leading up to Gunung Batukau.

A place I wanted to see again was Yeh Panas, the hot springs. Now, a hotel company has built a hotel and spa retreat there and has total monopoly over the springs. However people not staying at the hotel can still enjoy the hot springs. A few kilometres to the north I entered the village of Tengudak and on the right-hand side of the road is located the Catholic church of St Martins de Pons.

St Martin De Pons

The church is an interesting example of Balinese Christian architecture and, although locked when I arrived, the facade is all I needed to see and admire. Several Christian motifs have been carved onto the typical red-brick facade. Interestingly, there is a four-tiered Hindu meru tower atop the building. The entrance doors are beautifully carved with biblical scenes and portray various characters. I found the windows to be of an unusual nature with beautifully and ornate window coverings.

It is a narrow road out front of the church and I soon had vehicles honking as they passed. Time to move the vehicle I thought and on to Gunung Batukau when a truck driver yelled something in Balinese that sounded awfully like 'Move that bloody vehicle'.