"Live the Cover!" Contest: Maldives

Great Travel Moment

This photograph evokes for me the memory of Bali's indescribable beauty, and the unexpected parallels between earth and sky that we encountered everywhere we went. This was taken in the Ubud region, home to acres upon acres of rice fields flanked by volcanoes and coconut trees. We stayed at a hotel that uses completely organic farming techniques. Ducks serve as both fertilizer and pest control, and special bicycles ridden by local villagers plow the land and unearth the grains. Accustomed to factory farming and genetic alteration, it was almost as though we were observing ancient, natural practices used before toxic chemicals and machines were used to grow and process our food. The result is beauty in every sense of the word: taste, texture, smell, and sight. This picture captures the awe-inspiring juxtopositions that nature throws our way -- it's just a matter of slowing down long enough to notice.