Bali, Indonesia

Two years ago, I flew over twenty hours to the beautiful island of Bali, Indonesia. The fascinating thing is that I am still talking to people about the island and week-long trip, and what a wonderful experience it was.

After my stop in San Francisco from Chicago, and trying United Airlines https://www.united.com new non-stop service from San Francisco to Singapore, I boarded my Lion Air http://lionair.co.id/ flight to Denpasar, the capital of the island. Upon landing, I was advised through a travel blog to try and circumvent the powerful taxi union and book a trip to my hostel through the small, but affordable, Uber option. I managed to track down my Uber driver and not tip off any of the suspecting taxi drivers, that I was using Uber. The smooth ride from the airport took me to my hostel called The Project Hostel in the Canggu area (now a vacation home rental) https://www.booking.com/hotel/id/the-project-hostel-and-cafe.html. I was greeted by a couple of workers at the on-site coffee shop and shown to my four bed dorm. From there, the first thing I did was set up my transportation for the next few days. By far the easiest way to move around this part of the island is by using a moped.  I took a dip in the pool in the middle of the grounds, and then set out for the beach.

This brings me to my first conversation I usually have with people regarding Bali.

Widely seen as a beach destination, I found this somewhat misleading, at least from my experience.  There is so much more. Cruising around on the moped through rice paddies, and stops in Ubud and the south of the island, I found lush forests, mountains, and bustling cities. Don’t get me wrong, the beaches throughout the island are spectacular, but I found the serenity of inland much more appealing. My first long moped ride was from Canggu to Uluwatu. I was told by a few people working at the hostel about a few beaches along the way that were less crowded and a good place to relax after a long moped ride. The first spot I decided to stop at was Balangan Beach. Definitely a chill spot to park the moped, go for a swim, and enjoy a bite to eat at the few beachside restaurants. From Balangan, I continued to my final destination further south to Single Fin Restaurant. http://www.singlefinbali.com/ Single Fin is known throughout Bali for its clifftop views, and party vibe. The views did not disappoint. Having a Bintang and watching the surfers below with other fellow travelers was a lot of fun, and the food was also above average. Eventually, I made my way back to Canggu through insane, rush hour traffic jams, which had me driving on sidewalks at several points, and settled for a dip in my hostel pool to cool off and get the grime off.

Over the next few days I enjoyed fresh coffee, local meals, sunsets at Batu Bolong Beach, a day stop at Potato Head Beach clubhttps://www.ptthead.com/bali/, and cruises through rice paddies. The next stop was Ubud.

The first place I stayed in Ubud was Puji Hostehttps://www.booking.com/hotel/id/puji-hostel-ubud.htmll. A centrally located hostel equipped with transport bookings, pool, and free breakfast. This was a younger hostel crowd, but had a good mix of travelers with wide-ranging itineraries. Again, my first concern was getting my moped transportation squared away. Luckily, the hostel made arranging that extremely easy with several mopeds available for rent directly in front. I got acquainted with mine, and headed for my first stop, the Sacred Monkey Forest Sanctuary https://www.monkeyforestubud.com/. While this place is extremely touristy, it was still a pretty awesome experience. There are monkeys at every turn, and vendors selling bananas to feed them. I spent a couple hours here watching the monkeys interact with the visitors, and attempted to film some eating bananas out of my hand (it didn’t work). After walking around the grounds, I left and ended up walking through the main drag and eventually through the Ubud Market. The market had all sorts of souvenirs and crafts for sale, primarily directed at tourists. I also stumbled across Pura Dalem Temple and watched some of the performers practicing their music on the grounds.

One of my goals on this trip was to partake in a cooking class while I was in Ubud. I ended up choosing Ketut’s Bali Cooking Class www.ketutsbalicookingclass.com. There are several cooking classes in the area to choose from, but I was very happy with my decision. The day starts with a chef’s assistant taking you on a guided tour of the local meat and produce market in Ubud. He showed our small group local ingredients, fresh fruit and vegetables, and different cuts of meat. He was very passionate about the local ingredients and described in detail how the market functions day in and day out. After we purchased several items, we were shuttled a few miles away to the cooking class grounds. Set up like a true kitchen with several cooking stations, here is where we met the main chef, Ketut. What a character. His infectious energy and passion had us all laughing and thoroughly enjoying the show! We spent the day on the grounds making Base Gede (homemade Bali puree), Sauce Kacang (peanut sauce), Sambal Ulek (Balinese hot sauce), Soup Be Pasih (seafood soup), Mie Goreng (fried noodle), Sate Ayam Sauce Kacang (chicken sate with peanut sauce), Pepes Ikan (Balinese steamed fish in banana leaf), Ayam Kalasan (chicken in spiced coconut milk), and bubur injin (black rice pudding). Chef Ketut guided each and every one of us from start to finish, and we all sat down at the end to enjoy our feast. It was a memorable experience and in my opinion, well worth spending the day.

I finished up the day with a yoga class at one of the local studios, got my ass kicked in the heat, and was ready for bed after a few beers.

The next day I made my way to the Tegenungan Waterfall. It was a short but scenic drive on the bike until I reached the chaos of the entrance of the waterfall. There were bussed tourists, cars, and mopeds all trying to find parking to enter the waterfall area. Walking down a few flights of stairs, you are greeted with a scenic view of the flowing waterfall. I walked around the base of the waterfall, took a dip in the water and cruised back to my hostel in Ubud.

After a couple days with the younger hostel crowd and cramped dorm room, I decided to treat myself for the last couple of days with a private room at a private homestay. I chose the Dewi Antara Homestayhttps://www.booking.com/hotel/id/dewi-antara-homestay.html just a few blocks off the main strip in Ubud. The owner and family here were extremely welcoming and the grounds were kept spotless each day. Breakfast arrived at my front door each morning where I was able to enjoy it with a cup of fresh coffee before heading to the small rooftop pool. At roughly $15 USD per night, it was a perfect way to end my stay in Bali. But before I finish, I need to recommend the restaurant I ate at before I left Ubud. Warung Pondok Madu, https://warungpondokmadu.com/ is a small restaurant within walking distance of Dew Antara. It was by far my best meal in Bali. Specializing in local ribs lathered with a spectacular sauce, the chef and server delivered an amazing meal with smiles on their faces interacting with every guest. If I was in Ubud longer, I would have tried everything on the menu.

With that all that being said, I found Bali to be an incredible island. While not exactly what I was expecting, it was well worth the long trip across the world. I continue to recommend people to visit and see what else the island has to offer. Happy traveling!