Beautiful Bali
If you’re looking for the perfect mixture of exploring and relaxing, Bali is a perfect trip for that.
Bali is so affordable. When I share the full trip price with people, which includes flight, hotel, food, and souvenirs they don’t believe me. I spent a total of $1,000 (or less) on the entire trip. I found a Groupon for round trip flights and hotels for $700 but we didn’t stay with that group the entire time because as some of you already know, I stuff as much as I can into a trip, and we wanted to see more. However, even without Groupon, you can find amazing deals to get yourself to Indonesia!
We started our trip in Ubud!
Ubud is such a lush green, forestry, tropical dreamy area. On our first day there, we went to do yoga, which, funny story, we didn’t have enough cash to pay for Yoga so ended up doing it in the middle of a random field, which ended up being a better experience in the end. The field we were doing yoga in ended up being a Peanut farmer’s field that we ended up becoming friends with! He lived in literally a dream home, surrounded by a mixture of palm and forest trees, with some rooms that were completely open to the outside. He also had 3 dogs and literally is living my dream life. Anyways, that was just the morning of day 1. But we stayed in the area for a good amount of time just exploring. Everywhere is so beautiful, I would recommend walking around and exploring as much as you can!
In Ubud we also went to Naughty Nuris, which was featured in Travel + Leisure and other reputable sites as a place you must eat at and I can attest to that! It was so good! I would recommend getting one of everything there.
Bali is known for its terraced rice paddies and temples. I’m still amazed at how beautiful the Tegallalang Rice Terrace was! I’ve seen photos of it and it looks beautiful but it really doesn’t do the real thing justice. You have to see with your own eyes.
The rice terraces are also right next to the Aloha Ubud swing, which was so fun/funny to experience! The Ubud swing overlooks the entire rice terrace, and… is a little extra. But the photos and the experience that came out of that were too good to pass up!
I loved just walking around the local markets! There is so much bohemian art in Bali and I loved watching the artists create their masterpiece right in front of you on the street. I got some beautiful hand-carved picture frames there, and we watched this guy create the frames from start to finish with his own hands. It was kind of funny because as Persians we like to bargain a lot like we think that’s fun. So I bargained this guy down to a price that I was happy with at the time but then watching him create the frames by hand so beautifully, I ended up talking him back up to the original price he asked for.
Between Ubud and Kuta, we made a few pitstops, starting with a Coffee and Tea farm where we drank Luwak coffee, otherwise known as Luwak poop. I remember it being very acidic. But we also got to sample lots of other teas and coffees, which were really good. Not the best I’ve had though (Turkey/Iran are the best places for tea and Colombia/Cuba are best for coffee).
Another pit stop was the Lempuyang Temple (or heavens gate), which you’ve probably seen many photos of. It’s the temple that appears to have the water reflection in front of it. Just know that IT’S NOT WHAT IT LOOKS LIKE!! That water reflection is really just a tiny little mirror that some guy sitting under an umbrella uses to take photos all day long. We waited in line for hours and the couple right in front of us walked up to get their photos taken, and then the guy started kneeling to propose!
We also stopped by Tirta Gingaa water palace which was absolutely stunning! Someone that we met there mentioned that some of the water was pulled from the sacred river Ganges in India.
Bali has some beautiful waterfalls! Some of the scenery looked like what I imagine heaven looks like. We visited Tukad Cepung and Kanto Lampo waterfalls and get this, we visited them on EARTH DAY!
When we finally arrived at Kuta, it was a completely different vibe from Ubud. Kuta is a small surf town where the waves are perfect for those looking to learn how to surf!
If you ever go to Kuta you have to visit Matra Spa. Massages in Indonesia are so cheap, and it’s not just a back massage, they start with soaking your feet and then take you to a sound bath and then massage your back and then exfoliate your entire body.
Another must-visit in Kuta is Crumb & Coaster, which is the cutest and most delicious cafe. I got the mango pancakes and had to go back because I couldn’t stop thinking about them!
A few more things:
Some other food to try aside from Naughty Nuris and Crumb and Coaster
Fried noodles were one of my favorite dishes there
They have a local vegetable called Gondo that was so good! I can’t describe the flavor without it sounding gross, but just try it - you won’t be disappointed!
We also went to the monkey forest sanctuary, but I didn’t think it was worth an entire half-day. It was fun if we had a lot of time to kill but I wouldn’t recommend it and wouldn’t go there when I go back to Bali.
To summarize everything in 6 bullet points:
In Ubud, explore as much as you can, everywhere is filled with beautiful areas where you can do yoga, meditate or just relax.
Eat at Naughty Nuris, which was featured in Travel + Leisure and the New York Times. It’s delicious especially their ribs, the sauce, and their fried noodles!!
A few must-sees in between Ubud and Kuta are the Tegallalang Rice Terraces, Ubud Swing, Tirta Ginga, and the Lempuyang Temple. Although don’t be disappointed when you see that there really isn’t a reflection under the temple, and be ready to wait in line for your photo.
Visit the markets in both Ubud and Kuta, a lot of hand-crafted bohemian art in those markets
Take a surfing lesson in Kuta, the waves are perfect for beginners
And lastly, visit my favorite cafe there, Crumb and Coaster. I got the mango pancakes and to this day I’m still thinking about how good it was.