After the harassment that is taxi drivers at Denpasar airport, Bali could not have been more perfect for what I wanted, needed and expected. This, to date, is my favourite country I have ever been to. The people are cheeky and so kind, the scenes are beautiful, the food is healthy, and the atmosphere takes your breath away in the best way possible. God love you Vietnam, but my Lord did I need Bali.
What to expect
- To fall in love <3 If you don't, there's something wrong with you. Take me back now please.
- To spend a lot of wondering around with a big fat smile on your face
Must see's
Gili T: If you want to party this place is perfect, but if you want to live island life, with beautiful sunsets, delicious food, great shopping and a good mix of relaxation and activities, Gili Trawangan is bang on. We cycled around the island, following the sun, watched awesome sunsets from beach bean bags, went snorkelling and hung out on multiple tree swings. Tick tick boom, a great few days!
My favourite spot in Bali, Single Fin: This is a surf spot, lookout, beach and a bar/restaurant area. I spent two days here just watching the surfers in the sunshine, with a book and some food; one of my fondest memories as I learned to be alone and take in where I was. There's a beach, loads of cafes and bars, a few shops and a nice acai bowl hut for a healthy spot of lunch.
Turtles: I'm sure there are plenty of places to spot them in Bali, but we saw them on a snorkelling trip from Gili Trawangan. The trip takes you to all three Gili Islands: Trawangan, Meno and Air, and you're pretty much guaranteed to swim with turtles at some point. Snorkelling, for me, has never been much more than a few fish in shallow waters, but this trip was memorable. We saw so many beautiful species, colours, coral reefs and also got to swim into the deep where you can see the sea floor drop into the abyss with sun rays shining behind you.
Must do's
It happened to be my birthday whilst we were in Bali, no age needed, so I wanted to do something I'd remember, something different. Fortunately, the logical travel plan meant that we would be in Ubud where Mount Batur is situated. It's an active volcano, 1,717m high, that you can trek up for sunrise, so we did! It was really something special; beautiful scenes, super early start, a wonderful guide and some great people to learn about on the way.
The Ubud way of living
As soon as you arrive in Ubud you feel different, in a good way. Even though Bali is a relaxing and beautiful place as a whole, Ubud takes it up a notch. Yoga is everywhere, spas are in every other building, health and well-being is encouraged; it's hard to ignore the not-so-subtle hints that we should look after ourselves, so you don't! We did a yoga class at the Yoga Barn, ate trendy foods, and let ourselves be pampered, it was perfect. I'm definitely going back, 3 days was not enough.
Clock out on Nusa Lemborgan Island
On our way to the Gili's we wanted to make a pit stop to a tiny island, Nusa Lemborgan. We checked in and didn't move more than 20m from the pool, to the bar, to our beach beanbags for 24 hours. Pure bliss.
What to eat
Nasi Campur: A local dish of rice with 4/5 side accompaniments such as spicy green beans, Tempe/tofu in a tomato sauce, chicken satay and a fried egg
Coconut brittle: Roasted coconut, with sugar used to sprinkle over ice cream or salads
Bintang Radler: A lemon beer, so refreshing and perfect for Bali moments
Tips
- Be savvy with transport: at the airport for instance you will be bombarded by taxi men, my advice is to walk right past, try not to let the harassment p*ss you off too much, go outside and walk a little bit; the taxis are much cheaper. Also, never settle for the first price, haggle once, twice, even three times to get the price you want, they generally at least double the price it should be so there will always be room for a wiggle
- Embrace the locals: sometimes, as Brits, we hate to be approached; love to shop, hate to be sold to. However, in Bali, I can't explain how much stress, aggro and unwarranted spending was taken away from me thanks to the wonderful human that is Nicholas. I was sat alone on Kuta beach when he approached me asking if I wanted a surf lesson. I said no, but he didn't mind, instead he sat with me for 2 hours and helped me plan my trip. I soon realised that Bali doesn't really do buses, but Nicholas offered to take me anywhere on his bike (with my massive backpack). Not only did he drive me wherever I needed to go on multiple days, he also gave me a tour of the new place to familiarise me with the area, as well as taking me to off the beaten track places I would never have known about. He organised all of my transport, including boats, charged me hardly anything, kept me safe and became a friend :)
Terima kasih (Thank you!)
#Bali #LiveLaughLearnTravel
