Bali in a Nutshell
Part of me wants to go through the entire trip to Bali chronologically and not miss a beat but then the other part of me knows how boring things can get when you realise you have an entire novel left to read. So I’ll highlight the highs and point out the lows, because the “lows” are often unheard of on the internet.
The trip was packed full of adventure and relaxation and a few hiccups along the way. It started out in the South of Ubud sleeping amid a zoo full of animals, literally (Sanctoo Villas). There were elephants walking through a creek about an 80 metre walk from the villa, there were wild boars, otters, birds and even kangaroos. None of this filled me with joy however. The elephants were being ridden and the rest of the animals were stuck in a foreign zoo where I had no idea how they were being treated. It was an entirely new feeling to be stuck in a place that didn’t align well with my morals. On the other hand, I was being treated like a queen, a free cocktail every day, an entire body massage, a hike out into the land to see what the rice terraces looked like in South Ubud. It was quite the informative, relaxing first few days to the trip.
Soon after leaving the villas in the zoo, the real adventure began. A scooter ride with one rather large backpack, all the way from Ubud to the beautiful lake that resides beside Mount Batur has me completely exhausted. The next morning called for a 3.30am start to begin the climb up the beast itself (Mount Batur). In retrospect I should have packed a jumper because it was extremely icy on the top of that mountain. But the view…. well, the view was worth the cold, the bruises, the sweat and the tears. You could see the land for miles and so the group kept trekking down into the crater where we were all met face-to-face with a pack of wild monkeys, it was truly a wild time. Alas, it had me extremely exhausted and hence the afternoon ahead did not go down well. Lost cannot even begin to describe the despair of losing my bearings that afternoon … for hours!
Sunburnt and having received incorrect directions multiple times it’s safe to say I was scared and stressed. In the end, a swift return to the initial campout from the prior night (Njung Bali Camp) helped immensely. The owners there helped by driving up some almighty hills onto flat land, even in the midst of Kuningan celebrations (kind of like our Australian Christmas). Once I was safely back on flat land, the scooter never accelerated so fast in its little life - off to the next destination, Singaraja.
Singaraja, a beautiful, local town on the north coast of Bali. Staying in a local homestay (Woodstock In The Village) full of travellers of all sorts, it was perfect! I tried my luck with a local restaurant which turned out to be way too spicy for my own tastebuds and yes, I often enjoy some spice to my dishes so it’s fair to say that this was a blow-your-head-off type of spice. I ended up scouring the streets for a local supermarket in order to fill my belly instead. Later that evening, we received notification from the the owner of the homestay that there was a gecko residing in the roof of the room. PEOPLE, this was not ANY gecko, this was a heckin’ MAMMOTH GECKO. I raced to get dressed in the middle of the night, that’s how scared I was. After the gecko incident I barely slept for the next two nights but what made up for it was the trip out of Lovina Beach to see pods of dolphins swimming about at sunrise. Although serene at first and a beautiful sight to see, I do NOT recommend this activity. Why? Once I was out in the depths of the ocean, it was clear that there were about 100+ other fishing boats out there scouring the big blue to see these wild animals. I cannot begin to imagine what the dolphins may have been thinking during an activity like this.
After the 5am wake up to see the dolphins at Lovina Beach, so begun the descent from North Bali to the very South of Bali — in fact, one of the islands to the South East of Bali, Nusa Ceningan. This was by far the best and worst experience in Bali. On the boat across to Nusa Lembongan I was met with a beautiful couple from Sydney who were on their honeymoon. After a few Bintangs, we’d formed a friendship but our boat was stuck in shallow waters so the next thing we knew the entire boatful of people were walking across shell-covered shallow waters to get to dry land. After that catastrophe, I scavenged to find the nearest Beef Rendang and shared a few more Bintangs with the new friends. We parted ways and after a whole day of travel, the hotel (Le Pirate) greeted us with cold showers, a broken safe, an air conditioner that wasn’t able to be turned off and over-priced quotes. Although their food and happy hour was a sure good time, the entire experience with their hotel was not. We quickly moved onto a newly opened, beautifully owned place called D’Pasih which was an absolute delight to stay at. Not only did I receive quotes for travel at half the price but they also went above and beyond for helping us get to know the island. I would truly go back just to stay at this place!
After the island adventures on Nusa Ceningan, I travelled back to the main island to check into a place in Canguu (Frii Bali Echo Beach). Most of the fun happened here to be honest. Numerous restaurants were visited and a gigantic amount of amazing food was inhaled. I swam in pools at beach clubs, drank Bintang after Bintang. My money was stolen by sketchy side of the road money exchange con-artists. I ended up at a police station notifying the police that my phone had been stolen, only to find the phone later that evening (IN MY PILLOWCASE?). I danced along to Sticky Fingers live at Old' Man’s. I bought beautiful clothing, pampered myself with massages and hair treatments. It was truly a wonderful end to the entire trip. There were many other things that I’ve definitely missed during this relaying of events but hey, you get the gist of it all — traveling isn’t always pretty but it’s definitely a whole heap of fun when you’re out there experiencing it!
Okay, so it ended up being a novel and I sincerely apologise for that. But honestly, I wanted to note it all down because I find that’s the best way to remember memories. Looking back now, it feels like the whole trip went as fast as ripping a bandaid off, which truly saddens me because I already have itchy feet to travel this great big world of ours again sometime very soon.