The flight from Perth to Bali was only three and a half hours but it felt longer because of delays and the sick child in our row. Despite the time, our driver was waiting for us in the busy Denpensar Airport. By the time we actually stepped into our room it was few minutes past 2am. We mentioned it was the week of our anniversary when making the reservation and our room was covered in flowers and there was a chocolate cake waiting for us.
We did not know what to expect in Ubud. Everyone said they loved Bali and Ubud is great. Our hotel was about a ten minute walk off the Main Street and next to a rice field. There was construction on the small street dotted with shops, restaurants and other lodges. We wonder what it will look like in five years?
The Main Street was always crowded. Crossing the road was a skill that required focused walking and trust that nothing would hit a pedestrian. The street was lined with shops, restaurants and cafes. There was a bohemian market that sold mostly touristy things.
At the same time there were temples, statues and offerings on every street.
A short walk from our hotel was the Sacred Monkey Forest Sanctuary. We marveled how close the monkey forest was to the center of town. It was an oasis of greenery. At first, we did not see any monkeys.
When we turned a corner, there were monkeys everywhere. We even saw a monitor lizard.
We read about the restaurant Locavore but noticed it said to make a reservation one month in advance so we asked our hotel to see if we could eat lunch there one day. They got a reservation for a late lunch that afternoon! We sat at the bar in front of the kitchen for a 9 course tasting menu. It started with flowers that once eaten revealed the menu until our last course a mancala board full of fine chocolates.
On the opposite side of spectrum, we took a vegetarian cooking class. We prepared three sauces, a soup, sate, curry, noodles and dessert. The chef and owner had a great sense of humor and started the class by showing us how to make coconut oil. It takes nine coconuts to produce 100ml of oil!
We wanted to get out of the city one day and hired a driver/guide. We hoped to see five sites but stopped after three: Tegallaland Rice Terrace, Tirta Empul Temple and Pura Gunung Kawi. Tegallaland Rice Terrace provides scenic, terraced rice paddies. It was a little touristy at the start because there is a swing and several places designed for instagram photos. Once on the path, we were alone other than the workers.
The Tirta Empul Temple (Holy Water Temple) is a Hindu Balinese temple dedicated to Vishnu (the God of water) made famous for its holy spring water. The sacred springs are said to be create by the God Indra and possess curative powers. Behind the pools is an inner courtyard for prayer and another pool filled with koi fish.
Pura Gunung Kawi is an 11th century temple and funerary complex. There are ten rock-cut shrines between seven and twenty-three feet high. There is debate as to which King the temple is dedicated.
For our last night in Ubud, we attended a Kecak Fire and Trance dance at the Pura Dalem Taman Temple. The vocal music by the group of men was different from watching a Balinese dance performance.
