Bali, Indonesia

Kuta, Bali

After 27 hours of travel I arrived safely to Kuta, Bali. I think the one of the first thoughts that went through my mind was "What the heck am I doing?". If I could use one word to describe Kuta it would be madness. It is not the Bali described in books and movies but eventually I did embrace it and appreciate the unique culture and environment it had to offer. The first day I was pretty scared out of my mind to be honest and did not want to step away from the comfort of my hotel. I was jet lagged and confused but I got off my butt and knocked on the door of two girls staying next to me and made some friends. I spent the rest of my time with Desi, from New York and Becs, from England.

The first day we walked up and down the streets of Kuta which are narrow muddy streets filled with taxis, mo-peds, and shops all on top of each other. You cannot walk down the street and take more than two steps without someone offering you "transport, transport, massage". Transport is what they call a ride on their mo-peds. The streets are so tight with people,cars, and mo-peds everywhere it would have been a death wish for me to hop on one of those! If you want to buy anything you need to haggle to at least half of the price- which actually can be fun. Every step you take you are offered to buy whatever that vendor is selling. It is definitely a great place for shoppers. At first it is overwhelming, but soon enough you get used to and every once and while you strike up a conversation with these warm locals.

I went out on the town with the girls that evening to experience the night life in Kuta and the best way to describe it is Spring Break "insert your senior year of college here". The girls were a great deal a fun and we met quite a few people, mostly all from Australia. The area brings a lot of Australian tourists looking for fun and good waves. Everyone is open to socializing and meeting new people so it is a lovely place to make friends from all over the world.

The beach in Kuta was not in its peak season so I wasn't much impressed. To be fair I have seen a lot of beautiful beaches so I am a tough judge. On my last full day in Kuta, we enjoyed a day at the beach with the locals drinking Bingtangs- the beer and drink of choice in Bali- and learning a bit about the local life. We sat at a beach bar pretty much created for us. As we walked up onto the beach, one of the locals pulled out his cooler, chairs and a sign that said "My Bar" and took care of us all day.

Kuta can be overwhelming at first if you do not know what to expect, but once you can embrace the environment it is a place where you can enjoy good food and beer for less than five bucks, relax with a five dollar massage, and enjoy a night life that is fun for all.

Kuta Beach

Our afternoon at our our own private bar on the beach

Hanging with some locals- Lindy Lou was quite the character

We each ordered a drink and they brought us two- two for one- not bad

Night out in Kuta with Desi (left) and Becs (center)

Ubud, Bali

Ubud was quite possibly the opposite of Kuta. It was a great place to lie back and catch up on some R&R. After my shocking arrival in Kuta I decided to stay at a nice hotel in Ubud where I could lay by the pool and gear up for the rest of my trip. I loved Ubud and I would definitely go back. It is filled with art galleries, cute shops, and book stores. The streets still have people offering their services but the most common phrase turned into "taxi?... tomorrow?... yesterday?... please", and instead of always yelling to get your attention some of the taxi drivers just hold up a sign that says taxi.


While in Ubud I relaxed, checked out the bustling market, went to Monkey Forest, and enjoyed a beautiful meal over looking the rice fields. At Monkey Forest I learned that not all monkeys are cute and almost all of them are scary... but they do have their charming moments. Tomorrow I head to Bangkok, spend one evening there, then will be taking the overnight train to Chiang Mai in Northern Thailand to meet my friend Liz. I am looking forward to familiar company. I hope to update you all soon! Salud.

Relaxing at my hotel pool

Monkey eating a banana- I did notice he peeled it from the bottom

Hugging

Baby Monkey

Monkey Family

Monkey Forest- there were monkeys everywhere

Monkey Forest

Three Monkey's- Early dinner over looking a rice field

Traditional Indonesian meal of fried rice plus an Avocado Shake- Yum!

Religious offerings set out every morning all over Bali

Ubud homes

Walking over a bridge

Mo-peds everywhere

kids playing in the large futball field- aka soccer