Bali

My trip to Bali took me to an exotic land, filled with incredible Hindu temples, vibrant green rice terraces, beautiful beaches and coves, lush jungle, and all of it, relatively inexpensive to visit.

GETTING THERE

Bali's International Airport DPS has direct flights arriving from across Southeast Asia, also Australia and New Zealand. It's a very long flight from the USA and Europe, but a fun stopover could be included in the plane ticket for no extra charge.

I decided I wanted to experience Bali, two different ways. I could get a top of the line resort for a reasonable price, and also a decent hotel for cheap. I booked the budget hotel in Kuta Beach to watch the sunsets and I stayed in a resort in Nusa Dua to see the sunrises.

AMAZING EXCURSIONS

The beach was spectacular in Nusa Dua and the clear turquoise blue water was filled with marvelous creatures. I saw Starfish with black and orange tentacles, Seahorses, Hermit Crabs, and even some small Sea Snakes glided by me in the water!

Kuta Beach was a hustle and bustle of activity, cheap trips, tourist gifts, and young people looking to party. People zipped around the busy narrow streets on scooters and motorbikes. Restaurants of all kinds could be found, filled with fabulous food, including Indonesian Fried Rice and Sate.

I took several excursions during my stay, all inexpensive and easy to book when I arrived. The countryside was magnificent, with temples everywhere, rice terraces, people walking around with baskets on their heads, or with a bamboo rod balanced on their shoulders with baskets on either end. In some more remote areas, people would dry their washed clothes by laying them on bushes. As I drove through different towns, I noticed each community was dedicated to a specific purpose; woodworkers in one area, silversmiths in another, basket weavers, and bamboo makers in others.

I visited the Monkey Forest in Ubud, which was a temple overrun with mostly friendly, although some cheeky, even naughty monkeys. I spent hours watching them socialize with humans and with each others. I fed them, and watched as they groomed each other. I also noticed something 'breathing' in the trees and realized there were many bats, upside down, sleeping, holding onto branches.

There were several waterfalls in the area, including the tall Tegenungan Waterfall, which had a good sized swimming hole, and the smaller Sumampan Waterfall, with various temple ruins shrewn about. Also, Ubud had zipline adventures through the forest canopy, and giant swings which offered a unique aerial view of the lush green forest.

Another excursion took me to Lake Batur, which was inside the caldera of an active volcano! My guide said it was a sacred site for people in Bali. In addition to the lake, there were several smaller volcanos inside, and one of them was smoking! There was also a natural hot spring in a nearby village. Afterwards, I visited Besakih Great Temple, which was on Mount Agung. Besakih was the largest and most sacred Hindu Temple Complex in Bali. It had many intricately carved staircases and terraces, climbing up the mountain slope.

I took another excursion to Tanan Lot Temple, which was on a small rocky island, cut off from the mainland during high tide. But during low tide I could walk to the island and tour the temple complex. It was quite a spectacular sight and I spent several hours there, wanting to watch the tide rise. The temple also had a freshwater spring on site, which locals said was sacred water.

My trip to Bali was both affordable and fascinating. It was the perfect combination of culture, natural wonders, and a fun atmosphere.