I wish I never had to come home from Bali
The second leg of our honeymoon was to the glorious island of Bali--the third largest island in the archipelago nation of Indonesia. I'm sure many of you hear Bali and think of Eat, Pray, Love and I'd be lying if I said that didn't have a relation for me as well. I knew when Michael proposed that I wanted to go to Bali for my honeymoon, but long flights turned our entire trip into a three country excursion. Since Bali is such a small island, their airport is too small to accommodate large international jetliners. Therefore, the only flights you'll find to Bali are those that are within a few hour time frame to the island. I personally think that this is a nice touch, since it keeps the accessibility to the island relatively low. There's also a rule on the island that buildings cannot be any higher than a matured coconut tree--so cute!
Our first stop in Bali was the beach area of Nusa Dua--this is where you'll find all of the fancy beach resorts. We were able to snag a great rate, so we stayed at theSt. Regis Bali. Let me tell you, if you're looking for heaven on Earth, you will find it here. Between the location, the hotel style, the PEOPLE, this place is unbelievable. Yes, food is pricey and so is the room rate. But, for an anniversary trip or a honeymoon, this is the best place to splurge. Every day we would wake up, head down to the amazing buffet breakfast, and make our way to the beach (which was never crowded). The attendants at the pool would set up your chairs and umbrella, bring you bottled water, and even snacks! My husband also got a kick out of the sunglasses cleaning man, who would come around every afternoon and literally clean your sunglasses. It was truly an experience.
Prior to our arrival, we booked an excursion that took us to the Monkey Forest, the Royal Temple, and Tanah Lot. This was a great excursion. We started at the Royal Temple, which is really quite breathtaking. The detail in the buildings and the sacredness of the space really hits you. From there, we went over to the Monkey Forest, which was quite an experience. You enter through what looks like a market, and suddenly see Monkeys running all over the place. As we entered, we saw one monkey run into a woman's shop, steal a sarong, and hold it hostage until she threw it a bag of Fritos!! Crafty little suckers. You are assigned a guide when you go in (for free) since the monkeys have been known to get a bit aggressive. They're very clear with you about what you can and cannot do as to not aggravate them. I personally was a little bit nervous to go super close to them, but Michael had a blast. You can buy bags of peanuts to feed them so they come near you, but be careful because they'll steal the whole bag.
Just in time for sunset, we made our way to the Tanah Lot Temple. Normally, this temple is completely surrounded by water and inaccessible to people. The day we went, the tide was very low and people were walking all around--kind of a disappointment. Regardless, it was a beautiful place to see.
On our way back, our driversuggested that he drops us off in Jimbaran, a beach area on the eastern side of Nusa Dua. The restaurants in this area are famous for their fresh seafood and unique atmosphere. When you arrive, you're given a candlelit table literally right on the sand. You can hear the waves crashing and see the stars--it's really very romantic and fun! For two people, you'll probably spend about $50, which is really cheap for how much fresh seafood you get. This was a great suggestion and I'm really happy we did it.
The second half of our stay in Bali was at the amazing Maya Ubud. When we booked this trip, I knew that I wanted to split my time in Bali between the beach and the hills. Ubud is a village in the northern part of Bali that is famous for its rice paddies and artist culture--it's a completely different experience than Nusa Dua and one that I highly recommend.
The Maya Ubud was a fantastic hotel with beautiful landscape and a really peaceful atmosphere. There were two pools overlooking the hills and it's really quite spectacular. We booked a pool villa, which was awesome. You can definitely hear the critters at night (since you are immersed in their world) but it makes for a really unique atmosphere. When you stay in a villa, you can also schedule a "backyard BBQ" where they come to your little yard area, set up a table with candlelight, and make an amazing grilled dinner for you right there--highly recommend!
For Michael's wedding present, I really wanted to do something unique. We had gone white water rafting in Maine twice before, so I thought white water rafting in Indonesia would be a great idea! The company picked us up from the hotel and brought us to the launch off location fort he Ayung River. We had to walk down probably 200 steps to get to the river, but it was well worth it. When you're rafting through, you see the most amazing jungle landscape. I know white water rafting is not everyone's cup of tea, but if you can handle it, I would definitely recommend this as an "out of the box" activity.
After we finished on the river and had lunch, the tour brought us to the Elephant Safari Park. I know what a lot of people think about these places and I'm sure a lot of them are terrible, but this one really is doing a good thing. On our ride, our guide was telling us that he was born and raised in Sumatra, another island in Indonesia. He worked there with Rama (the elephant) for years and years before his coworker cut off Rama's tusk and sold it. After that, Rama was sent to Bali to be a part of this sanctuary, and the guide followed. He had developed such a relationship with him that he couldn't bear to let him go. Yes, you do ride the elephants and yes, they are contained. But compared to the poaching they face out in the wild, they're taken care of. If this is something you'd want to participate in, I would just recommend doing your homework to make sure you're going to a reputable place.
Another day we decided that we really wanted to explore the villages of the Ubud region. Our hotel offered shuttles into town, but a lot of that had become very commercialized and touristy--not what we're into. We talked to the bell man at the hotel and he made a call for us to his friend that does tours. He was able to get us Agun for $40! Agun was super friendly, very knowledgeable, and took us everywhere we wanted to go. We went into the local villages of the area and really got a taste for how people lived. Luckily, we were there during a holy week, so we passed by a few parades and marches to temple--this was really awesome to see. When we were walking around, we also noticed that there were these little piles of rice and fruit everywhere--Agun told us that it is a Hindi offering to the Gods during holy week.
Agun also took us around to a home where the family works to make wood carvings--they literally sit around all day and hand carve statues, figurines, wall hangings, etc. out of solid wood. Talk about a craft!
All in all, Bali is one of the most spectacular places on Earth. There is something very tranquil and exciting about the island, which I personally have never experienced anywhere else. If you can stomach the 20 hours in flying (from the East Coast in the US) I guarantee you that you will not be disappointed.