Just got back from a short break in Bali, enjoying this province island of Indonesia that is well known across the globe and is one of the top tourist destinations in the world. Bali is the only Hindu majority province in Indonesia with more than 90% of the population adhering to Balinese Hinduism, making this a key highlight as a tourist since Hinduism is not a religion that I am very familiar. There are 4.3 million people living in Bali split in 9 regencies, with traces of people living 2000BC that migrated from Taiwan; it was under Dutch control until 1949 when Indonesia was recognized as a country and Bali became a province.
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Bali is a great place for surfing, with many beaches available to practice the sport and with impressive views like in Tanah Lot where people surf in front of beautiful temples. Since 80% of the economy is based on tourism, you will find accommodations of all budgets along the beaches and in the countryside with rooms overlooking into rice paddies or even the change to have a room looking towards Mount Batur an active volcano.
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Once you arrive at Denpasar, capital of Bali and go outside you clearly see that the people of Bali are one of their biggest assets; the people are looking to politely provide service to you and very respectful of your space as you manage the busy arrival term towards the taxi or transportation that will take you to your destination. For us we decided to stay in Ubud, located amongst rice paddies and steep ravines in the central foothills of the Gianyar regency; is promoted as the arts and Culture Center of Bali and if you don’t stay there is a must place to go and explore.
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There is lot of traffic in Bali, biggest roads are only 2 lanes with one lane at each side for rural roads also if you add the big number of motorcycles in the street it can get a bit overwhelming. My recommendation for a short stay is to hire a driver / tour guide that can take you to the different places, reducing the risk of driving in these roads that are unknown to you. Be prepared to spend a bit of time as you move from place to place, it was not a hassle but if you have a limited number of days you will spend 10-12 hours going to some awesome places so it´s worth it.
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We decided to hire a 2 full days guide that would take us across the island to some of the best sights, plus had another full day for us to explore Ubud Center. After looking for tours, I found this company that had good reviews and local knowledge of Bali, here is the tour guide LINK if you want more info. Our guide was one of the partners of Putu Arnawad, Mr Kadek was a great guide very knowledgeable of the island he made us feel safe and the trip was very enjoyable.
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Here is a list of things we did, Bali has tons more things to do and depending on the number of days you can include more things, for 2 days of tours I think we were very aggressive and got to see most of the great things Bali has to offer. You can use this as a reference if you are planning to go, I have also included some photos of the places so you can see some of the beauties of Bali:
- Ubud Center – Spend 1/2 in Ubud enjoy some shopping and sightseeing, here 2 great places to eat and chillax: Lunch at Ibu Susu Bar (Mixology) / Dinner at Nusantara (Indonesian Food)
- Ubud Palace – Go and do the Legong and Barong Dance show, interesting form of dance that is pure Balinese
- Tanah Lot Temple & Batu Balong Temple – By the beach, is a beautiful sunset place
- Ulun Danu Beratan Temple – Beautiful temple in a big space, great place to see some hindu ritual, lots of locals go there
- Goa Gajah also known as Elephant Cave (Built in 9th century) – Smaller temple but interesting to see the fountain and bathing pool discovered in 1954
- Pura Tirta Empul – Explore a local hindu custom of spiritual cleansing, can be experienced live
- Tegallalang Rice Terraces – beautiful sight and ingenious water irrigation technology, you can see people working the land (Hard working people)
- Blue Lagoon Beach – hidden cozy beach, great place to relax by the sea
- Candidasa Beach – Beachfront lunch, there are many restaurants to choose and enjoy
- Twin Lakes – Lakes were formed after the mountain collapse and separated the body of water, you can see them from the top of the road
- Banyumala Waterfalls – There are many to choose but this one is impressive and you can even go in the water if you want
- Luwak Coffee stop – Enjoy one of the most expensive coffees in the world and learn the process to get it (Or not)
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Bali offers options for everyone; I recommend that you get to explore a bit of everything and have a full taste of their offerings including having some of the local food (Best Fried Rice in the world). Learning about their culture and religious beliefs help you understand why the Balinese people are so warm and acceptant of all foreigners; people make the difference and in this case Bali locals bring the experience to another level.
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For our stay in Ubud we decided to stay at the Maya Ubud resort HOTEL LINK and have the forest-valley experience that you see in ads when you research Bali and it was worth it. This resort is a local company focused on providing great personalized service, the property offer different rooms and the facilities, specially the pool by the river are phenomenal. You can stay in this hotel if you want top notch service, with great food and best in class accommodations.
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Bali is definitely a destination to go if you want to experience something different, great people and different traditions are a big hit. Thanks for reading the post, please share to your friends and sign in to receive our updates; also follow us on Instagram, and Facebook search for #BORICUASLIVINGABROAD. Until next time….