Ubud & Around

On day 4 we headed up to Ubud. On the way to we stopped at the most photographed temple in Bali, Pura Tanah Lot. It’s a large temple literally in the ocean. The tide was too high to go out to the temple, but we got lots of great photos! We then headed to our hotel just outside of Ubud. The hotel we originally wanted to stay out was booked and that hotel referred us to the Bumi Ubud Resort. At first glance we were really happy with this choice, but once we looked closed the place was a total bust. We just spent minimal time there and were very glad we only had to stay 1 night there.
Our first night in Ubud we went to watch the traditional Balinese dance the Kecak and Fire Dance (please see video below). It was very cool to see. I think the building we were in was a temple but we were still able to buy beer. I thought it was a bit strange at first, but about half the audience was enjoying cold Bintangs, so we followed suit. We got some good photos and video of this ancient Balinese dance. After the dance we went for dinner at The Dirty Duck restaurant that was recommended by a friend. The restaurant was undergoing a renovation and we think the head chef must have been away, because it wasn’t anything to write home about. So we ate light and called it a night.

Then we returned back to our not-so-nice hotel where I managed to have a terrible night’s rest. I was worried about bugs crawling on me and then woke up at 3am to a scratching noise that seemed to come from our headboard! Eek! I woke Chris up and made us sleep with the light on for the next hour or so just in case a friend tried to come out and visit us. On our way to the room that night we noticed there was like only one other room being occupied at the hotel. Not a good sign! We had prepaid for the hotel online and were just staying one night so we decided to deal with it. When we woke up that morning we skipped the complimentary breakfast mostly out of fear and headed to the Monkey Forest and Craft Market. We grabbed iced coffees at Circle K since it was already about 80 degrees out and set out to see the Monkey Forest. There were 2 local ladies selling bananas at the start of the forest that you can buy to feed the monkeys. Chris thought it would be a good idea to get some. He made the mistake of giving them to me. Within 30 seconds of buying the bananas a large monkey ran up to up to me, jumped on me and stole all the bananas! I screamed of course and let the bananas go. He grabbed one and started eating, so I tried to get the others back and he lunged at me and tried to scratch my leg. Chris got this on video as well - please see below. It was totally embarrassing and the other patrons were laughing at us.

We had a nice walk about the forest to see some temples, a small stream, and of course, monkeys! There was a proper coffee shop at the end of the forest so we popped in for a real cup of Joe. On the way back in Chris decided he would give the bananas a try! Thinking he was cooler than me of course! Again, within seconds of walking in with the bananas an even larger monkey jumped on Chris. Chris quickly ripped off one banana and threw it on the ground hoping the monkey would chase after it. Well, this was a smart monkey. Why chase after one when you can have five from this nice tourist?! The ladies that sold us the bananas started yelling at Chris to just give the monkey the bananas. I’m sure this was for safety purposes, so I also started yelling at Chris to give up the damn bananas. I didn’t want to try out Balinese doctors or the hospital because my husband was attacked by a monkey. Finally, Chris gave in and the monkey strutted away with his fat breakfast. The ladies then warn us to watch out for our coffees because the monkeys also like plastic. Oh great! My friend had her camera stolen by a monkey in this same spot a few months prior. I was scared for the rest of our time in the Monkey Forest. A little guy monkey did come after my coffee, but no one gets between me and my morning coffee!
The rest of the day we spent browsing the many shops along Monkey Forest Road. We stopped for a breakfast of banana pancakes and fresh fruit at one of the cafes along the road. We made our way down to the Craft Market where we made many purchases and ended up having to make a trip back to the hotel to drop off our loot before lunch time. We bought 3 traditional masks of characters from the Kecak story we has seen the night before, 2 other wood carvings, 5 dresses for me (ranging from $5-$20), some Bali coffee, and some other cool things. We then had a great lunch at the famous Ibu Oka restaurant. It was made famous by Anthony Bourdain for saying it's the best roasted pig he's ever had. We agree that it’s wicked good! It was a little hole in the wall place for sure where you also had to sit on the floor and it was packed with tourists and locals. We would totally go back.
To finish off our last day in Bali we went for more cheap massages, walked around to more shops, and just hung around town. Our last dinner was at a restaurant with some great barbeque. We cheated and had western-style food, but it hit the spot. There was a lot of dining options in Ubud. We just walked around to look and menus and randomly picked this place. We were very happy with our choice and last meal in Bali. We left the magical little island a couple hours later. The red-eye to Taiwan, then Hong Kong actually wasn’t bad. We slept most of the flight back and then we both had that day off to pull ourselves back together!
Our review of Bali, one of our favorite places thus far. The people were very friendly, we felt safe, the scenery was breathtaking, there was so much to see and do, the food was great and diverse, it was pretty affordable, etc. Overall, two thumbs up!