after vietnam we flew to bali for 5 days in paradise!
the first night we stayed near the airport in kuta, had a nice indonesian breakfast, and walked along the beach before heading into the center of the island to ubud for a few days.
bali is a fascinating island; very different than the rest of indonesia. modern indonesia is predominantly muslim, but bali has adhered to a unique form of hinduism for two thousand years, and is now a global tourist mecca if there ever was one. the south coast is famous for its parties, and verdant ubud is famous for being crunchy. we stayed at a luxurious hotel called alam jiwa, with a private outdoor shower looking over a rice paddy! we perused shops, ate sushi, drank smoothies, and did some sweaty bikram yoga classes at the ubud yoga center, chased by some fresh coconut water. we walked a ton, including along the famous campuan ridge walk, passing multiple huge swings over the ravines below that apparently anyone who is anyone on instagram comes to bali to get pictures swinging on. we went to a traditional balinese kecak monkey dance, during which many men dance rhythmically in a circle to the beat of drums, which was followed by a fire dance where a man dressed in feathers stomped out a fire with his bare feet. there was also a monkey forest with many friendly monkeys that was our favorite. basically the only thing we passed on in bali was the lewak coffee that is made of beans ingested and defecated by the rare civet cat.
bali definitely makes for a great vacation! it was great to be there with you, ann! <3
