TeamJD

How fortunate are we in so many aspects of our lives, not least of which that we get to spend some more time in this beautiful place. Apparently the #stuckinBali hashtag has gone viral as travellers stuck on the island share snippets of their tropical ordeals. The first couple of days after our flight was cancelled we didn’t really do too much as we kept expecting a notification from the airline, asking us to go to the airport. Once we had got our head around the situation and there was continued absence of flights to Australia, I realised this was the time to do the things I didn’t want to leave Bali without having done. So I signed up for a cooking class! Whilst classes are widely offered in Ubud, they are a little rarer in ... read more

There are three Gili islands which technically belong with Lombok rather than Bali. They all have distinctly different characters. Gili Trewangen, the largest of the islands, is a party destination. Gili Air was the first of the islands to be settled and is still busy but apparently has more of a local and backpacker flavour. Gili Meno, the smallest of the islands and our chosen destination, lends itself to tranquil Robinson Crusoe getaways. Our journey to the island was somewhat awful though. There are numerous fast boat companies that offer transfers from the mainland to Gili Trewangen and to Gili Air. The coast around Gili Meno must be too shallow for speed boats to moor, so you need to disembark at Gili Trewangen and catch another boat to Gili Meno. We had known about this and ... read more

Our last day in Ubud arrived and I felt a little sad about that. What a great week full of positive experiences, reflection, connections, exploration and delicious nutritious food. We spent our day very low-key. After our morning yoga class and making a new friend over breakfast, we rode out to the Ubud Chocolate Factory. We arrived at noon, only to discover that they close for lunch from noon to 1pm. It was still worthwhile seeing the building itself though: an impressive structure built entirely from bamboo. On our way back, we stopped at the gorgeous Alchemy cafe in Penestanan, another health food restaurant and shop. We had lunch at the famous Bali Buda restaurant. We were somewhat underwhelmed by the food we ordered, but it had a great vibe and I just loved reading the ... read more

We had heard about Ubud’s Monkey Forest and, as it turned out, it was only a 10 walk from our accommodation. This one is an absolute must if you are in the area. It’s a lush jungle that houses three temples and hundreds of monkeys. They are very accustomed to tourists and not at all shy! It pays to put anything on your possession inside a bag or backpack – even a bottle of water or sunglasses. The Monkey Forest really is a lovely spot; an oasis away from the hustle and bustle. After a cruisy rest of the day, filled with drinks / food / massages / shopping, I went to a Sound Medicine session in the evening. Wow, this was a beautiful experience! After some meditation, everyone lay down on mats and cushion. ... read more

After another class at Prana, we stayed there for breakfast in their serene courtyard restaurant. It was a treat for the senses: a wonderful peaceful atmosphere, far removed from the hustle and bustle of the streets, delicious fresh food, and the beauty of Prana itself. Even the bathrooms are decorated in that stunning Moorish style with mosaics, colourful glass lampshades and wall paintings. We had hired a driver to pick us up after breakfast and take us out and about for the day. Wayang took us south to the Nusa Dua area on the Bukit Peninsula. Bukit means ‘hill’, and nusa dua means ‘two islands’. It’s a rather soulless and unattractive place with all kinds of watersports on offer. There’s parasailing, banana boating, jet skiing, fly fishing, snorkeling and glass bottom boat trips. We chose to ... read more