GOODBYE SMILING FACES, orange stone carvings, puja (Hindu offerings), and infinite palm trees; hello shopping malls, food courts, tall modern buildings, clean toilets, and things that light up in the night. By the time we got to Singapore both Travis and I were kind of sick of planning. This made us kind of terrible tourists. Instead of picking out famous sites to visit we just kind of wandered through the streets bleary eyed not really knowing where we were going or what we were looking at. That being said, this blog is probably not a great representation of what a trip to Singapore could be. Regardless, we spent three nights there and definitely got a good taste of what this city-state is all about. We were surprised to learn that the official language in Singapore is ... read more

After crashing in the small backpacker town of Padangbai for one night we made our way to Ubud, the cultural heart of Bali. People absolutely rave about Ubud, and with good reason. It is very well located – within close reach of most of Bali’s big tourist attractions - rice terraces, temples, volcanoes and other holy sites. It is also safe, clean, and comfortable and offers a lot of creature comforts – restaurants serving Western fare and tropical resort style cottages for $15-$30 a night. It is an easy place to stay for awhile. The only problem is that it is completely and totally filled with tourists.They are not the annoying kind like in Kuta – they are families and couples on holiday from all around the world – but still, they are tourists just the ... read more

For years now I have been dreaming about Bali. Literally dreaming. Ive had several dreams where I was in Bali and it was time to go home but I didn’t want to leave and I would wake up feeling really sad. Now, I'm here for real and like in my dreams, I don’t want to leave. Bali is a million things rolled into one – stunning beaches, traditional villages, pot holed streets, stone carvings, terraced fields, raging night clubs, stray dogs, Hindu temples, and smiling people. It smells of the sea, incense, and occasionally – sewage. It is both traditional and modern. Both peaceful and frenetic. I love it. Getting into Bali was an adventure in and of itself. From Tokyo we flew to Hong Kong for a one night layover. We had absolutely no idea ... read more