Bali, Indonesia

Bali

We arrived in Bali later in the day, so we opted to just walk around the port area before dinner.  Indonesia as a whole is a mostly Muslim nation; however, Bali’s population primarily practices Hinduism.  You could see the difference immediately with statues of Hindu gods adorning the port area.  We walked over to check out a park that shows up on Google maps, but it isn’t open to the public just yet.  It was still cool to see the different statues and all the fishing boats lined up in port.

The next day we took a Grab (ride share in Bali) to Kuta beach and walked along the waterfront.  It was smoking hot out, and we aren’t used to the heat and humidity anymore, so we took a car back to the ship to recoup in the air conditioning after about an hour of walking.

On the third day we took a car to Nusa Dua which is the ritzy area with all the five star resorts.  They even checked the trunk of the car when we drove in.  We walked along the waterfront past a bunch of resorts.  It was a really pretty, manicured area with a posh shopping area.

The ship was in port for four days, but we had planned to disembark on the final day.  I spent the morning packing and after a quick lunch we left the ship to check into our Airbnb.  We are staying with another couple from the ship until we leave Bali.  After checking into our accommodation we hit up the grocery store and then called it a day.  Mike and I walked home from the grocery store along the beach, and it was full of local families enjoying the cooler evening temperatures.

We are staying in an area called Sanur which is a little quieter and family friendly.  On our first day exploring the area we walked over to the beach and down to the Bali Icon mall.  The waterfront is really pretty and there are tons of shops and restaurants.   The mall clearly caters to tourists and has stunning views of the water.  There is also a turtle sanctuary along the beach where they collect eggs to hatch and then release.  They also do some rehabilitation work as well.

The next day Mike and I walked up to the ferry terminal and then back down to the mall, but we took one of the side streets instead of the waterfront and then we continued on past the mall.  It was basically just a long relaxing walk, but we enjoyed the sights of the local neighbourhood.

Today we walked to the Bajra Sandhi Monument which is a landmark monument to the Balinese people.  The walk was definitely interesting.  Denpasar and Bali in general are not very walkable, so it was definitely an active pursuit.  Between traffic, scooters, and questionable sidewalks it’s not for the faint of heart.  The monument was incredible and the park around it was very peaceful.  There were also a few resident cats! Inside the monument is a mini museum with dioramas of the history of Bali.  Afterwards, our friends decided to grab a car back to the villa, but Mike and I braved the walk back.

Ubud is one of the most famous places in Bali.  It is a town in the uplands of Bali known for its rice paddies, monkey forest, and much more.  It took an hour to get there by car and we chose to just get dropped off and wander around by ourselves.  You can get full day tours that take you to different stops, but most of the time is spent in the car in traffic.  It’s a beautiful town, but it has become extremely popular with tourists, so it was very busy.  We wandered down a narrow alley way and out into some rice paddies where it was much calmer and more peaceful.  Afterwards we walked back through town and down past the monkey forest.  There were plenty of monkeys out on the street, so we didn’t bother paying to go into the actual park.  Traffic on the way home was pretty brutal and chaotic, but it was definitely interesting.

After the long day of travelling to Ubud and back we decided to just have a quiet day off at the villa.  Later in the afternoon we walked down to the Bali Icon mall and went out for pizza and gelato before walking back.  It was a wonderful, relaxing day after the chaos of the traffic the day before.  Although, the waterfront was extremely busy as local families made the most of their Sunday evening. On the way home it was incredibly clear, so we got some rare views of the Bratan volcano.

Today we took an hour-long car ride to reach the Garuda Wisnu Kencana Cultural Park.  Traffic was horrendous as usual, but the park was really interesting.  They are still working on adding to the space, but it is home to the fourth tallest statue in the world.  We did the tour of the statue that walks you through the construction and planning and takes you up to enjoy the views from the 23rd floor which is at the statue's shoulder. You can't go higher in the statue because no human should be above a god.  The project was immense and they managed to complete it with no fatalities.

The forecast for today wasn’t promising with rain showers scattered throughout the day and it is ridiculously humid.  We decided to head to the Living World Mall which is supposed to be the largest in Bali.  This would give us the chance to walk around, but in a dry, airconditioned space.  Initially we thought we would try walking to the mall, but between the humidity and the lack of sidewalks we ended up getting a car after about fifteen minutes.  The mall was okay, but nothing special; a very westernized mall full of all your favourite North American brands.  We walked down the street to get lunch and then took a Grab to the Icon mall closer to where we are staying.  We had company for lunch! After walking all over the second mall we walked back to our Villa.  It was a pretty boring day, but we got more walking in than I would have thought, and we didn’t get caught in the rain.

I spent our final day in Bali repacking our suitcases for the trip home while Mike went out for a walk.  He just wanted to get some steps in before our marathon of flights to get back to Canada.  We fly to Singapore tonight and then from Singapore to Tokyo to Calgary the following day.  It’s going to be a long haul! We even go back in time since we land in Calgary earlier than we leave Tokyo.

Our first flight from Bali to Singapore was delayed by half an hour, but that was minor. We enjoyed an excellent meal at the Bali Airport before our flight. We got a hotel room for a few hours in Singapore which was small, but functional. I was disappointed that the waterfall wasn't running while we were there, but what can you do. Our brief layover in Tokyo reminded us how much we miss Japan. After a seven hour flight followed by a nine hour flight we arrived in Calgary. I was incredibly impressed that our luggage also arrived since we dropped it off in Bali and there was an eight and half hour layover in Singapore. We also flew with three different airlines, so I was very relieved to see our suitcases.

As I'm wrapping up this blog post we have been in Calgary for a week already. I was hoping to get this out sooner, but jetlag is no joke. We've both felt like crap for several days and are just now settling into our current time zone. We won't have much to share for the next few weeks as we plan to just catch up with friends and family and do some shopping, but we'll be sure to pick back up when we return to the ship in June.