Beautiful Bali

Bali, Indonesia is such a lush, beautiful place. It is home to immense natural beauty and tranquility. I have always dreamed of visiting Bali one day after watching the movie Eat, Pray, Love. It’s cliché, I know, but the movie to me, just made it look romantic. So my husband and I decided to spend our first wedding anniversary in Bali back in 2018. And it did not disappoint!

We stayed in a beautiful bed and breakfast that we found on Airbnb that’s located in Canggu. The cottage is a wooden house surrounded by many plants and trees. It literally feels like you’re sleeping in the jungle. This is probably the most unique airbnb I have ever stayed in.

The backdoor of the room connects to the outdoor bathroom and it is unlike anything else! The shower was amazing! I loved taking a shower with plants right next to me. And although I had to ask Dexter to accompany me at night whenever I needed to go to the bathroom because it did scare me a bit during the night, but it’s definitely the highlight of this little house. I have never used a toilet while looking up at the sky before. Staying in this place really connects you to nature.

This is the entrance to the Airbnb. There were a few more cottages for rent next to ours and the cute pathway leads to them.

UMA PAKEL SWING

This is the Uma Pakel Swing in Tegalalang. It’s a fun place with some cute spots to take pictures. It has a number of swings and bird nests. Most of the swings are free except for three big ones which you need to buy a ticket in order to ride. I was initially terrified about going on one of the big swings because I had doubts about the security of the straps and that it was just so high up, but my husband pushed me to try it and that it was going to be okay. After being buckled, the staff pushed the swing a couple of times and encouraged me to let my hands go. It was definitely safe and letting go of my hands made me feel so free.

LA LAGUNA

La Laguna is a boho-chic, gypsy inspired beach club located on the sands that border Berawa and Batu Belig. This bar restaurant has such a cute hippie vibe and the location is pretty big. They have these boho-styled little houses lined up before entering the restaurant. It looks magical! The entire place is very well decorated and there’s even a lawn with a bunch of puffy chairs and string of lights hanging from trees.

They also serve delicious healthy foods on their menu. Dexter and I ordered salads and some refreshing drinks. The dragon fruit shake was so good!

There’s a green wooden bridge right in front of the restaurant that leads to the beach. If you’re someone who is planning a trip to Bali and is looking for a chill place to eat and relax and have some drinks, I recommend visiting this place.

TEMPLES

Bali has thousands of temples and we were able to visit a few on our trip. The Pura Tirta Empul temple is a Hindu Balinese water temple located near the town of Tampaksiring. Tirta Empul means Holy Spring in Balinese. The temple compound consists of a petirtaan or bathing structure, famous for its holy spring water, where Balinese Hindus go to for ritual purification. The water is as clear as crystal and even has some fish swimming in it the size of my hand. It’s an incredible experience to witness how the people are praying. They line up to pray from the first spring to the next until they reach the last one.

Most temples require you to wear a long skirt when going inside. Luckily, they provide sarongs at the entrance for guests to borrow, so me and Dex got to style them with our outfits.

MOUNT BATUR SUNRISE TREK

Hiking Mount Batur was definitely the highlight of my Bali trip. Mount Batur is an active volcano that many people hike to enjoy the rewarding views. Dex and I woke up at 2AM to get ready for the trek and met with our group tour guide. There were four of us in the group including our friendly tour guide, Kadek, and another tourist named Sara, who instantly became our friend. She was on vacation in Bali by herself. We all started hiking around 4AM so we can reach the top by sunrise. It was still very dark when we started our hike so it was quite difficult to walk the trail without stumbling on rocks. We did have flashlights with us and our tour guide was an expert. He knew exactly which ways to go.

We reached the top of the mountain just in time to watch the sunrise. It was still a little dark when we got there, and very cold, but I took it all in for this amazing view. Everything about it was breathtakingly beautiful and the clouds looked so dreamy.

Mount Batur is also home to a lot many monkeys. Well, actually, Bali has so many of them that there’s even a monkey temple. These guys are so used to tourists that they just jump on your heads like you’re a tree. One even climbed up on my shoulder and another one went on top of our bag to steal a pack of wet wipes. They remind me of Abu from Aladdin.

MORE OF BALI

We learned to surf for the first time in Bali. We have always wanted to learn how to surf and Bali was perfect for it. It was loads of fun!

Kopi Luwak is the famous coffee of Bali. It consists of partially digested coffee cherries that have been eaten and defecated by a Civet animal. Most times they call it the Cat Poop Coffee.

We visited the Merta Harum Agroo Plantation and learned about how they make their kopi luwak. The civet poop had a mix of the beans in them and the beginning of the process definitely did not look pleasing, but I tried to forget where the coffee was coming from when they gave us free coffee and tea tastings. They were all really good! I think the vanilla coffee was my favorite one. We came out of that plantation high on caffeine.

These rattan bags are everywhere in Bali and since they’ve become a trend, some sellers have been selling them for such a high price. I was lucky enough to haggle a few bags though. You can also find them on amazon which I shared some below. Click the bags to check them out.

This is the monkey temple I was talking about, called the Sacred Monkey Forest Sanctuary. They are fun and entertaining to watch but be careful of your valuables. These monkeys can easily grab your stuff if you don’t secure them. Do you see the little monkeys above my head? They almost look like an imitation of the statue.

Bali is such a beautiful place with so many friendly people. I’m glad that we chose to visit this place and thankful to have experienced a wonderful trip. Our first year anniversary will always be memorable to me.