We awoke the day after our journey ready to see what this town had to offer. Ubud is regarded as the cultural capital of Bali and you can see that in every aspect of life here, from the beautiful homestay accommodation we were in (ours was called Suparsa), to the beautiful shops that make up the town. Our homestay was just a typical design of a house here, but it was absolutely gorgeous, which just goes to show how lovely the place is.
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| The view outside our door at the homestay |
As we wandered around we could see many homestays like ours, with beautiful designs on doors and they were all authentic, which means it wasn't just all built for tourism - so you really get a sense of what it's like to live here as a homestay is what it says on the tin; you stay at someones house. So in essence it's a B&B, but you won't ever find anything like this at one of those. The staff (all family) were beyond attentive and friendly and just enhance the good feeling the place already gives you.
In the town itself there are so many shops that sell great art pieces ranging from canvases to ornaments to masks as well as your bog standard tourist items like beer t shirts and fridge magnets.
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| Some of the traditional masks for sale |
We spent a fair amount of time during our stay just roaming the shops and markets (in the markets you can expect to be hassled a bit more, but you can also haggle to your hearts content!) and we certainly found this was a good way to spend a lazy day or two as there were so many good items there that catch your eye that you'd buy them all if you could!
During our week long stay the best highlights were the scenery around Ubud and the monkey forest temple.
Monkey forest temple
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| Big ears like mine must look like a jungle gym for this guy! |
Situated right near the town centre, this is probably the biggest draw for Ubud and rightly so. When we read about it we thought there would just be one temple with a couple of monkeys there and it'd be just for show, but it turned out to be made up of a few small temples in a beautiful forest where the monkeys roamed free in their natural habitat - and boy were they there in numbers!
The second you spot the gate you'll spot a monkey either licking a rock, looking nonchalant or probably harassing a tourist, which is just the way to describe them really. Some of them are chilled, some are docile, some are hilarious and some are annoying (although to some they might seem aggressive too).
Women sell bananas at the main gate to feed them with, how they don't have those stolen I'll never know, they must be on high alert all day. I always thought monkeys eating bananas was a stereotype but these went mad for them.
We bought a small bunch and seconds later one sprinted up to Claire and snatched it from her, she then nicely gave one to another monkey and finally a much bigger one pretty much assaulted her for the remainder. The bananas lasted about 2 minutes! They are on you from the second you get your ticket as they clearly know the entrance is the best chance to get a banana and as soon as they can't smell one on you they don't want to know!
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| Claire's t shirt after being mugged 'your banana or your life?' |
I did laugh as some tourists tried to hide the bananas in their bags, but their plan failed as the monkeys are pretty good at getting into bags and as soon as you think you've fended off one, another is behind you pilfering while you're unaware!
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| Saw him steal this bottle of water and thought "gutted, the lid's on". He got it off in no time though! |
It isn't scary though and it's certainly a lot of fun to watch. We spent most of the day interacting with them, watching them steal from people (we took nothing with us they'd want to steal) and watching them play with each other (one even went beyond playing with another if you know what I mean).
Claire was loving have them climb on her after getting used to it but she did get too close to a baby at one point and for quite a hiss - so that was a lesson learnt.
Everywhere you go they are in the trees, lying on the path and generally owning the place, which serves as great entertainment however the scenery itself is also absolutely stunning with giant trees, old temples and rivers that would easily make the front page of national geographic.
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| Other than the monkeys there's stunning scenery to behold |
Cycling around Ubud
We rented some bicycles for 2 days to enable us to get out and see the countryside that surrounds the town - which is just as much an experience as anything here. We haggled down to a price of just 80,000 rupiah for 2 days for 2 bikes (about £3.50) so couldn't complain about the price! Here in Bali you need an international driving license to ride a motorcycle and I forgot to bring mine.
Being on a bike was good though, even if it has been years since I last rode (I've a childhood history of bike accidents so I steer clear these days) and being able to explore the town and surroundings with freedom was amazing. We did have a map and a general heading but somehow kept ending up on the same road!
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| Cycling by one of the many rice fields that surround Ubud |
Over the two days we had them we rode for quite a bit and our routes took us through rice fields, past rice terraces, over jungly bridges and down big hills in the pouring rain. So much of the fun was being able to just explore by ourselves, which gives you even more joy when you turn a corner and find an incredible view. We enjoyed this so much that I'd recommend the same to anyone visiting as you get to see it all this way, the arty town, the lovely houses around and the fields outside. That said though, having not done it in years, I certainly felt the pain of our exploits the next day thanks to the saddle!
Our week in Ubud is now at an end and we've really enjoyed it. Bali was always supposed to be the most beautiful of places we were visiting this side of the world and I'm so glad it hasn't failed to disappoint so far. There's things in and around Ubud we couldn't do due to our budget but we leave knowing that we are already getting the feeling that of all places we've visited on our travels so far, Bali is looking the most tempting to return to one day. Tomorrow we head to Kuta for 10 days where I'll attempt to learn to surf and during which I'll spend my birthday!
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