This is my second trip to Bali and we stayed at Courtyard by Marriott, Nusa Dua this time. As usual, the plan was not to make it a hectic trip but enjoy the slow pace of life in Bali. We just chilled at the resort on our first day.
Second day we went to Ubud. Having stayed in Nusa Lembongan on my previous trip, I had no idea about Bali’s traffic. It took us 2 hours just to get to Ubud!! Our first stop for the day was a coffee plantation. I wanted to taste the famous kopi luwak or civet cat coffee aka coffee produced from civet cat poop. It was quite sour and bitter–I had the authentic espresso version. There were a lot of other teas and coffee out of which we liked the lemongrass and rosella.
We had a lovely lunch at Hujan Locale that came highly recommended by a friend back in Singapore.
We finally reached the famous Tegalalang rice terraces. They make a really pretty picture but beyond that I didn’t know what to do here. So once you have seen it, that’s it. I would have preferred to just chill at one of the cafes there but we were supposed to watch sunset from Tanah Lot temple.
Tanah Lot of is one of Bali’s many Hindu sea temples built to appease the sea Gods. We reached there quite late thanks to the traffic. The temple itself had closed down but we walked around a bit to explore. It was fun watching the waves crashing at the foot of the temple. Wish the surroundings were clean though–saw quite a bit of trash lying around there.
On our third day, we relaxed at the hotel pool in the first half. We had a super hearty lunch at Mana’s Uluwatu against a gorgeous backdrop.
We then visited the Uluwatu temple. While the temple itself is a simple one, its location atop a cliff provides breathtaking views. Will highly recommend visiting at sunset time–loved watching the sun dipping into the sea with the lovely breeze atop the cliff.
Post sunset, there is a Ramayana ballet performance. Traditionally called Kecak, it was originally a trance ritual that later transformed to performing acts from ancient Hindu epic, Ramayana. Tickets gets sold out pretty soon so try reaching early to book your spot. It’s a nice one time watch–I found Hanumana to be quite funny!
We ended the day with some delicious Gelato from Gaya in zabaione, passion fruit and strawberry flavours!
We flew back to Singapore the next day after breakfast. It was a super clear day which meant some great views while taking off!
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