A Taste of Bali

Our week in Bali was very relaxing. We had no plans before arriving, so we took it day by day. We stayed in the village of Ubud, which is towards the center of the island. I think the biggest surprise to us was how busy it was. When you think of Bali you think peaceful rice fields and zen yoga (both of which you can find), but all of the tourists and motorbikes made it a bit hard to find at first. 

  
We spent our first day walking around exploring the new place we were in. On the short walk from our guesthouse to the end of the block there was probably 50 shops and cafes (all of which I wanted to go in and try). We walked around looking at the shops and going through one of the markets. 

   
    
   
The next day we went to the Bali Bird Park. We walked around for a couple hours looking at the exotic birds they had there and we even got up close and personal with some hornbills! 

One of the things I was most excited about going to Bali for was the yoga classes (not too surprising as there are yoga classes and retreats and yogis all over!). I tried out 3 different studios and types of yoga. They were all really great and the studios were beautiful, open, and secluded from the hustle and bustle of the busy street. I will say it was extremely hot! I’ve never done hot yoga, but it seemed like this could be hot yoga to the max because it’s just that hot outside. 

 Tuesday morning we took a walk up to the rice fields. It took us a few tries of back and forth before we actually found the path to them, but once we got there it was really something. Acres and acres of rice fields and they were all at different stages, so some were grown some were being plowed, and some just planted. That path to walk on took us through what seemed like an endless amount of fields and along the way had little cafes and shops fills with art or other souvenirs. We ate lunch at a great little place overlooking some of the fields. 

  
  
    
   
     
Our last day in Bali we took a cooking class. This turned out to be a very cool experience. Our teachers had such great knowledge and pride for their Balinese culture and food that showed in how they described the technique and ingredients we used. We got to try first hand the hard work that goes into the deliciously amazing food we’d been enjoying that week. 
  
    
   

Our time in Bali was filled with culture, beauty, and great food. Ubud was the perfect place to get a taste of Bali, a smaller city that made a big impact.