When I met Izy she was full of all these captivating stories about Asia. She told me about the amazing beaches, the incredible food, the shopping and the total alien like nature of the culture compared to little old New Zealand.
To be honest I got kind of sick of hearing about it, as I had never traveled outside New Zealand and Australia and this was all I’d ever known.
So after dating this amazing woman for the past 2 years and her sticking but me in Christchurch as I completed my studies and accomplished one of my life long goals of running the 100m sprint in under 11 seconds we decided to take the plunge back into her world.
I was nervous, I didn’t know if I’d fall in love with the place as much as she had and was afraid of disappointing her.
So after sorting out all our affairs, selling our apartment, getting rid of the furniture, our car and the piles of junk we had accumulated over the years we were ready to go.
We arrived in Denpasar on July 30th and immediately after stepping off the plane and being engulfed in the lovely humidity I knew this was a good choice. arrived in Denpasar on July 30th and immediately after stepping off the plane and being engulfed in the lovely humidity I knew this was a good choice.
We met her taxi driver Komang at the airport and he was amazing. One of the friendliest dudes I’d ever met and he drove us from the airport to our first stop,
The Rijasa Agung, a luxury resot in the Villages outside of Ubud.
Along the way I was blown away with the scenery, the rice paddy fields being worked by the farmers, the hundreds or beautiful sculptures and the general vibe of the place.
The Traffic seemed somewhat chaotic for a start, scooters and motorbikes weaving in and out between cars and the constant tooting, but after a while I found that their was a method to the madness. People on the roads here drive using an unspoken language and everyone is so chilled. No angry tooting or rude gestures, just friendly toots to let you know where they are on the road.
We arrived at the hotel and I was blown away. It was like something out of a dream. An infinity pool overlooking the jungle, and a master suit overlooking the rainforest.
We relaxed here for a bit, then caught the free shuttle into Ubud. It first real experience of an Asian city, humming with life. We went out to dinner with a Russian couple we met at the resort at one of Izys favorite restaurants and ordered a 4 mains, 2 drinks each and desert and the bill came to about $60 NZD.
I like this place already.
The next day we went exploring in “Monkey Forest”, you can probably guess what we found there. Monkeys for miles being fed bananas by tourists, and chilling on top of the various temples and monuments scattered within along the way.
We even spotted out first snake, quite dangerous according to the locals. Not to worry however as a gang of macho monkeys got together and chased him away.
It was like watching a David Attenborough documentary. I even got it on film!
The next day we were escorted to the rice paddy fields by Komang and I have to say it was absolutely breathtaking. Hands down one of the most beautiful places I have ever visited.
So first impressions of Bali, surprising, busy, beautiful and interesting. I can see myself being happy here for a long time. We are of to Kuta next, stay tuned for more updates on our adventures.
TTFN,
Ben
