Jessie and I flew into Bali on April 2. We were picked up by our hotel’s airport shuttle service and brought promptly back to our hotel: Nick’s homestay in Ubud.
Upon checking we were amazed by the grounds of the hotel. Everything is beautifully manicured with ancient statues and temples. The homestay is located on land that the owner’s family still live in. Therefore there are many temples and statues that surround it which are used as a form of worship by the family.
When we saw our actual cottage/room, we were a bit disappointed. It’s very simple: 2 beds (with very old mattresses) a fan, a toilet and a showerhead. Now, we had to remind ourselves that we’re on a budget and shouldn’t be so picky however this was a huge downgrade from our accommodations in Thailand. We focused on the fact that we were only sleeping there and the outside grounds made up for the crappy inside.
Everyone we’ve met in Bali is extremely polite and kind. They are very respectful and warm people. Jessie and I have enjoyed getting to know some of the local shop owners and artists in Ubud.
Ubud is the ‘culture hub’ of Bali and is known for the many art galleries and art villages nearby. I knew that this would be a place Jessie would love because it would speak to her inner artist. Of course, I was right… Jessie is in heaven here. We spent most of our first day here going to various art galleries and looking at paintings and handmade crafts. I have to say that they’re very beautiful and things here are very reasonably priced for our North American standards.
On Tuesday morning, Jessie and I had booked a white water rafting tour that would pick us up early in the morning. We woke up and got ourselves ready and waited….. and waited…. And waited….
It ends up that the tour company made an error and placed us on the afternoon list instead of the morning one we had planned on. After a phone call with the service rep, we decided to reschedule for tomorrow instead of doing the afternoon tour. Normally, I would have been annoyed by the inconvenience, however the woman on the phone was so apologetic and sincere, it didn’t really matter to me.
Jessie and I changed our plans for the day and decided to head to Monkey Temple instead. This was only about a 10 minute walk from our homestay, so it was very convenient.
When we got there we were so impressed by the lush forests and all of the monkeys running around. We were told that there were more than 600 monkeys in the forest and they were all part of 4 different monkey groups. They were so cute especially the babies, who Jessie and I likened to looking like a mixture between Golem (Lord of the Rings) and an old man.
Before going to the forest, I spoke to a friend of mine who actually was bitten by a monkey there, so Jessie and I were very sure that we didn’t want to get too close to them… Just to observe them from a distance. Apparently when you’re bitten, you have to go to the hospital and receive 3 rabies shots, which are both painful and expensive… not something we wanted to do.
Jessie and I walked through and took in the beauty of the forest around us. There were beautiful stone carvings and monuments everywhere. Most of the stone had a thin layer of green moss on it was surrounded by beautiful trees. It felt like we were walking through the Jungle Book.
Monkeys were everywhere and would approach you if they thought you had food or sunglasses that could be stolen. One monkey took a girl’s sunglasses, climbed up a tree, and tried to model them—so funny!
A little farther in the forest was a beautiful temple. In order to go in, we had to wear a traditional sarong and belt. Jessie and I dressed up and headed in. There weren’t many people inside and it was a really neat view of the stone carvings etc. The area is actually used for Balinese people on a regular basis to come and pray or meditate. The monkeys also like to use it as a playground.
Jessie and I walked around and came across a little monkey family with a tiny baby. We were captivated by it and just stood watching it for a while. A few minutes into this, Jessie shrieked…. It turns out a monkey jumped onto her backpack and was very interested in her curly hair. The monkey positioned himself so that he was riding Jessie’s head. He grabbed both of her ears (as if he could steer her) and laid his body across her head. It was so cute! Jessie was freaking out though because we were told that they do bite from time to time.
After a few pictures the monkey eventually jumped off and we were left with some good laughs.
Later on, we had a similar experience. I was trying to get my memory card out of my camera (which had dead batteries) and give it to Jessie (because her’s was full). Set my backpack on a ledge and proceeded to take out my camera case. Instantly, about 3 monkeys came running because they saw the opportunity to steal some of my stuff (sneaky little devils). I shrieked because one was on me and was tickling me. I gave my backpack to Jessie in the hopes of getting him off but he decided to stay on me and tried to find fleas in my hair.
This drew quite a crowd of people who all gathered to watch the monkeys at work. Eventually a few more decided to jump on and they were climbing up my shorts and taking papers out of my pockets. I wasn’t sure how to get them off because I didn’t want to scare them to the point of making them bite, but I also didn’t want them on me… Eventually they became distracted and went onto the next person… Jessie!
It seemed that we were quite the monkey magnets. Jessie had three monkeys clambering on her at once. One got away with Jessie’s chapstick after maneuvering through her backpack. Jessie was a bit flustered by all of the monkey attention and decided soon after that it was time to go.
Monkey forest was a fantastic place. It felt like we had left reality and gone into another world. The monkeys were very fun and gave us a few nice surprises. I’m hoping to go back again before we leave.
Afterwards, we grabbed lunch with a nice Korean girl we met, and then went shopping for a bit. Jessie and I decided to go to a nearby pool that’s connected with our homestay. It was the perfect thing to do on such a hot and sticky afternoon. The rest of the evening was very leisurely… more shopping, a little rest then a fantastic dinner. What a life… I love Bali!
Upon checking we were amazed by the grounds of the hotel. Everything is beautifully manicured with ancient statues and temples. The homestay is located on land that the owner’s family still live in. Therefore there are many temples and statues that surround it which are used as a form of worship by the family.
Everyone we’ve met in Bali is extremely polite and kind. They are very respectful and warm people. Jessie and I have enjoyed getting to know some of the local shop owners and artists in Ubud.
Ubud is the ‘culture hub’ of Bali and is known for the many art galleries and art villages nearby. I knew that this would be a place Jessie would love because it would speak to her inner artist. Of course, I was right… Jessie is in heaven here. We spent most of our first day here going to various art galleries and looking at paintings and handmade crafts. I have to say that they’re very beautiful and things here are very reasonably priced for our North American standards.
On Tuesday morning, Jessie and I had booked a white water rafting tour that would pick us up early in the morning. We woke up and got ourselves ready and waited….. and waited…. And waited….
It ends up that the tour company made an error and placed us on the afternoon list instead of the morning one we had planned on. After a phone call with the service rep, we decided to reschedule for tomorrow instead of doing the afternoon tour. Normally, I would have been annoyed by the inconvenience, however the woman on the phone was so apologetic and sincere, it didn’t really matter to me.
Jessie and I changed our plans for the day and decided to head to Monkey Temple instead. This was only about a 10 minute walk from our homestay, so it was very convenient.
When we got there we were so impressed by the lush forests and all of the monkeys running around. We were told that there were more than 600 monkeys in the forest and they were all part of 4 different monkey groups. They were so cute especially the babies, who Jessie and I likened to looking like a mixture between Golem (Lord of the Rings) and an old man.
Before going to the forest, I spoke to a friend of mine who actually was bitten by a monkey there, so Jessie and I were very sure that we didn’t want to get too close to them… Just to observe them from a distance. Apparently when you’re bitten, you have to go to the hospital and receive 3 rabies shots, which are both painful and expensive… not something we wanted to do.
Monkeys were everywhere and would approach you if they thought you had food or sunglasses that could be stolen. One monkey took a girl’s sunglasses, climbed up a tree, and tried to model them—so funny!
A little farther in the forest was a beautiful temple. In order to go in, we had to wear a traditional sarong and belt. Jessie and I dressed up and headed in. There weren’t many people inside and it was a really neat view of the stone carvings etc. The area is actually used for Balinese people on a regular basis to come and pray or meditate. The monkeys also like to use it as a playground.
Later on, we had a similar experience. I was trying to get my memory card out of my camera (which had dead batteries) and give it to Jessie (because her’s was full). Set my backpack on a ledge and proceeded to take out my camera case. Instantly, about 3 monkeys came running because they saw the opportunity to steal some of my stuff (sneaky little devils). I shrieked because one was on me and was tickling me. I gave my backpack to Jessie in the hopes of getting him off but he decided to stay on me and tried to find fleas in my hair.
This drew quite a crowd of people who all gathered to watch the monkeys at work. Eventually a few more decided to jump on and they were climbing up my shorts and taking papers out of my pockets. I wasn’t sure how to get them off because I didn’t want to scare them to the point of making them bite, but I also didn’t want them on me… Eventually they became distracted and went onto the next person… Jessie!
It seemed that we were quite the monkey magnets. Jessie had three monkeys clambering on her at once. One got away with Jessie’s chapstick after maneuvering through her backpack. Jessie was a bit flustered by all of the monkey attention and decided soon after that it was time to go.
Monkey forest was a fantastic place. It felt like we had left reality and gone into another world. The monkeys were very fun and gave us a few nice surprises. I’m hoping to go back again before we leave.
Afterwards, we grabbed lunch with a nice Korean girl we met, and then went shopping for a bit. Jessie and I decided to go to a nearby pool that’s connected with our homestay. It was the perfect thing to do on such a hot and sticky afternoon. The rest of the evening was very leisurely… more shopping, a little rest then a fantastic dinner. What a life… I love Bali!
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