For real, i don't know where to start. We just arrived in beautiful beautiful Bali on the 21st and we have been enjoying our little selves maybe too much!

We got here at around 3:00 pm and got a ride to Ubud right away. I'm sure i looked hilarious with my wide eyes and huge smile...it's so...tropical here and amazing! (understatement) and it's about 1884% humidity!
When we got here, we went to our homestay called Padma accomodations...wow, so incredible! Our room had a small terrace outside with a table to eat breakfast and our outdoor shower had a stone floor.

Well, words can't actually accurately describe how amazing Ubud is (really, you don't understand). We decided to come here first because Lisa's first impression of Bali will be a lasting one. On our first full day here, we visited the monkey forest (one of my favourites - and now one of Lisa's as well!), and spent a bit of time walking around, gawking at the beauty of the forest and being entertained by hilarious monkeys all over the place. Then we checked out a few homestays for our days 3 and 4. After a delicious lunch and dinner, we headed down the old reggae bar for some bintangs, fried peanuts and live indonesian reggae. Good times!

For our second day in Ubud (a much more eventful one), we took off at 9:00 in the morning with the owner of our homestay who was kind enough to drive us around (it was JM's third stay there and the owner has grown very fond of Canadians) to see some temples on the way to Kintamani to see the volcano. We stopped at 3 major temples on the way to see Kintamani, including the elephant temple, the holy spring temple and another grand temple with huge ancient rock wall stone carvings and rice paddies. It was truly a mystical experience, to put it plainly. Also, I Wayan was kind enough to bring us to an organic cocoa, coffee and spice plantation, where we got to see them roasting coffee beans and pounding cocoa into a fine powder and we were offered complimentary samples of all their specialty drinks (Bali coffee, mocha coffee, cocoa, citron tea and ginger tea) and they were all fantastically delicious, so we bought some bali coffee (yes, some for you shannon! :D) and hot curry powder to bring home. mmm.. then we were off to Kintamani.

We got there just in time to see the breathtaking view of the volcano before making overtaken by mist, cloud and torrential downpour at 12:30. We ate a delicious buffet lunch on the edge of a precipice overlooking the volcano view and took off after the rain slowed to a tropical flood (haha!). On the drive back to Ubud, we stopped to see the famous rice paddy views of Tegallalang, which were beyond stunning. Pictures and words can't describe how it felt to see the panorama of rice paddies and palm trees in the sweltering heat and humidity. Back in Ubud we purchased our return tickets to the Gili islands (on the fast boat! no 15 hour voyages this time!) for a hefty 1.2 millions rupees a piece (for you canadian folk, that is roughly 140 buckarooos) which includes all transport and breakfast. not bad i say!
It is now 5:00 pm and it hasn't rained in Ubud yet today and we are high fiving that! We are sitting in an absoutely gorgeous brand spanking new restaurant at the honour table (private hut with extravagant cushions and fountains) drinking bintangs and utilizing the free wifi, soon to indulge in some delicious indonesian cuisine. be jealous! sorry.

We will write again as soon as we can!

We truly wish you could be here because this blog really makes bali sound lame compared to how it really is. Shannon would know! And we do too!

we miss you!

Lisa and Jean-Michel

written by  jeanmichelisa on February 23, 2009 from Ubud, Indonesia
from the travel blog: Australia, Bali and New Zealand adopt Jean-Michel and Lisa!
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an absolutely gorgeous brand spanking! NOW I'M JEALOUS.
seriousleye thou,
it simes sow eyemeyezeyeng like there's another breathtaking artistic experience everywhere you go!
Soak it up, drink it up, eat it up...all of those.
and throw in a few pictures, s'il vow plait!

WHOA!

Mangus

written by  manguscon on February 24, 2009

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