From Kuta to Ubud…it’s just an hour by car but it feels like I’ve entered a different world.
Firstly, I need to be honest about how limited my experience of Kuta actually was. If you have read yesterdays diary post, you’ll know that I spent one night at a very nice airport hotel to recharge my batteries before heading towards what I consider the first proper stop of my trip.
Click here to read my First Impressions of Bali post from yesterday.
The Road to Ubud
Having checked out of my hotel, I ask the nice lady behind reception to call a Blue Bird for me, and in just minutes I’m on my way to Ubud. The journey honestly isn’t quite what I had expected. Unlike any other transition from one resort or town to another that I have ever made, there is never a time when we are driving through absolute rural territory.
Being accustomed to travelling around Ireland, no matter where I travel to or from, I find that there is always some point (or several) on the journey where one town ends and the view becomes pure countryside until the beginning of the next.
This is a different sort of journey altogether. All along the way, we pass by shops and houses. It is difficult for me to pinpoint where Kuta ends and where Ubud begins, but suddenly I start to see signs that make it obvious that I have indeed now reached my destination.
The traffic is much the same as I have already come to expect since my arrival only hours ago. Manic honking of horns, crazy scooter drivers, and a blatant disregard for which side of the road is which seems to be the norm here. Clearly, the rule for driving in Bali is simple; there are no rules, no traffic lights, no right of way. Nerves of steel and a fearless attitude are all that are required to navigate the roads.
We weave through the narrow cobbled streets until I am finally deposited at the entrance to my hostel. A short walk down a narrow walkway brings me past a sleeping guard dog and towards the reception. After a quick check in, followed by lunch one of the pools while I wait for my bed to be ready, I’m shown to my room and left to settle in.
The Pillow Inn Hostel
The Pillow Inn here in Ubud is a pretty swanky hostel. It has 2 pools, one of which is home to the Bla Bla Bla restaurant, and a rooftop bar that doubles as a yoga studio in the mornings. Beds are pod style with privacy curtains, a reading light and a safety box, as well as individual luggage lockers underneath the beds.
I’ve chosen an all female dorm, which has an en suite toilet and shower block (shared with the mixed dorm at the other side, and smelling oddly of mothballs), and is bright and cool thanks to big windows and air conditioning. The sounds here are so different to what I was hearing in the airport hotel. That first night, I eventually fell asleep to the sounds of the traffic outside and planes taking off and landing, and those same sounds welcomed me back when I woke in the morning..
Here, I am surrounded by the sounds of nature. Everywhere I go, I hear crickets and geckos chirping, sounds that are accompanied by the rustling of leaves. There is lush greenery all around, with little rice fields dotted along in the most surprising places, between the shops and the cafes.
What remains the same is that the food is still amazing, and the people are still friendly and welcoming. I have my first proper traditional Indonesian food, a delicious Nasi Goreng, and spend an evening at the rooftop bar (it began as a search for Wifi, quickly replaced by happy hour drinks) making new friends and getting travel tips for my trip.
Daily Spend
The daily spend for today has gone way over budget. This is mainly due to the taxi from Kuta to Ubud, but the happy hour drinks have also played their part. 280k for the taxi from Kuta to Ubud, 120k (per night) for my hostel, 85k for lunch, 86k for dinner, and 200k for happy hour drinks, bringing me to a total spend of 771k for the day.
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