Up to Ubud

Canggu had been a fantastic first base in Bali and after 5 days we decided to set off to the culutural capital of the island , Ubud, with the aid of a personal driver whom we hired for the day. I Wayan was his name and after a nice breakfast of bananaflour pancakes and waffles we said goodbye to the coast and drove inland to the temples of central Bali. The first stop on the day was the most popular temple in Bali, Tanah Lot, that is perched on a rock just out to sea. The immense amount of crowds even on a mid week morning meant we didnt stay for a long time but the raw beauty of the place was undeniable. After Tanah Lot we drove up into the Tengallalang Rice Paddies near the town of Ubud itself, and the intital wow factor of the stacked fields was stunning, all I can say is I Wayan is a very lucky man to be able to see such a beautiful site every day. The day then zoomed by, Tirta Empul a water twmple allowed us to get our sarongs on and see local hindu customs, the Cat-Poo-Chino coffee plantation meant that we got to try the worlds more precious coffee, Kopi Luwak (if you don’t know what it is, I would strongly advise a Google), and then Goa Gajah allowed us to see the ornately carved Elephant cave temple.

After the action packed day on our arrival into the Ubud area, I had a very rough night, the llcal food was taking a toll on my atomach, so the next day whirled by with a pleseant trip to the Monkey forest to see some cute but surprisingly vicious local primates and then a quiet night next to the rice paddies in our lovely hostel.

Feeling better after a more relaxing day, we booked ourselves onto the local white water rafting trip and were transported to the Agung River nearby all ready for us to set off into the rapids. After Amy successfully navigated the whole group down into the gorge agter the guides went missing for a while, we hopped into the raft and set sail. One thing I can say is that it might have not been the most gnarly river into the wrold but the guides did a great job at getting everyone to have a good time, making fake crocodile attacks and splashings a regular occurence.

The next day our brilliant hostel owner offered us an unmissable opportunity to go on a tour of the lesser explored East of Bali. We set off early and after an hours drive reached oir first location of Goa Lawah, the Bat Cave. A beautiful Hindu temple set into a cave filled with bats makes for a pretty interesting amd thrilling start to the day as one can imagine and even more so when he told us that the cave stems directly from the fearsome Mt Agung, the 3000m Volcano that dominates Bali and which in fact erupted a couple of days before. Next up was the Water Palace, a beautiful temple built in the 1800s by the local king as his private residence and so aptly uses the glistening man made ponds to make the stone carvongs even more impressive. A very instagrammable place indeed. Finally, to top of a brilliant day we were taken to the Virgin Beach, a gleaming white stretch of sand sandwiched between jungle coayed cloffs and opal coloured clear water. Paradise.

Our time in Bali was coming to a close and in order to make a truly unforgettable last day we set our alarms for 1am, were picked up by the Balinese Lewis Hamilton, and driven to Mt Batur, another active volcano just across from Mt Agung. We set off on a hike to the summit in order to see the sun rise over the stunning landscape, and as our tourches pierced through the darkness we knew, despite the pain in our calves and the sleepiness in our eyes, such a sight would be worth it. Once we got to the top, our instant regret was not to bring a jumper, and as the sun rose, our second regret was seemingly turning into not checking the weather forecast as we were enveloped in a thick cloud. Howevee, soon the clou shifted and we were blessed with a view to rival anywhere, the largest lake in Bali clung to the sides of the volcanos and the loacl villages below started to turn on their lights in preparation for a new day. It was awesome and a perfect end to our time in a wonderful island.