I landed in Bali, paid my entrance fee queued the longest so far to get through immigration and was hit with an over arching feeling of “Over it”. I don’t want to move around, I don’t want to see every much have on the blooming travel wikipedia guide, I was to be still and see what I bump into while chilling out and NOT being a traveller for a minute.
Ubud
I stayed at a home stay to the north of the central area for 5 of the 10 days and was asked what my schedule was every day by the very helpful family who were hosting me, my answer was the same everyday. I’m going for a walk and see where I ended up.
I did just that, I walked, I looked I ducked for cover when it rained which it did almost every day I was in Ubud… I got massages. I really could not cope with doing much more, the Gilli islands with all their recommendations and closeness could not get me to be bothered. No sire, I was tired; travel fatigue, backpacker slowdown or whatever you want to call it. I needed a recharge.
Ubud city is quite small but obviously struggling with a surge in tourism that has caused it to morph into a tourist focused city. Multiple cardboard cut out shops all selling the same goods at equally ridiculous prices with the odd stupid western run coffee shops sprinkled around for good measure and extortionately priced sometimes good coffee, with the only thing going for it being its interior deco.
Ubud the district I think has more going for it if you have the energy and transport to allow you to explore and maybe stay a little further away from the centre.
Legion
After 5 days I mustered the energy to get on a bus to the cost…I was after a beach. Staying at the island hostel was cool, again Legian was close to the most touristy, trashy area on the island, Kuta. It was a resort strip and beach with upteen clubs which had only the locals who had something to sell hanging around, and I don’t mean keyrings.
The hostel lent itself to meeting new people it was not the cleanest although it sold itself as being so, but hey even I had managed to wrap my head around the fact it just a business for a lot of the people that ran these places, cleanliness is relative.
I hired a bicycle and made a group of three girl friends who were from the USA but working in China, they had the best insight, speaking to them was interesting for so many reasons….I learnt lots and we had an awesome day out beach hopping and finally discovering Bali after taking an hour taxi ride OUTSIDE of Kuta.
A few massages later and I was refreshed and ready to leave Bali…I would go back but with conditions, nowhere near Kuta being the first. Perth to see Lou bel next!