The advice we were given was to travel by scooter all over the island. You can travel from the top of the island to the bottom in under 4 hours. Deal.
So we landed, we bartered and we were on our way.
ULLUWATU
was an epic little surf town down south. So much nature sprinkled with little cafes and hidden restaurants. We found a cliff deck restaurant and capped the day off with some beers and tacos.
AIRBNB FAIL
We went in search of our airbnb down rocky dirt roads by scooter and came to find the building didn't exist. Scammed maybe? It was too dark to dwell on the thought so we just drove through the hills until we stumbled upon this little villa. It had just started taking business and there happened to be one available hut. Their infinity pool looked out from the hill it was perched on to the ocean, really getting the landscape of the town. Maybe it was meant to be.
ROADTRIP
I had heard word of poppy fields perched up on this mountain so we had to hunt them down ourselves on a mid day scooter trip.
RICE PATTY AIRBNB
In Ubud was a GOOD move. Outdoor showers. Tree house huts. Infinity pool. Giant swing. Magic.
AND THERE WAS A CAT.
HIDDEN RESTAURANT
was down a real rocky pathway that was extremely long into these patty fields. The food was delightful and the sleeping kitties lounging around were adorable. It eventually started pouring down and we retreated.
TEGANUNGAN WATERFALL
The closest and accessible waterfall near Ubud, boy was it massive. There were rocks surrounding the entire bottom landscape and not a comfortable place to sit - definitely glad I brought the Shwaggins as a viewing couch and also a raft as I attempted to battle the rocky waters for a joy ride.
A little video snippet of the boat ride.
AROUND TOWN
We stayed in Ubud for about a week, exploring the streets and alleyways around town, the yoga community and nature.
TEGALLALANG RICE PADDIES
These terraced rice paddies were a real site. They use what is called a "subak" as a cooperative irrigation system. This lady was trying to get us to hold her basket so she could take a photo of us and have us pay her for it - I grabbed a photo of her first.
Not a bad way to see sunset I suppose.
FRIENDS ALONG THE WAY
Evan had met Chelsea and Ben the weeks before in Thailand that happened to be in Ubud the same week as us. So we popped by their villa for a visit...
and seemed to make the best of a rainy afternoon.
THE JOURNEY
Now I don't have any photos that lead up to this waterfall, but traveled 2 hours and battled up a mountain in the rain on the scooter in shorts and tank tops. Then found a long steep downhill road made of broken brick and holes we somehow carefully treaded down for 2 miles to reach a parking lot. We then started on a slippery dirt trail hike for another 2 miles down broken ladders, ropes and rocks til we arrived.
It was all worth it.
I mean look at this place. So lush. We were the only ones out there and got to float out onto a whole other experience on an inflatable water couch.
The original plan was to trek back 2 hours in the dark, but we stopped by this coffee plantation for dinner and ended up staying the night in a room with panoramic glass windows surrounded by forest and an infinity pool that dropped off into the abyss.
So we just hung out in the sky.
TRAVEL SNAPS
One of my favorite activities was using my camera on the back of the scooter like a little sniper to capture all of the amazing humans in their element along the way.
CANGGU
Was a super hip surf town an old friend of mine lived in. We met up with him for the day before flying back home the next day and capped it off with a beach lounge.
