Day 6: Manila to Ubud
Today we had a 7:00 AM flight from Manila to Kuala Lumpur, and then connected to another flight from Kuala Lumpur to Denpasar, Bali (Indonesia). The first flight was on Philippine Airlines. Warning: If you are flying internationally in or out of Manila, avoid Philippine Airlines. The flight was fine, but the airline uses Terminal 2 at the Manila Airport, which may be the worst terminal at a major international airport.
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| Aerial view of the Mall of Asia, one of the largest in the world. |
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| Coming into Kuala Lumpur--lots of palm tree farms |
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| The airport in Bali is new and huge |
On arrival in Bali, we took a taxi to the town of
Ubud. Ubud is actually a collection of villages (total population of about 30,000) and is famous as an art and culture center. Lots of temples, shrines, and art shops.
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| Traffic in Denpasar, the largest city on Bali |
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| Shrine at an intersection in Denpasar |
We stayed at the Alaya Resort in Ubud. It's located on one of the main roads in Ubud, but once you get past the entrance, it's like you're in the middle of a rice field.
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| Entrance to the Alaya Resort |
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| Part of our room |
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| The rest of our room. Yes, that's a bathtub in the middle. |
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| Part of the resort at night |
Day 7: Ubud
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| The resort by day |
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| One of the pools at the Alaya |
Although Indonesia is predominantly Muslim, Bali is mostly Hindu. There are lots of shrines and temples all over the island. Also common are offerings containing flowers, incense, and sometimes food. Below is an offering that was on the hotel grounds.
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| On the patio outside our room |
After breakfast, we walked to the
Monkey Forest, which was about 1/4 mile from our hotel.
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| Street in front of the Alaya Resort |
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| On the road to the Monkey Forest |
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| Another offering on the street |
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| Regulations at the Monkey Forest |
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| That's my shirt! |
After about 45 minutes at the Monkey Forest, we were dripping with sweat and headed back to the hotel.
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| Ubud Street Scene |
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| Rice fields at the resort |
After drying out, we had lunch at the hotel restaurant.
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| Oddly enough, the Indonesian word for water is "air" |
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| Fish Curry |
Later in the afternoon, we went back out into the streets of Ubud.
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| No, they're not Nazis..... |
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| Lots and lots of artsy stores |
After returning to the hotel, we had a crispy duck at the Dirty Duck Diner.
Day 7: Ubud
This morning, we hung out at the hotel.
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| At one of the pools |
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| Another hotel pool |
After lunch, we hired a taxi to drive us to the rice fields about 5 miles north of Ubud. At this particular spot, there was an area with a bunch of shops and restaurants terraced above the fields. The rice had just been harvested, so the fields weren't as spectacular as you see in some photos.
We then drove back to Ubud via some back roads with interesting views.
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| Luwak is the coffee that they pass through the digestive systems of civets. Not for me! |
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| An offering on the taxi's dashboard |
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| Some rural housing |
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| See if you can figure it out :-) |
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| More rice fields |
Eventually we made it to central Ubud--more crowds and temples.
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| Just outside of Ubud |
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| A market in Ubud |
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| On the main street of Ubud |
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| Welcome ducks in a local shop |
Eventually, we wandered back to the hotel for dinner.
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| One of the hotel restaurants |
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| A pool at night |
Next:
Days 9-15--Cruise (Part 1)
