5/19/10 (legian)

Legian - Ubud

It was our last day in Legian. Annie and I packed up and checked out of our hotel. We tracked down a cab on the street and it was a big of a race against the clock to catch our bus on time due to some heavy traffic on Legian Street on our way to the Parama bus depot. We arrived just in time and were fortunate to sneak onto the air conditioned bus. The trip to Ubud took about an hour and a half and it was a very congested ride. The congestion comes from the hundreds of scooters that weave in and around the larger cars. We were told that the population of Bali is 3.4 million people and half of them own a motor bike on this very small island nation.

We arrived in Ubud shortly after 12pm and we were greeted by some aggressive cab drivers when we stepped off the bus. Annie called our home stay and arranged for a pick up. Ubud had been described as the real Bali. It is located in the middle of the country at the base of the mountains. Bali is known for their rice fields and there are plenty to see in the area. Ubud is also famous for being a holistic community and has many wellness retreats and yoga centers. We waited about twenty minutes and Suma from the Sawah Sunrise Bed and Breakfast picked us up and drove us through the monkey forest on our way to the home stay. We passed through the main streets of Ubud and while it isn’t nearly as congested as Kuta it is still a thriving community and the streets are lined with restaurants and boutique clothing stores. After a short ride we pulled up to a dead end and Suma informed us we had a five minute walk to our place. Nyoman met us on the sidewalk and grabbed some of our luggage via his motorbike and disappeared around a corner. 

We never know what we are getting ourselves into with each new adventure and this was no exception. We walked down a narrow path that led us to rural rice fields. The path was quite busy with motorbikes and it was hard to image where they were coming from because we could barely navigate the path on foot. Fortunately after a bit we started to run into other home stays and we knew we were on the right path. We met a local artist working in his small shed and he pointed us in the right direction. It was down an even more remote path surrounded by freshly harvested rice fields. In the distance we saw a very nice place and soon realized the house was the Sawah Sunrise. We met up again with Suma and were shown to our second floor room that has some breathtaking views. Annie and I quickly settled in and listened to our many neighborhood roosters. After a bit we headed back into town and visited the information center to map out our next few days and grab some dinner. White at dinner I was able to upload my Australian time lapse video and then we were back to the home stay to settle in for the night.