Kuta
Words cannot describe how much I hated this city. Getting in and out of the city takes about 20 minutes through the traffic. It is riddled with tourists (mostly Australians) and kids who are here to party and get drunk for quite cheap (Kuta is like the equivalent of Cancun/Varadero for us canucks). Never have I been so annoyed at the locals who are constantly harassing me to grab a taxi or a transport (where the prices are obviously bloated just to get more money off of me). When I asked a "tourism information" booth for a local bus shuttle back to Sanur (which i know exists), he blatantly said "No bus! Only transport. My friend take you". It's also littered with McDonalds, Pizza Hut, Bubba Gump Shrimp and heaps more western restaurants. There is even a massive mall in the middle of town! It's also supposedly known for their beautiful beaches... which i beg to differ. The sand is very rough, and the water looks quite disgusting. Do yourself a favor, unless you want to party with jail bait aussies, don't bother.
Ubud
This city is focused on culture, yoga and nature with beautiful views of the mountain and rice paddies. Contrary to Kuta, it is a bit more quiet and the city has a little more charm. One of the notable tourist activity is to visit the Monkey forest where heaps of macaque monkeys roam free in the forest, in search for bananas that tourist come and feed them. They are incredibly smart creatures and will literally jump on you and go through your bag/pocket for food! Ladies, don't go there wearing a tube top. Why you may ask? Think what happens when a monkey (or two) grabs on to your top to climb on your head. Yes. The rest goes without saying. My favorite of the three cities. It also has a pretty big market where one can practice their haggling skills and come out with Bintang tshirts and other various items for a modest price.
Sanur
What was once a little fishing village, it is now a very busy tourist area, which is mostly occupied by families and older expats. The only reason why I stayed here was for scuba diving (my dive center is located in Sanur). I was highly disappointed with the selection of restaurants and food as it was uniquely catered towards foreigners (there are a few aussie bars with signs saying "Go aussies!") and food that are cheap for aussies but quite expensive for locals (the average meal costs 50,000 rupiah, which is about 5$, but the locals usually spend 1 to 2$ on a meal). The night market offers much more affordable fares (a nasi goreng, aka fried rice goes for 20,000 rupiah, which is 2$ vs 5$ for the main strip). The beach is highly disappointing too as the water is merky and the sand is also very rough.
Diving
Highlight (and reason for travelling to Bali) of my trip. Bali has a few notable dive spots, especially Manta point/bay where, in the right season, one can swim with manta rays! Such majestic creatures. The underwater fauna is quite remarkable and the visibility is just amazing (20 to 30 meters!!!)
Places I didn't get the chance to visit
Due to the lack of time, I didn't get the chance to visit Gili islands, another very popular tourist spots, but supposedly have beautiful white sandy beaches. I read that the western part of Bali is very scenic and offers a variety of activities and it is also possible to hike the active volcano Mount Agung.
All in all, aside from the diving, Bali isn't going to have a very lasting impression. I do have to admit that I've only been here for 6 days (and 2 of them was dedicated to diving). I might come back here, with a travel buddy, and stay a bit longer to explore the northern and western part of Bali.
Next stop: the javanese cultural center, Yogyakarta!
No comments:
Post a Comment