Bali Archives - Soul Full of Detours.

February 13, 2019February 13, 2019

Bali (Part 2) – Island of The Gods, Nay, Tourists.

Okay, little harsh but that’s the feeling I got from visiting Bali. Does it mean that Bali doesn’t deserve a visit? Absolutely not! Personally, I prefer cities and countries with a good balance of tourists and locals. With Bali, I felt like the province is overrun with tourists with barely any locals in sight. From restaurants to night clubs, seems like a foreigner owns everything.

The Journey….

From Snow Storms To Tropical Green Fields – Edmonton to Bali

After leaving Edmonton, Canada on December 29, 2018, I met up with my friend on December 31, 2018, in Taipei – yes, we skipped an entire day. After the quick hugs and catch up, we went to our terminal excitedly awaiting our boarding call. We boarded the hello kitty flight (I am not kidding) and flew to Denpasar.

Around 5:30pm local time, we arrived at the Denpasar Airport, excited to get to our hostel to change and head out for the New Year’s Eve festivities. After a hard fought battle with many taxi drivers, we found one who was willing to take us to our hostel. Google said 20 minutes (without traffic), but it only took us 2 hours to get to our hostel, super quick! Finally, we arrived, got changed, went out to get some food (lets not talk about that nightmare). So with no food in our system, we rang in the New Years at Finn’s Night Club with Martin Solveig and couple of shots of tequila (seriously, who is counting).

New Year, New Me!

Woke up bright and early on January 1, 2019, at roughly 10:30 am (come on, we did good). Head to a vegan café – got to get that summer bod – and ordered some yummy goodness. Walked around a bit, explored the city, the beach and head back to the hostel for day 2 of the music festival – KHALID!!!!

Day 3 – two inexperienced people rent a scooter and goes on a road trip.

Yes, you read that right, we decided to go on a Road trip from Canggu to Ubud because according to Maps.me it was 20 minutes, it wasn’t….

Ended up in Ubud after an hour on the road, roamed around the city, visited a beautiful waterfall, and headed to back to our hostel; WE DIDN’T DIE! We weaved through the crazy Ubud traffic, narrow roads and survived.

Cities

Canggu:

I spend a majority of the time here, riding scooters, volunteering, eating some Mie Goreng and staying away from the sun (My Canadian body is used to -25). Canggu is a beautiful city. Overrun by tourists, but still little bit of everything for everyone. Beaches, night clubs, restaurants, this place was a great adventure. I recommend hitting up Finn’s Beach Club for really nice vibe – but watch out for the prices. The Tanah lot temple is 20 minutes away on a scooter (if you are brave), from Canggu city center.

Ubud:

Because heading to Ubud once wasn’t enough, my friend and I went there the second time but this time with two big backpacks because the first time wasn’t risky enough. Ubud was a lot calmer than Canggu, with lot of monkeys. The sacred monkey forest is a must if you visit Ubud, but be careful as although we got out with no scratches, I have heard horror stories from people regarding monkey bites. Goa Gajah temple was alright (one of the recommended tourist attraction) but definitely visit the Tegenungan Waterfall, and the Tegallalang Rice Terrace. Visit the rice terrace at sunrise, you won’t be disappointed.

Nusa Islands

Favourite part about my trip to Bali, was heading to these islands. They were beautiful and the people were amazing. Read more about the island here: https://soulfullofdetours.com/nusa-islands-lembongan-ceningan-penida/

Final thoughts:

Personally, I think the true feelings for Bali depends on each individual. I wasn’t a fan because of the huge sea of tourist and expensive prices (for a 3rd world country). Read more about the Bali expenses and tips here:
https://soulfullofdetours.com/bali-part-1-expensesandtips/

I think being one of the biggest tourist destination, it is worth a visit to check out the hype – the province does have its charms. But talking to some locals, they all recommended heading further east to the other provinces, where the lands are still more natural with less tourist exposure.

Happy traveling! Cheers 🙂

February 5, 2019February 6, 2019

Bali (Part 1) – Is It Really Cheap?

Reflection Of Money Leaving My Wallet – Accommodation, Food & Transportation

Bali being a province of one of the 3rd world countries, I expected it to be inexpensive. Bali was more expensive than I thought, especially comparing it to other 3rd world countries I have visited. In all fairness, food and accommodation were decently priced depending upon where you chose to stay and eat. However, transportation is the real culprit in this country. Hell, Australia is much cheaper (not really), but I felt that way.

Accommodations:

I would say the cheapest expense, for value, in Bali is probably the accommodations. With hostels starting from $6 CAD/ night, you can’t go wrong. If you have a little bigger budget, you can get a private Vila starting from $60 CAD/ night in Bali.

Food:

Probably the most inconsistent expense depending upon where you choose to eat. Food is one of those factors, no matter where you go, the pricing is going to be inconsistent. Average food cost in middle to medium-high restaurants are between $5 – $10 Canadian depending upon what you get; also add in the 10% tax and 5% service charge (could be higher at different places). These restaurants are likely owned by foreigners.

Your best bet for cheap food is to go to a Warung – local, tax-free, Indonesian family run restaurants. The food here cost between $1.50 to $5 depending upon where you go and what you eat. But watch out for some medium to high end restaurants advertising their restaurants as “Warung” too but the prices will be more expensive along with taxes compared to the actual Warungs!

A+ Pop Culture Reference – Didn’t Actually Eat Here.

Transportation:

Not Bali, But A True Reflection Of The Traffic – Photo From Pexels Stock Images, Shot By Suzukii Xingfu

Definitely the most expensive part of Bali! All the drivers are greedy here. Is it fair for me to judge them trying to out smart a foreigner, absolutely not, but as a backpacker on a budget, I am going to be that person. From the Denpasar airport to Canggu, based on the Go-Jek and Grab prices, it should have been around 75K IDR ($7.50), however, my friend and I had to spent around 250K IDR ($25) to get to our hostel in Canggu, and this was after negotiations.

Oh and public transportation is nonexistent in Bali!

Speaking of which, Go-Jek and Grab will be your friend in Bali; they are equal to Uber in Bali. Taxis can be tricky and expensive. Go-Jek is an Indonesian company, but Grab is an international company. But… WATCH OUT! Some drivers on these apps will contact you separately on WhatsApp or the ride share app’s messaging tool to ask for more money. For example, for one incident, the Go-Jek app quoted me 50K IDR ($5) for a trip, but the driver contacted me separately asking for 400K IDR ($40).

Boat/ferry trips are also expensive. To go to the islands, expect to spend about $50 CAD round trip for a 30-minute ferry ride. A 15-minute boat ride is around $6 CAD.

Tips To Survive Bali:

Best way to get around Bali is via a scooter. Scooter rentals are anywhere between $5-$7 per day and about $2 for a full tank of gas (unless you get lucky). Mind you, this can be dangerous as you weave through the hectic Bali traffic and narrow roads if you have no experience.

For Go-Jek, sign up with an Indonesian sim card ($7) and instead of paying cash, add some money to the app. Get a local or tourist with Indonesian bank account to add money to the account. I noticed that when you are paying through the app with an Indonesian cell number, the drivers automatically assume you are a local and don’t pester you for more money. If the drivers message you in Balinese, use Google translate and reply; trust me it helps with the expensive trips. Also, by using the app to pay, you save money as they discount the trips.

Bring currency from home and exchange it in Bali. US and Australian dollars are the most preferred currency followed by Pounds and Euros, but there are exchange centers that take all currencies as well. It is much cheaper than pulling out money from the ATM and paying the fees. The exchange rates are pretty good too except in the islands.

Pay hostels and restaurant with cash because they charge you extra transaction fees if you were to use your credit cards.

Bali Belly! Luckily I didn’t get one even after eating most of my meals from Warungs. Just be careful of the restaurants you decide to eat at. And DO NOT drink tap water.

Get travel insurance (I should be listening to this advice as well). Although I have been lucky enough to leave Bali without any issues, I have heard horror stories from fellow travelers. Consultation fee in one of the Balinese clinics is about $35.

Personally, I thought Bali is cheap if you are going down for a quick vacation. But if you are planning to head to Bali as a backpacker, it might not be the best place to start your backpacking trip. *Learn from my experience* 😀

Now Have Some Tea & Book Your Flights To Bali!

January 24, 2019January 24, 2019

The Nusa Islands – Lembongan, Ceningan & Penida

My trip to Bali has come to an end. Leaving with mixed emotions about the province and a vow to maybe return one day, I am going to talk about the Nusa islands – my favourite part of the trip.

Nusa Lembongan

Catching an early morning boat from Sanur, I set out my journey to the Lembongan island. After a 30-minute fast boat service and another 15-minute drive to my hostel, I quickly rented a scooter to get around the island. Coming to Lembongan, my top priority was to visit Devil’s tears, however, I did plan to check out the other attractions as well starting with the dream beach. The beach was quite dreamy with it’s beautiful blue waters and white sands. From there, I just drove around the island with headphones in, listening to some music and Google’s soothing voice with directions. After a quick visit to the crowded Mushroom beach, I headed straight to the yellow bridge to get to the Ceningan island. I came back to Lembongan by sunset to head to Devil’s Tears for a breathtaking view. I was just in awe with beauty of the sunset.

Nusa Ceningan

A quick cross on the yellow bridge via walking or scooter, you will get to the Nusa Ceningan island. I covered the entire island on a scooter in a matter of 45 minutes, driving on questionable roads. Although I was laughed at by some old ladies with my struggle riding a scooter (especially going uphill), it was still a beautifully painful experience – the struggle was real! Ceningan island was absolutely gorgeous. With its luscious greenery and beautiful blue waters, the island had so much colour. Head over to Blue Lagoon and you can sit and stare at those waters for hours. I was tempted to do a cliff jump but decided to take a raincheck.

The following day, I drove around the Lembongan island to cover Mangroove point and the Jungutbattu Beach before catching a small boat to Nusa Penida.

Nusa Penida

A much bigger island compared to the other two, you will need a fair set of time here to completely cover the island. I only had one goal coming to the Nusa Penida island – Kelingking Beach. The day I arrived, it was pouring, so I had the amazing experiencing riding in the rain with a terrible poncho, drenched backpacks and zero vision – how I am still safe is beyond me (mama don’t read this! :D). Nonetheless, the next day was absolutely beautiful, so, I set out on a journey with an Austrian army vet to explore the island. We visited Kelingking Beach, Angels Billabong, and the Broken Beach.

Kelingking Beach was absolutely breathtaking. Although getting down there was quite the struggle, once you get down the steep hill, the beach will treat you to some magical blue waters with strong tides, Instagram worthy shots, and white sands. The main attraction of the beach, however, doesn’t require you to go down to the beach. It is the T-rex shaped mountain you can admire from the top. Angel’s Billabong wasn’t as exciting as I thought it would be, but the Broken Beach was quite the eye candy. Well, more so an unusual look that makes you really appreciate the experience.

Quick Tips:

Renting a scooter makes your life a lot easier, as you will be able to weave through the narrow roads and heavy traffic. Mind you the roads (especially in Ceningan and Penida) were not the best and you will have some trouble driving. The scooters are between 50K to 70K IDR depending on where you get them and your negotiation skills
Change your money in the mainland as the exchange rate is horrible on the island.

To Consider:

Lembongan Hostel (Lembongan)– This was a charming place to stay. Nice comfy beds, kind staff, beautiful pool, and scooter rental service.
The Packer Box Hostel (Penida)– This hostel was a hidden gem, as literally only two people (including me) stayed there. The staff were kind, the breakfast was delicious and you get a towel and slippers!
Scoot Fast Cruises – I used this company to get to the islands from the mainland. Although I think the ferry prices were quite expensive, they were among one of the cheapest with the best reviews and pick up services. I paid $40 USD for return.

To simply put these islands were absolutely gorgeous and you can really just sit back and enjoy. The locals in these islands were much more pleasant to deal with than the mainland as well, which added to the experience. Just a heads up, talking to other tourists, I learned that there are some awesome snorkeling and scuba diving services as well. I didn’t do them, well simply because I want to stretch my backpacker’s budget.

Feel free to reach out to me if you have questions about the island. Happy traveling!

Cheers 🙂