Bali Travel Lessons

Bali:

1. Everything, including you, is going to smell regardless of what you do. Tough luck.
2. Balinese people really are genuinely warmhearted and kind. I was skeptical too but I haven’t seen anything proving otherwise.
3. Initially I suggest getting sugar in your tea. I typically avoid sugar in my tea but it’s necessary in Ubud. Elsewhere not so much!
4. You are also going to get bug bites no matter what. Bring anti-itch cream!
5. Bring/wear shoes that are easy to take on and off for temples and homes.
6. Bathrooms: 
1. Traditionally the sinks are actually large basins that just hold water, and have a ladle next to them. If you have this type of sink and a toilet with no apparent flushing mechanism, just put a few ladles of water into the toilet bowl (you can even use the ladle worth of water you used to wash your hands! Yay grey water!!) and it should push the water down. 
2. If your shower isn’t working, or has really suspicious brown colored water coming out of it, you may need to take a ladle bath! Recommended method: stick head/hair into bucket as much as possible. Pour water on as necessary if hair isn’t fully wet. Lather hair. Using cupped hands, fling water onto body and wash with soap. Repeat process to rinse.
7. Postcards here are a bit lacking, but you can mail them at the Kantor Pos, Rp. 10,000 to the US.
8. Ice cream is a wonderful treat, but remember that if you get in the habit of eating it you will continue that throughout the trip. But, if you are still going to go for it I recommend the Chocolate Brownie Magnum Bars, or the Black and White Cornetos. But these will set you back Rp. 10,000 & 7,000 respectively, and you can get a whole meal for that price. Just buy wisely.
9. Street food. Do it.
10. Going off of that, here’s my food suggestions: 
1. Nasi Goreng - Indonesian Fried Rice, some are better than others, I think street is better than warung (restaurant). I ask for not spicy (tidak pedas) and you can get it all wrapped up in a cute paper pyramid to take home. Most come with a slice of cucumber, and some even have a fried egg. If you are lucky it will come with cabbage in it too. 

2. Nasi Campur - Rice with assorted things. This can include potato cakes, tofu, tempeh, meat, hard boiled egg, assorted veggies and much more. Pretty easy to get exactly what you want since you can just point. Look for warungs/carts with a window full of stacked displays with odd looking food in it. 
3. Martabek - Delicious. Get the peanut chocolate one (coklat kachang) and find someone to share with. 

4. Eat peanut sauce everywhere you go. 

5. Tahu Easy - Not sure how to spell the last part but that’s how you pronounce it. Fried tofu stuffed with bean sprouts. Good cart over by Warung Rame in Singaraja. 

6. Bakso - Yes, this means meatball. But you can get the soup with tofu and egg rather than meatball, and although I’m sure there is some residual meat in the broth it’s worth it. Enjoy!
11. Dogs here don’t respond to whistles. Instead people have a weird clucking noise they use to call them.

12. Don’t step on the offerings! And watch out for them, they are everywhere.
13. Also make sure you get a chance to try and make one. I was able to help Ibu with some one time, and although her deft skills left me confused on the actual process for weaving them she would make them and I would tighten them, which really makes you appreciate the work that goes into these pretty art forms that are created daily.



14. Sugar (gula) is added to everything here and there isn’t really a way to get around it. Even the ketchup is way sweeter than American, and not in the good sweet tangy way if barbecue sauce.
15. The Balinese obsession with crocs is amazing. Almost every girl I saw had the slip on flats, which is really funny as I had considered getting those before I came.


Ubud:



16. Visit Senang Hati, restaurant and gallery and social organization devoted to handicap Balinese. Delicious food, beautiful artwork and an amazing cause.
17. Buy chocolate bread at Delta convenience store. Delicious.
18. Ketut Zambeth is an awesome tour guide.
19. Definitely visit the Ubud market early in the morning before it becomes a tourist madhouse in the afternoon. But go again in the afternoon to look at the mania too.





20. Visit the palace and meet the friendliest prince worldwide!
21. Mint Lemonade at this place on a side street near Ubud market…sorry I don’t know the name. And Eggplant Curry! So good.


22. Madre’s Homestay is run by the sweetest couple with tasty food and Tupi is the nicest dog. It may not be the nicest amenities, but it does the trick. Just give yourself a few days to adjust to the rooster crowing.

23. Homemade Mango jam!
24. In front of Delta there is a delicious roasted corn stand for Rp. 5,000 an ear. I suggest grilled with butter and just a tiny bit of pedas (spicy). Stress the tiny part because my mouth was still tingling when I finished mine.

25. I also heard the Bakso (meatball soup) stand there is the best my friends had eaten although I didn’t try it.
26. There is something weird going on here that causes my towel to smell horrendous. Makes no sense since it dries pretty quickly and doesn’t smell in other parts of Bali.
27. Quick, Cheap and they have a drier! Laundry service is worth every penny here since they will wash, dry and shrink your clothes back into shape plus even iron your things. The t-shirt I’m currently wearing has press marks on it!
28. I really talk about bread a lot, but you should go to Bali Buda near downtown and get some. Day old is much cheaper, and focaccia is amazing!


Sundaji:

29. Ride that moped! Maybe with Deian, a great host mom, she’s a good driver who learned to drive when she was 12!
30. Visit the Secret Temple over the Big River. Then walk through the rice paddies and see the dam and the community bathing place. Beautiful.
31. Go swimming at the waterfall.

32. Zan Zan’s place, known as Omunity, is absolutely gorgeous and so fun to hang out at, but watch out for the mosquitoes and ants as they will eat you alive. He also has really good food, all vegetarian!


Singaraja:

33. Kantin Coca’s Nasi Goreng…do it! Jalan Ahmad Yani No. 55B
34. Dapur Ibu is tasty tasty and we totally discovered it before realizing the guidebook recommended it. AND the restaurant seems clean, the waitstaff are friendly and speak pretty good English, and food comes out more or less at the same time, unless you have a huge group of course
35. Conato Bakery has delicious chocolate rolls. They come in a pack of chocolate and cheese. Or the thing that looks like garlic bread but is actually butter+sugar bread is also really good. And free and decent wifi!
36. Arta Grafika, an Internet cafe near Conato Bakery, has no AC or fans and is miserably hot. But I did learn you can log off of your Internet and redeem the time you have remaining on another time. Wish I’d known that prior to three days before we left.
37. Visit Hardy’s, the clothing/food superstore just to say you did. Make sure you check out all 4 floors of chaos.





38. Gandhi Resto has Chinese-like fair and gave me a great dish of Chinese vegetables without the meat that really met my expectations. Yum!
39. Kantor Pos (post office) is on the street directly across from the bus terminal/market. Probably a 7 minute walk down the road? Put your things to be mailed in the box on the counter and wait to be called. Should be Rp. 10,000 for international post cards.
40. IndoMaret, or as we called it IndoMart, has delicious and addictive chocolate bread. Towards the end of our stay the one closest to our hotel was constantly sold out. The strawberry chocolate version highly recommended!
41. Warung Rame’s strawberry milkshake is the best


Amed:

42. Go diving. Snorkeling near the Japanese wreck and scuba at Tulamben recommended. Euro Dive was also reasonable and seemed like a good dive master!



43. Good Karma Bungalows are the cutest things, although their restaurant is ridiculously overpriced (by Bali standards) and the staff can seem a bit rude at times?
44. Did you go diving yet?
45. The road to Amed is rough, and windy, and may prompt carsickness if you don’t stare at the beautiful scenery around you.


Pemuteran:

46. Definitely check out the Coral Reef Restoration Project. Go snorkeling to see the beautiful shapes and wildlife, but watch that you don’t walk into a rock on the way out.






47. Probably shouldn’t take a pretty and empty looking shell you find in the intertidal zone home. May house a small sea creature.


Kuta:

48. Sky Lounge is crazy but really fun. But if you are Asian and don’t enter with a large group of obviously international people they will try and charge you which is ludicrous (happened to two of my friends). Free entry for tourists but Rp. 75,000 for locals? Regardless I suggest you visit the largely deserted trance floor and enjoy the lasers, watch out for old heavy Australians who will step on your baby toe.
49. Take the Blue Bird taxis and make them turn on their meter.
50. Kuta Beach is a funny mix of locals selling surfing lessons, tanned Europeans/Australians and large groups from China, Japan and I think around Indonesia.





51. Granny’s Hostel is lovely! A bit far from actual Kuta but it is clean, has nice showers, best cooked egg I’ve had here (perfect amount of salty I’ve been looking for in this land of sweet) and has pretty good wifi. Plus cheap for the area.





52. You do need to call a taxi for pick up though. My little Sumatran friend never showed up to take me to the airport, so I walked to the end of the street and took about ten minutes to hail a cab who refused to turn on his meter, insisting he didn’t have one. I still negotiated a decent deal so it was worth it.
53. Huge KFC has free wifi and a giant international grocery store attached to it.