Ubud

Ubud.

I made it through customs easy enough, albeit for the waiting. Once I got through I was welcomed by my own guy with a sign with my name on it - which is another first for me. I almost wanted to take a photo of him with it. I had hoped to get a SIM card at the airport, but I was looking for a Vodafone shop, but I only saw a couple of other brands that I didn’t know how legit they were, and I had the guy waiting for me. So we went to his vehicle. He put my bags in the vehicle and handed me an ice cold water and a welcome pack. Now I was a little paranoid at this point as the seal didn’t crack as dramatically as it would usually at home, so I was questioning whether the water hadn’t just been filled from a tap, so I only took a small mouthful at that point. Which was a good idea, as it took a while to drive to the hotel as traffic was quite built up, and toilets probably few and far between. I was waiting for the density of traffic to dissipate before attempting any real conversation with the driver, (remembering how educational the conversation I had had with the guy who transferred me in Fiji was) however it never did.

Once I got to the hotel I had a read of the pack and figured if the company recommends you don’t drink the tap water, they aren’t going to give you (disguised) tap water to drink.

Once I got to the hotel I wanted/needed to sort a few things out, but at the same time was fighting a long day. By the time I got myself sorted, it was about 10pm local time, so I nipped out and got some quick dinner - some soft shell tacos before going to bed.

Woke up the next morning with my alarm at 6am. Breakfast opened at seven so was nice and organised for that. I organised a 1.5 hour massage at 12, and once that was over, went about finding a SIM card. The hotel people had mentioned a booth just out the front gate - which I found and discussed with the guy running it - however I thought it a little too convenient being just out the gate, and figured I ought to check out the Main Street, especially as they might have a more non-tourist brand. Truth be told, I should’ve just bought the SIM card there as it took me ages to get to the Main Street due to the fellow pedestrians sharing a pavement that periodically had pavers missing, and then between them, periodic open manholes (which to be fair are big and square and raised, so not invisible). I also purchased a pair of sunglasses (some “Oreys” - ie fake Oakleys) and some gelato. By the time I had completed this and got back to the hotel, it was virtually 6pm, the closing time of the monkey forest and the Elephant cave. The rest of the evening I spent having a swim in the pool, having dinner and getting organised for the next days bike ride.

The next morning I woke up early again, and before breakfast went and got some supplies from the convenience store next to the hotel - just some water and chips. However a monkey had a go at stealing my chips, and on the second go right outside the door of my room  it succeeded in mugging me of them. It was a little sinister as I had no where to go, and wasn’t going to fight due to not wanting rabies or ebola. I had breakfast and got picked up at about 8 and we headed north for about an hour or two. I had been dreading this part of the trip for several reasons - one that it might be quite strenuous and I wasn’t particularly fit, and two that I got a seat that made me feel violated afterwards.

When we got our bikes, I was horrified to discover the seat was not particularly big, however both fears were unwarranted as 90%+ of the ride was downhill and required little pedaling, the strain was more on your arms and feat to keep you in position- which I think was also made harder by the fact the bikes had suspensions, meaning if you were facing downhill, you potentially were further forward than usual. What I wasn’t a fan of was the sharing the road with all the Bali traffic and the off-road bits could be rough in places.

However, it was over before I knew it, and the lunch we got was fantastic.

Once I got back to my hotel, I went and did the monkey forest - which was nice, albeit less special after my run in with the monkey that morning.

That evening I had organised to meet up with an American girl. It ended up she got back later from her tour than expected, and then had a massage booked (which was Ok, as it allowed me to fit in an hour massage too) but by the time we met, I was starting to feel like going to bed, so my conversation probably wasn’t on point.

The next day I was told to be ready to be picked up at 7-7:30 to head to my next hotel. At 6:45, whilst on the toilet I got a call saying the driver was here. Luckily I had used the time wisely the night before whilst waiting for the American girl, to be all packed.