My husband and I travelled to Bali the last two weeks of November 2013, which fell into the earlier arts of their rainy season. We travelled in the following cities, skipping the northeast part of the island entirely: Seminyak, Munduk, Pemuteran, Ubud, Sanur and back to Seminyak. Although we certainly saw some torrential downpours, they didn’t last long and we were able to get around and see sites just fine. We also had plenty of sun so we got our fill of beach and pool time. The exception to all of this was Munduk, where it rained particularly hard and was pretty chilly. We still did a great hike, but it was a muddy affair.
Overall, I think the timing was fine. Also, some sites were still quite crowded. I can’t imagine what it would have been like had we visited during peak season!
Is Bali safe? Did you ever feel scared?
I felt safer in Bali than I have in most places I’ve visited. Everyone we encountered was friendly. There were several occasions when I would go into towns by myself and I was never concerned. The most aggressive people we saw were shopkeepers trying to get out business, but you just have to stay strong to that.
What was the food in Bali like?
Yum, yum! Wonder Boy and I are both vegetarians and we ate better in Bali than we do here in the states. Everywhere we were able to choose from multiple vegetarian options, most of them featuring tofu or tempeh – so protein packed. We ate everything places on our plates and even ate at a night market from food stalls. Our first meal in Bali was Gado Gado, which quickly became one of our favorite and most frequently ordered dishes.
Would you go back to Bali?
Contemplating revisiting locations for vacation is a tough thing for me. There is so much of the world that I want to see! I would revisit New Zealand in a heartbeat because there is still so much of that country I want to explore. I’d go to Costa Rica again because it’s relatively close and simply gorgeous. Bali was beautiful but sooo far away (24 hours of in-air time but 31-36 hours of actual travel to get there). I wouldn’t pass up a free trip to Bali, but I probably wouldn’t go back. I’d pick other, nearby islands instead, just to expand on the places I’ve visited.
What was your favorite of all the things you did in Bali?
So I’d be lying if I didn’t confess that holding Evelyn the four-year-old orangutan was my favorite part of visiting Bali. Holding her and getting so close to her to take pictures was just awesome. But if I were to pick something more authentically Balinese and not from a zoo, I would say that hiking in Munduk was pretty awesome. It was rainy, muddy and messy, but exposed us to such cool plants, bugs and beauty. The Munduk Waterfall at the end of the hike was stunning.
