sugar and spice : Eat Pray Love

Sunday, March 20, 2011

Eat Pray Love – Bali Two

Bali as an island is bigger than most people would imagine. It takes about 30 mins by car to get from one place to another, be it to beaches, volcano mountains, towns or villages. Having a hired driver made logistic a lot easier for us and we got to 2 spend days in this wonderful place called Ubud.

“Ubud is a hot spot for literati, glitterati, art collectors and connoisseurs alike. In fact, it’s arguably the best place to use as a base if you're visiting Bali; if you're looking for culture, comfort, nature and inspiration. Ubud is surrounded by most of the things that bring people to Bali -- scenic rice fields, small villages, art and craft communities, ancient temples, palaces, rivers, cheap accommodation and unique luxury hotels. And it's central location makes it easy to get from Ubud to the mountains, beaches, and major towns.” quoted from here.

Ubud Market is the best place to shop for clothes and bags, souvenirs, art crafts you name it, they have it. Don’t forget to bargain for a good price too!

This local food stall is a must visit for pork lovers when they set foot in Ubud. Ibu Oka is renown for their suckling pig, a place frequent even by many local chefs there.

Everyone on this table could testify the yummilicious succulent babi guling except for one, me. I’m not a huge fan for pork hence didn’t find the dish memorable. I would much prefer Naughty Nuri anytime, which I will write about it later.

After a hearty lunch feast at Ibu Oka, the group adjourned to a spa centre nearby for more indulgence: balinese massage, scalp treatment , manicure and pedicure. Talk about pampering now, aren’t we? lol

Some decided to go back to their hotels while some like us, proceed to the next destination: Tanah Lot.

Tanah Lot, simple in its construction, is dramatic in its ocean-front location and is one of the main temples in the worship of Balinese gods. The temple itself is built on a small promontory which is only accessible at low tide. During high water the rock takes on the appearance of a large boat at sea, such is its shape. Sunset is the best time to visit Tanah lot, when the golden red skies frame the temple and waves crash into the rocks. Quoted from here

Truth be told, despite the long drive and all, this place really took my breath away at sunset.

There was a myth about this temple though. There is a superstition that this temple have a phenomenal power to end relationships that weren’t meant to be as well as securing true loves, applying to the couples who visit the temple.

Don’t take my words for it but so far it has been quite true relating to the people in my life!