The finale of this 3 Part series (See Part 1 here and Part 2 here) ends in Ubud, Bali. Ubud was the first place on our trip I really didn’t want to leave. I remember actually being sad our last few hours there as we ate at a beautiful Kafe (it was actually called Kafe with a K…I haven’t gone all Kardashian on you) sipping iced coffee with a beautiful flower in it. Everyone around us was sipping their own latte or tea and reading a book or writing on their laptops (they were probably just on Facebook but I like to think that I was hanging out with sophisticated poets or writers on their second book). There are a lot of expats from all over the world in Ubud doing yoga, enjoying the cafes, walking through the rice fields, reading by the pool at their insanely cheap villa, talking with the monks, eating the delicious food, and just enjoying the peace that is in the air in Ubud. I think the trees and flowers let off all this peace air filling people with happiness and everywhere we looked people were smiling.
Here are the top few reasons (of about a million) I will definitely be going back to Ubud, Bali:
The green in Ubud is so much more green than any green I have ever seen. Everywhere you look there is green. Even in the city center people fill their homes and stores with plants and flowers. Step one foot out of the city center and you are surrounded by rice fields as far as the eye can see.




We did a lot of hiking in these green fields and jungles





The nature in Ubud was actually a good and bad thing for me. Ubud is so perfect for all types of nature, including bugs and scary monkeys. But they were all still cool to take pictures of!

This was as close as I would get to the monkeys. I heard lots of stories (and even witnessed it twice) of monkeys biting people. I saw the teeth marks on people and it scared me right out of loving monkeys…and if you know me you know how much I love monkeys! Now I just love non-rabies stuffed animal monkeys.

Greg was braver than I and chilled out with this little guy.
And then this happened and it was time to leave the Sacred Monkey Forest!

These monkeys were seriously honey badgers sitting on peoples cars in the parking lot and we saw multiple people get food stolen right out of their hand.
Here’s some not so scary nature



This guy lived in the roof of our villa and left us a little present on our patio every morning. At about a foot long (the lizard, not the present) he was borderline zoo status! We named him Charlie.
The food was just incredible and so cheap! The most expensive meal we had was at a nice sit down restaurant where we had wine and two amazing indonesian meals. Grand Total: $27.02. Most of our meals were no more than than $10 for both of us, and we were filled!




This is us eating our “pricey” meal.


We even found a mexican food joint! It was no El Coyotes, but it satisfied our mexican food cravings.

Nothing compared to the fruit in Bali. It was just incredible. Our maid lady (see below) made us breakfast every morning ranging from eggs to pancakes and we always had a plate of fruit. The best breakfast she made us though was this pineapple pancake with a fruit plate. I can now only eat pancakes if they have pineapple in them.
Speaking of maids, one of the best parts of Ubud and the whole of Bali for that matter, is the affordable living. We stayed in two places during our 2 week stay in Ubud, both were private villas, had a maid, a pool, kitchen, wifi, and the second place even had aircon! All for $30 a night or less for both of us.


The second place we stayed was my favorite with this awesome pool.
I can think of no better place to be an artist, and the locals know this. We ran into several people with art shops filled with their beautiful paintings or carvings. This man below works on his intricate paintings for months using only a black or colored fine tip sharpie.


Bali had a lot of culture to it, but nothing like Ubud where every few steps you ran into a temple. And most of the buildings had the same cultural feel to it even if it had been renovated recently, they still held on to the beautiful structure it was originally built with.






Remember all those smiles I was telling you about? This kid was all smiles as he ran down the road with his kite who’s handle was made of a water bottle. We saw him making the kite when we walked by the first time and as we headed back he had it up and running!


We also met some great friends, Matilda and Elizabeth, on Gili T who we got to hang out with again in Ubud. See all the smiles!
Saving the best for last, the spas! This spa, Sedona Spa, was in the middle of a rice field where we got a couples massage in the most beautiful outdoor spa room I have ever seen.

I splurged on my $18 Salt Glow Scrub, “It begins with a relaxing one-hour Balinese massage followed by a special exfoliating organic sea salt scrub mixed with massage oils, which eases body tiredness, reduce food odor. It also prevent skin infection. Clay seaweed body mask effective in maintaining the natural beauty of your skin. Finally, you immerse yourself in a bath of warm sea salt water & exotic flowers.” Greg got the Sedona Duo Massage, “The secret of this style massage is the use of double therapist with combining the techniques of skin rolling, long kneading strokes & pressure point to relaxing your body.” That’s right, there were two ladies rubbing him down (lucky him). It was pretty incredible.

So yea, you should totally go to Bali.
♥ Casi
See Part 1 and Part 2 Of Why You Should Immediately Empty Your Bank Account And Go To Bali Right Now