Day 11, Bali: So now I want an open-air shower

Today was about getting into the rhythm of Ubud and Bali. A little walking. A little eating and drinking. A little sun. A little shopping. A little local culture…

All that started practically from the moment we got out of bed. I walked out onto our balcony, looked right and then looked left—and startled the large monkey sitting on the rail. Or perhaps more accurately stated, the monkey startled me.

A visitor looking to join us for breakfast

The Alam Jiwa staff delivered our breakfast at 8 am, and we enjoyed it at the upstairs, outdoor dining table overlooking the rice fields. We were a little afraid we’d attract more monkeys, what with all the dishes clanking and the smell of fresh fruit—but none joined us.

Breakfast on the upstairs dining table

Our morning destination was the Campuhan Ridge walk, a popular excursion in Ubud that extends several kilometers out from town into the rice fields. We walked across through the main part of town and then directly into the start of the hike (Google Street View is a great thing for planning such walks, and Chris knew exactly where we were headed). It really is a nice walk, with some small, rolling hills and lovely views. Very quickly, you find yourself away from the shops, crowded sidewalks, and motorbikes and out where you can actually hear the birds.

We hiked out to the spa that is kind of a milestone on this walk, about 3 kilometers from the main roal, and stopped for some cold sodas on the upstairs terrace—adding another to our list of great, scenic places to have drinks.

Some sights along the Campuhan Ridge walk 

Rice fields

Some diet cokes and a lime squash and this view as the reward for our walk

We retraced our steps and then stopped to reward ourselves with a light lunch. At that point, the Fitbit (which, by the way, turned up a few days earlier on the floor of our hotel room in Yogyakarta) registered an all-time high of 26K steps in the previous 24 hours—earning a first “Classics” badge, but more immediately, a glass of wine with lunch.

An all-time high step count 

Heroes of the trip--the almost-forgotten Tevas that were a last-minute addition in packing

A little more walking around in Ubud

There was also a little monkey fun along the way:

We followed that with a few hours of enjoying the features of Alam Jiwa. First--the pool.

Enjoying the pool--all to ourselves for much of the afternoon!

Then, it was time to try out the open air shower! With the nice breeze and expansive views, this was much better than I expected it to be. I wouldn't mind having one of these at home (well, in the summer anyway).

A shower with a view

While we love Asian food of all types, after 11 days we were all starting to crave something a little different--perhaps something with cheese. Ubud has a fairly eclectic dining scene, and the fairly well-regarded Pizza Bagus was not far away.