I started off my two week vacation in Ubud and exploded with excitement to spend time with my sister, brother-in-law and their incredible bundles of joy. Ubud is an amazing little town with small streets blossoming with restaurants, vendors, historical sights, a market that runs across several blocks and rays of positive energy to soak up. Better yet it holds a monkey forest sanctuary that runs for miles. It is definitely one of Ubud's gems that we were eager to explore amongst other sights.
The sanctuary is the home for hundreds of monkeys peering out at every end waiting to grab the next banana. My nephew of course was barely through the entrance before handing a bunch of bananas to the cheeky little buggers with such delight. He was in his element and it was such a stunning moment to see. Within seconds the bananas were gulped down and we walked on surrounded by an abundance of towering trees. The sanctuary offers such a peaceful environment and is a must-see in Ubud. Even more so are the temple structures and the hidden waterfall within the sanctuary. It almost seems like an ancient world with unique characteristics all around to explore with a deep valley that you can overlook from one of the temple structures. It really is a stunning site and as long as you don't have any hidden bananas in your backpack or out of sight you are sure to come out untouched...
Ubud holds a few of these ancient world beauties within the town and nearby. Goa Gojah or Elephant Cave is another intertwined gem just outside Ubud that offers a cave with a facade of intricate carvings. The cave is where offerings are made which leaves a strong aroma of incense as you walk in. It is an amazing site to explore with several blessing pools, statues which are now in ruins and once again surrounded by nature and towering trees. This site is set in layers and with layers comes hundreds of stairs. But as we explored it each part I couldn't help but get "lost" in what I saw and the history that it holds so dearly. There is one particular tree that has a web of complex roots which truly represents the years of this breath taking site. Every part of it was absolutely stunning!
Over the next few days we maximised our time and explored as much as we could. We visited the various temples in and around Ubud. Each one in its own right is absolutely stunning and holds a rich history. There is one on particular known as Tampak Siring or Holy Spring Water Temple that has a maze of areas to explore and appreciate including various temples, springs in which people were experiencing the ritual and plenty of detailed structures pleasant on the eye. Again this temple is so intertwined boasting an ancient world aura where I felt so deeply absorbed by the sights before my eyes. It was one of my favourite gems of the Ubud area.
We explored the rice terraces and paddies which are plentiful. An attraction to most of the restaurants in Ubud is that they overlook rice paddies which brings about such a tranquil setting. One of the larger rice terraces we visited from a view point on route to Mt Batur, but only enough to see it from a view point and capture it. The one point that needs to be made is that viewing these sights, even from a view point, comes at a fee...Its a worthwhile sight of course and part of the Bali experience.
Our next view point experience was of Mt Batur volcano that lies within a large crater. Mt Batur brings about a clear reality through its engraved burns that it is still very much active. It is a beauty and with the early morning sun rays the lake alongside offers quite the complementary sight. We then moved on to learn about the Balinese coffee in a coffee plantation that ends overlooking a lush valley whilst sipping on eight difference tasters of tea, coffee and hot chocolate. It was amazing to say the least! All of it was spectacular to explore.
Ubud really is such a quaint little place; a sanctuary in itself and definitely worth visiting with its ample ancient world sites...
