Our trip from Legian to Ubud in Bali
After 7 days in the Seminyak/Legian area, we knew we were ready for some tranquil times in Bali. Our hotel, the Loft Legian, helped us find transportation from Legian to Ubud that allowed for scenic stops along the way. “Wayan” was our driver for the day; he spoke in rhymes, referred to himself in the 3rd person, and there was something seriously lazy about his speech that I wondered if he was ever sober for too long, or if he was sober today. We stopped for Petrol while still in Legian, and headed off away from the madness of Kuta.
After 45 minutes on the road, Wayan pulled into a parking lot and we had arrived at our first stop: the Tanah Lot Temple. We paid the entrance fee and walked through the souvenir shops that dotted the pathway towards the sea. Even with the bright, harsh light of high noon, th place is stunning. The path ends at the beach, not far from the sand is a huge rock that juts into the ocean, and on top of that rock sits a majestic temple. Stairs built into the cliffs that led up to the temple were getting pounded by the waves and it was a fantastic site.
We spent several hours exploring the area before deciding to sit for lunch. We ditched the traditional restaurants and instead had some Babi Sate from a mother and daughter grilling some on the side of the street. So glad we made that decision because it was some damn good bbq!
After lunch, we were again in Wayan’s van headed for Ubud. Since we took our time at Tanah Lot, Wayan told us we didn’t have time for the other stops, which we were ok with—too full from lunch, and it was too hot! Lots of traffic, but also some very nice scenery along the way. We made it to Ubud by 4pm and, after getting lost a bit, Wayan found the Desak Putu Putra homestay which would be our home for the next few days. We sat in quiet on our balcony sipping on the welcome drinks they brought for us, and I knew right away Ubud was more our pace.
Tidbits: (cost conversions are at the time of writing, April 28, 2014)
Private car with driver and petrol from Legian to Ubud: Rp 400,000 (USD $34)
Tanah Lot parking lot: Rp 5,000 (USD ¢.42)
Tanah Lot entrance fee: Rp 10,000 (USD ¢.85 per person)