Bali: where have you been all my life?

I'm sitting on the steps outside our guest house to catch the feeble waves of wifi from the other end of the courtyard. They probably can't quite make it around the shrine of stone statues who are casually guarding us from bad spirits. Stray dogs, crickets and roosters make up a din in the distance reminding me I'm definitely not in Singapore. Throw in the heavy perfume of whatever flower is blooming by night here and you have a perfect night.

The past two days are a blur of temples, iridescent green rice fields, lush jungle and the most warm genuine human beings. Ubud, while full of tourists is also pretty laid back and easy. It reminds me of every single one of my favorite places in the world. It's a little of the tribal atmosphere of Ilha Grande, some of the hippi hold out of Fairfax and a smattering of the off-beat art and surf culture of Venice Beach and Santa Monica all rolled up in one delicious Balinese sandwich. It's the kind of place you want to hold onto, to own a piece of and never let go. Though that's not what's good for Bali which has been experiencing rapid development due to folks who just want to be part of this place. I plan to return and keep supporting the cool places we've discovered so far. Bali might just be the antidote for all the little things that drive me mental in Singapore. Cheers!

Tips: Stay at Tirta Arum Guest House in Ubud for some local cultural immersion. I don't suggest Matahari Cottages which we fled from after one night. Cabins in the woods sounded great until we crawled into damp sheets on a moldy mattress and spent the night with mosquitoes circling our netting. Funky yes, not in the way we were hoping.