Bali is for Lovers
The call could not have come at a better time - the wife and I were badly in need of a relationship recharge. Nothing major - all we needed was a change of scenery (and a deluxe bedroom just for the two of us - no children squeezing in between). So when we'd found that we'd qualified for a major discount off of a resort stay in Bali, it felt as if the stars had aligned in our favor.
So off we went to Indonesia's premier tourist island. We intended to avoid the crowds - the beer-swilling budget tourists and the scads of surfers, who were mostly concentrated around Kuta and Sanur on the west side of South Bali. So as soon as we touched down, our taxi carried us east, away from Kuta to Tanjung Benoa.
Away from the madding crowd
The districts of Tanjung Benoa and Nusa Dua stand about thirty minutes' drive from Bali Airport. Because the beach on the east coast lacks the surfer-friendly waves of the west, the surfers and party people have largely left Tanjung Benoa and Nusa Dua to a more sedate class of Bali tourist. Which suited us just fine.
The resort we chose - the Grand Mirage Resort on Tanjung Benoa - offered us a deal we simply couldn't resist: a romantic couples' package with a sea-view room, balcony, tastefully-decorated interiors, and best of all, an all-inclusive setup.
"All-inclusive" cost almost twice as much as the regular stay, but we got unlimited food and beverages from restaurants, room service and minibars; as well as free non-motorized activities throughout the resort. That was a huge load off our shoulders; after all, there's no bigger romantic buzzkill than silently tallying up the cost of the stay as the days roll by!
Up to Ubud
After a few days of enjoying the resorts' couples activities - seawater-based treatments at the resort's thalassotherapy spa, a guided bike tour of the village around Tanjung Benoa, and not a few romantic dinners at the restaurant facing the sea - we felt the time was ripe to go further afield.
That meant taking the early morning Perama shuttle from Jalan Legian to the town of Ubud, about an hour's drive north into Bali's hilly central region.
Ubud is a godsend for couples looking for Bali's cultural heart. The local royalty has long taken Ubud's art community under its wing; to this day, art museums and shops flourish in the local culture-heady atmosphere.
Shopping & sightseeing
Start at the heart of the town, where Jalan Monkey Forest and Jalan Raya Ubud intersect. The Art Market and the Royal Palace can be found here, occupying opposite sides of the street.
The Art Market peddles a massive variety of touristy souvenirs, from handmade soaps to sarongs to sculpture to intricately-carved picture frames. Unlike other art outlets in Ubud, stores in the market permit - nay, encourage - haggling to get the prices down.
Immediately across the Art Market stands the Royal Palace, the home to Ubud's royal family and the site of a dance pavilion where nightly traditional performances are held for tourists.
Ubud's many modern museums fill the need for more avant-garde art forms. If you and your loved one are pressed for time, go west up Jalan Raya Ubud to the Blanco Museum, a romantic favorite: the gallery's sinuous, erotic artwork depict naked legong dancers and Balinese supernatural figures, among other things. You can't help but get ideas...
Beyond the sea
We knew we couldn't leave without visiting one of Bali's many temples, and we spent our last evening at Pura Luhur Uluwatu, an entrancing temple structure set at a cliff overlooking the Indian Ocean. Uluwatu is one of Bali’s sacred directional temples; the Balinese believe it safeguards the island from evil spirits attacking from the southwest.
An amphitheatre beside Uluwatu puts on a spectacular kecak performance almost nightly. The masked performers re-enact a Balinese version of the Ramayana epic to the rhythm provided by a surrounding chorus of bare-chested men - kecak-cak-cak-ke-ke-ke-cak-cak-cak!
The last ke-cak! resounded as the sun finally descended over the horizon. Just a few days in Bali, and we hadn't even exhausted everything Bali had to offer! But so what? Back to the drawing board for us - return engagement is currently in the works.
Photos by Mike Aquino
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