Birthday Bliss in Bali

By Cher Morente, Singapore Management University, Singapore

A gratitude-filled trip to celebrate surviving the first year of my 20s. Follow to see how I did Bali in 5 days.

Some may find it cliche but, I feel like a trip to Bali is a must for exchange students coming to South East Asia – and this is coming from someone who had low expectations due to the hype built by the media.

On this trip, we explored Uluwatu and Ubud using a 60/40 split. Starting with Uluwatu, a sunset chaser’s paradise.

In Uluwatu, we stayed in a hotel located in the South, close to Melasti Beach. It was a peaceful location but, I would recommend staying in West Uluwatu as that is where the majority of activities are. Thankfully, Grab Bikes were cheap. 

DAY 1

Since we arrived in the evening, our trip hadn’t fully started until the following day, which we kicked off with brunch and a 60-minute yoga session. We then headed to Dreamland Beach, which considerably is one of the most beautiful beaches in Uluwatu – from the ones we visited anyways. Although mainly dominated by surfers utilising the ocean waves, it was fun to swim alongside the tides. 

Accidentally losing track of time from soaking in the sun and sea, we headed back to hurriedly get ready for the evening in hopes to catch the sunset at Melasti Beach. As we stood in awe (after taking pictures of course) of the sun sinking into the horizon, the realisation hit, that I am once again about to be another year older. But, it wasn’t one of those dreaded existential crisis filled moments, granted I am still in my 20s and not 30s, but rather it was filled with peace and contentment. Filled with gratitude to have the opportunities I have been given so far and excited for the opportunities to come.

DAY 2

Despite it being my birthday, an extremely early morning was called for, in an attempt to watch the sunrise. However, what we failed to consider was the lack of Grab bike availability at the crack of dawn. So, home it is – nonetheless, it was beautiful as ever. 

I am not usually one to like my birthday but, after an emotional call from my family as they sang me happy birthday with cake and candles, I pulled myself together to not let a special day go to waste. It became the most perfect day; sunbathing at Thomas Beach, munching açai, haggling over Shein jewellery at a Balinese market and ending it at Rock Bar watching the sunset over the ocean. I had never been happier to turn a year older. 

DAY 3

The following day, as it became our favourite beach, we graced Dreamland with our presence one final time before we headed to our next destination: Ubud – also squeezing in Balangan Beach over lunch. Getting to Ubud was quite tricky in a sense that it was near impossible to get a driver that was willing to drive 1h 30 to a different area in Bali. Luckily, we got one – after hinting at a well endowed tip.

DAY 4

The morning after our arrival, we were welcomed with rain. An unexpected surprise given the rays of sunshine in Uluwatu from day to night. Regardless, we headed to brunch at the Tegallalang rice terraces at a cafe called ‘‘Tis Cafe’ and thankfully it had stopped raining upon our arrival. From here, we explored the actual rice terraces and even biked across the zipline! 

To immerse ourselves in Balinese culture, we took a tour around the Water Palace after perusing the Art Market nearby. As a sign of respect, we were made to wear a sarong, locally known as ‘kamben’, around the palace grounds, which boasted the culturally rich heritage and history of Balinese culture with it being a dedicated space adorned with lotus flowers and lotus ponds for the Hindu Goddess Dewi Saraswati who was believed to be the goddess of knowledge, learning, literature and art. 

DAY 5

Our final day in Ubud was the cherry on top of our trip. We were recommended a tour guide by one of our Grab Bike drivers, who was willing to take us to an ATV experience as well as a coffee plantation at a local price. Although skeptical at first, it was the best decision we ever made. 

Greeted by a lovely husband and wife duo, we went on our way to the Cantik Coffee Plantation where we were given a free tour filled with insights and information about the process of making coffee and tea, from plant to cup. At the end, we tasted the various coffees and teas we had just learnt about, including the famous Luwak (poop) coffee which, surprisingly was a good cup of coffee so, don’t knock it until you try it. From the selection, my personal favourites had to be the Avocado Coffee, Mangosteen Tea and Bali Coffee & Cocoa mix of which had their own deliciously unique taste.

Now it was time for fun. A 15-minute ride later, we arrived at the quad biking experience which is definitely a must if you stay in Ubud. It allows you to tour the waterfalls, rice terraces and more while having fun for an affordable price. Not to mention the amount of effort the Balinese tour guides put into taking photos and videos of you (for a small fee), getting all the angles (if you know, you know). 

To wrap up the day, we went home and got ready once again, for one final time to grab dinner while the sun set. And it was the best one of them all. Looking over Ubud’s natures and taking in all its glory, we approached golden hour reflecting upon our trip and concluded that it was definitely one for the books.