I don’t think there’s actually any buried treasures in Bali, but you do need to scrounge a bit to find a gem of a place. If you just stick to the southern part of the island, where its only airport is, you’ll leave wondering how the island is consistently ranked as one of the 10 most beautiful islands in the world (by the way, you should also check out #6, one of Portugal’s two incredible archipelagos). Don’t get me wrong: Kuta, Bali’s most well known beach, is nice… for about a day. Enjoy the beach, visit the Ground Zero Monument (which pays homage to the 202 victims of the 2002 Bali bombings), enjoy the beautiful sunset, and then get yourself in a minivan headed north.

Bali is only one of Indonesia’s 14.000+ islands, but it is certainly unique. Tourism has contributed to a spectacular population increase, and the island is now one of the world’s most densely populated places. Travelling through the island is a bit like visiting Disneyland’s Small World: the roads are narrow and packed with houses, and there’s people from every corner of the world zooming back and forth. Also, more than 80% of the residents practice Balinese Hinduism, a unique religion that combines elements of Hinduism, Buddhism and local animism beliefs.

There’s three things in abundance in Kuta: tourist shops, 2 for 1 drink specials, and rental scooters

Kuta’s beach is pretty nice, but it can be crowded

Wondering about the red flag? Kuta has strong currents, even with the sea looks calm

Jules was pretty happy with the farmer’s hat she bought at Kuta

Kids flying a kite at Kuta

The Ground Zero Monument pays homage to the 202 victims of the 2002 Bali bombings

These food offerings to the Gods are put out on the sidewalks three times a day. Birds love them!

We thought about crashing this wedding, but our flip-flops would have been an instant give-away

Beautiful sunset at Kuta

Roads in Bali are usually surrounded by houses and thick vegetation, but sometimes there’s an opening

If you’re in Ubud try the Campuhan Ridge Walk. It’s a great hike that…

… goes through a bunch of rice fields

So this is what rice looks up close!

Jules travels alongside an irrigation canal for rice fields

Verne is looking forward to visiting his monkey friends

Ubud’s less travelled back roads are pretty cool

An ingenious way of financing road paving

I tried peeling a banana with my feet, it’s definitely not easy

These two monkeys were surprisingly well behaved

Whatcha doing there, buddy?

In the Kecak musical drama, the Rama and Rahwana roles are usually played by women

In this scene, Rama and Rahwana are trapped by a giant snake. The male chorus sits around them, singing the “monkey chant”

After the Kecak there was a second show with a crazy guy dancing through flames!

Our first glimpse of Amed

Hiring a scooter is the best way to travel around Amed

Boats, divers, snorkelers and fish in a crowded day at the USAT Liberty wreck

Verne looks for hidden treasures at the USAT Liberty wreck

Wrecks attract amazing wildlife

Jules, stop chasing the little fish!

Jules relaxes after our snorkelling session at the USAT Liberty wreck

Enjoying a late afternoon in one of Amed’s many beaches

Kivas, our well travelled nephew’s stuffed Kiwi bird, also liked the farmer’s hat

Jules wasn’t particularly happy when she discovered this gecko in our room

A ‘Jukung’, a traditional Balinese fishing boat

This sort of view is bread and butter in Amed

The Japanese wrecks sits at a depth of just 2 to 12 meters, so you can go everywhere without diving equipment

Jules dives to get a closer look at the Japanese wreck

The Japanese wreck is though to have been a small patrol ship sunk during World War II

This is what happens to a metal structure after sitting in the ocean for a few decades

Verne goofing around the Japanese wreck

Kivas seeks spiritual enlightenment in Amed

Jules enjoys a late evening dip in Amed’s clear waters

Most of the beaches we visited in Amed were deserted

Verne checks out the Bunutan coral reef

Jules at the Bunutan coral reef

Get out of the way Jules, I’m trying to photograph the reef!

Starfish may look cute, but they are actually nasty little carnivores!

A nice blue coral. You’ll be seeing a lot of these in our next post about the Gili Islands!

Verne chases around colourful fish with a GoPro

A Ngaben, a traditional Balinese procession, where the body of the deceased are taken away for cremation

A cool live concert in our last night at Amed

Leaving our homestay in Amed. Look at that view!

The Gili Islands are a mere 45 minutes by speedboat from Amed

Our first stop was Ubud, some 35 km (22 miles) north of Kuta. Ubud used to be a quiet little inland town until the “Eat, Pray, Love” bestseller (and subsequent Julia Roberts movie) skyrocketed it to global fame. Not everybody enjoys the resulting hords of visitors seeking spiritual enlightenment, but Ubud continues to be a pretty special place. Start with a morning hike around the many rice fields. Have lunch on one of the many great restaurants (we specially liked Fair Warung Bale, whose proceedings help finance a network of free clinics). Wonder through the town’s backstreets, avoiding the mainstreet hipster coffeeshops and overpriced shops. Maybe visit the Sacred Monkey Sanctuary (a word of caution: monkeys, not unlike their distant human relatives, can be complete douchebags. They will steal anything that vaguely resembles food and can bite if you get too close). And, by the end of the day, definitely go see a Balinese traditional dance show. We saw a Kecak, a musical drama inspired in Ramayana, a Hindu poem. The “monkey chant” is mesmerising, and so is the plot. As the story goes, Sita, Rama’s beautiful wife, is kidnapped by the evil king Rahwana. Rama and his brother Laksmana embark into an epic quest to save Sita. After facing magical arrows and dragons, and with the aid of a giant monkey, they finally manage to rescue her and they all live happily ever after (come on, it’s not really a spoiler, the story is 2.500 years old).

After Ubud, we hopped into another minivan headed to Amed, a handful of tiny fishing villages in the east coast of Bali. This 14km strip of coastline only got tarmac roads in 2000, so it’s still relatively tourist-free. If you’re into diving or snorkelling, Amed is an absolute must. Besides beautiful coral gardens, Amed probably has some sort of Bermuda Triangle mystique going on, because there’s a bunch of ship wrecks in the area. We snorkelled around two: the USAT Liberty and a Japanese wreck. USAT Liberty managed to survive the first World War, but not the second one. In January 1942 it was torpedoed by a Japanese submarine. US and Dutch destroyers still tried to tow it to a nearby harbour, but the damage was too severe and the ship was beached near Amed, so that the cargo could be salvaged. Today it sits 100 meters or so from the beach, at a depth of 5 to 30 meters. The second site we checked out was the so called Japanese wreck. Details on the ship origin are scarce, but according to the prevailing theory it was a Japanese patrol ship sunk during World War II. it’s also very close to shore and at a depth of 2 to 12 meters, so it’s perfect for snorkelling and goofing around the wreck.

Hope you’re not fed up with underwater photos, because next up are the amazing car-free Gili Islands and its cheeky turtles!

Verne*