As we had two weeks in Ubud and a motorbike, we decided to take a weekend to explore other parts of Bali. So we headed off to Amed, a stretch of coast in East Bali, incorporating seven villages. The drive from Ubud is a fairly boring slog along main roads until the last hour… Read more of "A weekend in Amed, Bali"
Indonesian food
I hate to admit it, but we weren't as adventurous with Indonesian food as we should have been. By the time we got to Indonesia we were missing food from home and craving salads after weeks of fried foods in Malaysia, so we gravitated more towards Western restaurants. But here are… Read more of "Indonesian food"
The most expensive coffee in the world
When we heard that the most expensive coffee in the world, kopi luwak (a.k.a. civet coffee or cat poop coffee), was being produced down the road, we figured we'd better give it a try. To clarify, civet coffee involves civets (similar to weasels) eating coffee berries, which then… Read more of "The most expensive coffee in the world"
A home away from home in Ubud, Bali
In Kuala Lumpur, a Russian girl we met told us that she had moved to Bali because it was the most beautiful place she had ever seen. And that's about right. Ubud was our first stop in Bali and it instantly felt like home. There's a great mix of traditional Balinese culture and… Read more of "A home away from home in Ubud, Bali"
Climbing Mount Bromo
Getting to Cemoro Lawang, the town closest to Mount Bromo, was the worst. The main reason for this is having to pass through Probolinggo, a town where pretty much everyone is trying to scam you. The best advice I can give about this journey is not to do it, just go with a tour or… Read more of "Climbing Mount Bromo"
Java's cities
Route planning becomes a little tedious when you're travelling. You want to enjoy the place you're in rather than reading the guidebook for your next destination. So we didn't spend that much time planning our route through Java, we had a couple of key places we wanted to visit… Read more of "Java's cities"
Borobudur
By the time we got to Borobudur, we were exhausted. We'd only had a couple of hours sleep and been on the bike for hours. And then we pulled into Elo Progo Art House, a peaceful haven in the middle of nowhere, complete with a family-run warung (where we had the most delicious… Read more of "Borobudur"
Scooting, climbing and camping in Yogyakarta
Yogyakarta was a game changer for us, we hired a motorbike for our week's stay and we loved it. Heading out into the countryside without a plan, getting lost in the villages, driving over rickety bamboo bridges, waving to all the smiling kids we passed. We had the best week of… Read more of "Scooting, climbing and camping in Yogyakarta"
The 'hidden' Jakarta
Jakarta gets a pretty bad rap, even the guidebooks advise you to skip it, so we weren't really sure what to expect. But actually, we kinda liked it. We stayed on Jalan Sabang, a busy road with lots of street food stalls and cute coffee shops, and after six weeks in the much more… Read more of "The 'hidden' Jakarta"