Exploring Bali for our Destination Wedding
Is Bali really like the movie Eat Pray Love? This is exactly what I was thinking when my fiancé and I decided on Bali as our top choice for our destination wedding. I had never known anyone who had been to Bali so all I had to go off of was the 2010 movie based on the true story of Elizabeth Gilbert’s memoir. When I thought of Bali, I thought of a tropical, exotic, middle of nowhere island which probably didn’t have that much to see besides beaches and palm trees. Boy, was I wrong.
We both knew we wanted somewhere exotic, somewhere far away from California, and of course somewhere tropical with the ocean and palm trees and maybe some exotic drinks. We did tons of research, I read blogs online and he researched possible wedding venues. When it came time for our week long trip this past September, we were more than prepared. I had looked up Airbnbs in Bali and had asked my flight attendant friends if they knew any private drivers. My fiancé researched hotels to see how they compared to the Airbnbs. We both decided that having our own villa would be more private and give us a taste of the local culture especially since the host of the place we booked, lived in the main house and offered to show us around. She also recommended us a private driver to pick us up from the airport and take us around the island. I couldn’t wait! Our trip couldn’t come soon enough.
We booked a direct flight from San Francisco to Singapore. We stayed 1 night there at the JW Marriott which is a must stay hotel mainly because of the infinity pool on the roof with the grandest view of the city! It definitely rivals the view at Marina Bay Sands and it’s much more affordable. The next day as soon as we arrived in Bali, our Airbnb host texted me to inform us that our private driver was already outside waiting. Perfect! I had always wanted someone holding up a sign with my name and greeting me outside arrivals, maybe this is a flight attendant thing. Our driver’s name was Komang and he was so gracious helping us with our luggage and giving us some tips for places to go each day that would coincide with our wedding venue visits. He told us he is the driver that our Airbnb host always uses for airport pickups and tours for her guests. We planned out the next few days and finally arrived at our Airbnb.
Our host, Soviana was eager to greet us both and gave us a tour of her exquisite, Buddhist temple looking villa and we enjoyed her homemade watermelon smoothies on her rooftop where we could see the ocean. After a long day of traveling though, we were exhausted, ready to have dinner and get a good night’s rest to prepare for the next few days of site seeing.
The week consisted of a whirlwind of wedding venue visits and mini tours with our private driver. After these hotel appointments, we made sure to squeeze in some site seeing all over the island. Our favorite activities included the Monkey Forest, water temples, and waterfall hunting.
The sacred Ubud Monkey Forest was one of our top bucket list items where there are over 700 monkeys. There are four different troops of monkeys and three temples. This monkey forest was built around the 14th century and you can come here to watch the monkeys being fed by the local people. It is not advised for you to feed them or to wear any jewelry, hats, or anything shiny that can attract them. Also, we were advised not to look them in the eye which I learned the hard way when I looked at a young monkey and it suddenly ran towards me and jumped on my back, trying to open my backpack. For the most part, they are friendly as long as you are not instigating them or wearing anything that you were advised against. I did see one steal someone’s lunch bag though and tore through all its contents. After this visit we were ready to cool down from all the walking and see some waterfalls.
Our driver hiked with us to Banyumala waterfall which he said was very easy, but don’t be fooled, the beginning of the hike was fine on dry dirt and was a steady downhill climb. Then all of a sudden, the dirt is mushy and it’s more like a slip and slide holding onto a flimsy rope that could break at any point. It’s definitely not a hike where I would bring a lot of things and you must have solid shoes unlike me where I was praying the whole time my sandals wouldn’t break. It was obvious I wasn’t prepared for a slippery, downhill, muddy hike. It was worth it though! When we finally saw the waterfall, I immediately wanted to jump in and swim up underneath it. It was the most refreshing water and the most fun we had on the trip. I remember floating on my back and just staring at the sun peeking through the clouds and seeing the mist from the falls surround me. It was like a dream. I also wanted to experience a local ritual. I got my chance at the Tirta Empul water temple.
This temple is a Hindu Balinese water temple where the locals go for ritual purification. You must wear a sarong to enter this holy temple and it is famous for its holy spring water. Komang told us the story behind this water temple and said that it dates back to 960AD when a Balinese ruler, Mayadenawa created a poisoned spring which killed the God Indra’s troops and from his anger threw his staff into the ground which caused the a holy purifying spring to form. The story goes on to say that the troops were brought back to life from this holy water. The ritual is performed by starting at the first water spout on the left and bowing towards it then splashing the water onto your face three times. Then you submerge your head and body underneath the spout while praying to the Hindu Gods. You then continue on to each of the 13 spouts. However, the 11th and 12th spouts are skipped since they are only used for funerals. The holy water is meant to rid you of evil spirits and cleanse your soul. After experiencing just a few of these cultural and unique places Bali has to offer, my fiancé and I had no doubt in our mind, Bali was where we were going to get married.
I also had to ask our driver about the movie Eat. Pray. Love and if the medicine man, Ketut from the movie was real. I was surprised and thrilled to find out the medicine man did exist in Bali, but he had passed in 2016 and his son now practices his father’s healing treatments to this day. Unfortunately, we didn’t have time in our itinerary to squeeze in a visit, but we may just have to pay him a visit for the next time. I went to Bali not knowing anything about the country except from what I saw in a movie and read online and I left learning how not only are there tons of unique and interesting things to see and do, but I also learned how friendly and spiritual the locals are. Our Airbnb host, our private drivers Komang and Arsa, and the locals we met taught us the importance of cleansing your mind and spirit, meditation, massage, and a healthy diet. I have no doubt that this is where our dream destination wedding is meant to be in 2020.