Indonesia has been at the top of my bucket list for many years now. It has the perfect combination of religious diversity, beautiful beaches, indigenous communities, artisan handicraft, and over 17,000 islands to explore. It’s been sitting on the backburner for years now because I think I was too overwhelmed when reading the guidebooks and travel blogs to even know where to start. There were just too many places to explore for one trip.
I decided to spend a month at a villa and use that as a home base to explore the surrounding areas. Villa Sedang is a three bedroom, three and half bath stunning villa with an infinity pool and staff of 8 situated right on the ocean in a village called Kalisada…the nearest tourist spot would be about 30 minutes away in Lovina Beach. I arrived and settled right in. I could not believe the view. The villa boasts a completely unobstructed view from the front door entrance all the way to the ocean and black sand beach. I knew this was going to be a place I could relax after several long days of travel. I spent the first week getting to know the village, walking around the beach, shopping and eating in Lovina, trekking through the rice paddies, and snorkeling and scuba diving at Menjangan Island.
The trek was spectacular and organized by a local community based tourism initiative known as Mayong Green. Locals in the village act as guides and explain how the rice paddies are harvested, take you through traditional homes, introduce you to families, and let you try locally grown fruits. This program creates jobs in the village and with every guest, a donation is granted to projects in the community. It was blazing hot walking through those rice paddies, but it was my first experience doing so, and I couldn’t get enough of the lush, green surroundings, especially knowing that my tour was making a difference to the local community. My guides, Putu and Komang, were great. They held my hand as I slid down the hills and caught me before I could tumble into the river or damage the crops. It’s moments like these that you realize what a different world you have stepped into.
Menjangan Island is known as the best diving and snorkeling spot in Bali, and it was a short drive from Villa Sedang to the boat harbor. I arranged the day out on the water with Arrows Diving and spent the day exploring the beautiful coral reef walls in this underwater paradise. While I have my PADI diving certification, I’m just plain rotten at it and prefer to snorkel. This may be the best snorkeling I have ever experienced. The bright yellow and blue corals, giant purple clams, and the abundance of brightly colored fish were breathtaking. Lately, snorkeling has become my sanctuary when I just need to turn off all the noise. Nowhere above water do I feel so much serenity, calmness, and just pure quiet as when I take off on my own and glide through the water. At the end of the day, as we motored back to the harbor, I sat back and took in the mountains surrounding us on every side. It was some of the most beautiful scenery I have ever seen. I felt so lucky to be surrounded by so much natural beauty at that moment.
After a week of staying close to the villa, it was time to pack a bag and get on the road! I traveled down to Ubud – the hub of tourist activity on the island –and checked into an Airbnb located directly across from the Monkey Forest. The next four days were spent shopping, shopping, and shopping. Hence, the reason I ended up paying more in baggage fees than on my plane ticket! Ubud is a charming town full of handicraft markets, trendy boutiques, quaint cafes, and a splash of Western influence. Owning a fair trade company makes me constantly intrigued by new ideas and products in this industry, and Bali is known as one of the best places on Earth to source beautiful, handmade products. I scoured the markets for new ideas, samples, and of course got charmed into buying many things for myself. On several days, I went to the outskirts of Ubud to see the artisans in their actual workshops. I visited artisans making baskets, wood furniture, glassware, silver jewelry, statues, and, of course, stunning textiles. I was thoroughly impressed by the talent I was witnessing. I find so much joy in watching simple natural resources being turned into gorgeous, relevant products for house and home. I was happy to find colorful rugs, wall hangings, blessing baskets, and wood products that barely fit into my luggage to adorn my new home in Kenya.
I returned to Villa Sedang for another week of immersing into the village and local activities. I jumped right in designing a village tour with the staff of Villa Sedang to benefit the local community, act as an income-generator for local projects, and serve as an introduction to the area for guests to the villa. Villa Sedang staff, Ari and Budi, took me around the village to show me potential stops. We sampled food from independent food stalls. We stopped into the community center to see a school assembly. We visited a temple dedicated to water. We witnessed the process of harvesting rice. And we visited with a local family in their home. Once we returned to the villa, we hashed out an itinerary and a plan to promote this to villa guests. It was important that we stress the impact this will have on the village and the projects that will be funded – coral conservation, beach clean up, and recycling. It was so fun making this idea a reality. It’s really at the core of what we try to implement through our tour programs with The Village Experience. The best part of the entire process, though, was watching Ari’s eyes light up when he realized that through running this tour, he could play a real role in bringing change to his village, his family, and his neighbors.
With only a few days left in Indonesia, I decided to pick one more place to check out before heading to the airport. I chose Seminyak in the South. When I was researching cafes and coffee shops in Bali, the great majority of the ones on all the “must try” lists seemed to reside in Seminyak, as did the chic boutiques. As soon as we pulled into this area and drove down street after street of stores, restaurants, markets, and spas, I knew I would love aimlessly wandering around this town. Hotels on the beach in this area can be pricey, so I opted for a mid-range place among the hustle and bustle of the shopping area. It was great to be able to walk out of the hotel and immediately have tons to do. I ate at a wonderfully colorful Vietnamese restaurant for lunch, had tasty gelato for dessert, sipped cappuccinos, and shopped until I couldn’t shop anymore. I took a short stroll on the beach, but the sand was incredibly hot and the waves wild, so I returned to my hotel to begin finding space for all of my treasures in the limited luggage I was allowed on the plane.
On the ride to the airport, I felt conflicted. I found myself not ready to leave; not ready to say good-bye to the warm embrace that had welcomed me to Villa Sedang, and Indonesia in general. I also found myself anxious to leave so that I could return and start planning more amazing adventures around this insanely beautiful country. Thoughts of Borneo, Java, and Sumatra were in my mind as the plane took off, and I slowly fell asleep dreaming of my return.