Wandering outside Ubud, Bali

June 9, 2026|Rick Juliusson

Sarah’s left me for a solo 2-night work retreat, so I go to my happy place - wandering. Ubud is like a giant Edward Scissorshands hand with parallel fingers shooting up North and South out of the town, each separated by deep river canyons. I’ve already travelled down our finger to town several times, so the only other options is to turn left to see what I can find.

I first pass by some places of business interspersed with houses, family temples and open rice fields.

I return here next week for an evening of chanting and ritual

"Thinker Nail Salon"

Workout gym for people who like very large muscles, loud music and rice-paddy views

Moving further into the countryside (downtown Ubud is already an hour walk behind), the same households, guest houses, temples and shops keep popping up, just with more rice-fields in between. Each sharp C-shaped bend indicates a village temple that the road is bent around.

This is what rice actually looks like

Crossing Fingers

Leaving the main paved finger, I follow a narrower-and narrower route that becomes a muddy path through a rice field, then out the other side along an alley back to one of the rare roads that connects the fingers, dipping deep down across the river. At that bridge is a high end hotel that puts my earlier “White Lotus” pretentions to shame.

Tending the fields outside the fancy lodge

Down at the river crossing, a rather Monteverde feeling

Heading toward the next finger over, I find another tiny side road to scamper down. Balinese families not used to tourists this far down a dead-end road are thrilled with my simple greetings, but mostly going about their calm business as night approaches. I pass a particularly beautiful family temple, then a village temple with an earnest young man sitting on a small portable amp singing karaoke to himself (sorry, no video of that).

Dark now, it’s time to retrace the steps, shining my cell-phone light at any cars on these unlit narrow sidewalk-less roads. As a final Bachelor Night treat, I stop at a nameless roadside stall for some sort of $1 local meal, plus a dragon-fruit I had picked up at another stall.

Not hungry for anything else (in life nor belly) I contentedly complete the 4-hour stroll, only to find my beautiful wife waiting in our villa. A great walk, yummy local meal, and a wife who just couldn’t handle being away for even one night (or, rather, couldn’t find a room with sufficient wifi to do her huge work project) - life Ubud, Bali is complete.