As a side note to all the haters, I'd like to point out that this is the first beach I went to since arriving in SE Asia in September, so bite your tongues.
And then to Ubud, the cultural center of the island. This island is all about eco-____, so ____ I did. First was downhill biking. We drove to the top of one of Bali's central volcanoes, and coasted for several exquisite hours back towards the coast. The one word that most describes Bali is green. Not necessarily in the economic/environmental sense, but literally extremely verdant. The island is chopped into plunging valleys, and emerald vegetation clings to every surface. It truly was a moving visual experience. Reminded me of this article about the effects of being surrounded by nature. Here is a picture of the rice fields that carpet much of the land.
We stopped at an organic farm, and looked at and smelled many herbs. The farm also raised the most expensive coffee in the world. I had heard of this poop coffee before, and definitely had no interest in paying that much for a cup. However, at the source it was relatively cheap ($5 for a small sample) so I figured I would try it. Overrated.We continued on the bike tour, and I soon learned why Bali is so green: it rains all the time. During the first downpour, we stopped in a modern Balinese home. The bike guides enjoyed a nice chat with this smokin' granny.
The rain situation only intensified, so off into the element we went. During the last hour of the ride, it rained so hard I couldn't see more than five feet in front of me, and at times I was bike-canoeing in a foot or more of water. But totally fun, and safe because the locals had long-deserted the road to sit in dry structures and laugh at the crazy eco-tourists.On an unrelated note, when digging up the first link, I came across this awesome post on Good.is : Favorite Trees
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