Bali Day 1: Getting there, the villa, what not to forget!

12/16/17

Essentially it took two days to get to Bali because of the flights. I left Tokyo on a 10:50pm flight and went to Singapore (7.5 hour flight from Tokyo). After a little layover it was a direct shot to Denpasar Bali Airport (another 2.5 hour flight). You also fall back an hour in the time zones (from Japan time).

I packed carry on only. This was my goal the entire time and I was pretty damn impressed that I actually made it happen. I have an amazing backpack that you can really stuff to the brim (thanks to packing cubes). Here's what I didn't even think about though...liquid rules are super strict for international flights. Things I've been flying back and forth to Okinawa with, without a problem, didn't work here. They took all of my shit. Ha, So yes I'm in Bali without sunscreen! My good Sun Bum stuff too!

I have the Osprey Fairview 55, it can be found HERE
I also swear by the Ebags packing cubes, they can be found HERE
I have the Mogis Power Bagel (it was a kickstarter purchase that I admittedly let sit in the box and randomly put in my bag to bring here, so glad I did, it's the ONLY international adaptor I have no! Not sure why I didn't use this before the thing is awesome, highly recommend, perfect for travel), you can buy directly from them HERE

At the airport I was picked up by my driver, Nyoman, who I had arranged before arriving. I highly recommend arranging your transportation before you arrive otherwise it can be overwhelming, you exit customs and there is a swarm of people calling for you to try and drive you. I have no idea if they are all legit or not, but I was glad to not have to deal with it.

We drove from the airport to the villa, I have no idea how long it took because I passed out in the car after about what felt like an hour. I was exhausted and just not feeling great from travel and not enough water/decent food. When we finally arrived at the villa and walked through the doors, my breath was taken away. It was even better than I thought. The private pool, the outdoor living space, the bedroom, the bathroom, all of it. I barely managed a shower and a swim before passing out on the outdoor couch to try to get rid of a headache, only waking up well into dark to move to my bed. Needless to say, not much exploring was done today, but it was good for recovery and there's a full schedule coming up, starting bright and early in the morning!

Here is a quick highlight of the first 24 hours in Bali (not included: the hours of napping!)

Advice:

• repack your liquids into smaller containers (100ml or less) so they don't take your shit
• use packing cubes, they were going through a lot of peoples bags, mine included, I was glad to not have underwear flying all around
• do not forget an international adaptor, Bali uses those weird 2 roundish looking plug things...you'll need it because without it, no social, no technology, basically death.
• make sure you have a decent layover in Singapore for several reasons, the airport is phenomenal (big money shopping, the Louis Vuitton store stopped me in my tracks, and not just because it's LV, but the presentation was breathtaking) but also huge, it took no less than 45 minutes to get (walking very fast) from where I landed to where the next flight was taking off from.

Driver information:
Name: Made Jasmindo
His business: Booked through Facebook (Made Jasmindo) can be found through the link provided :)

Airbnb Villa Information: 
I will admit I searched for HOURS and hours for a villa...looking for the best of all worlds. I definitely found it with this gem!
Here is the direct link to the Ubud Villa
If you want to stay in the beach area, Seminyak is where you want to be, Ubud is more the yoga, cultural, historic, arts center of Bali. Ubud and Seminyak are approximately an hour to an hour and a half by car from one another. Traffic is interesting here. 2 lane roads become 3 lane roads quickly!