It is no secret that one of the reasons why I decided to volunteer with VP Bali was that the program was located in Ubud—a place of spirituality, art, and culture. Eager to combine my experience with healthy lifestyle and mindfulness, Ubud seemed like the best, and actually only, logical choice. And while the city did exceed my expectations in many aspects, it also surprised me in others. So what is living in this tiny Balinese city really like?

Rice fields just outside of Ubud

For me, Ubud is on the outside first and foremost a town of endless sensual stimuli. On a 5-minute walk down the main road you would smell aromatic spices creeping from local warungs (restaurants), burning oil from street food stalls, all sorts of rotten fruit local sellers offer at the market, scented sticks lit inside the traditional offerings (inconveniently placed everywhere on the path), wildly blooming flowers, the emissions from the often enormous traffic, and the garbage disappointingly thrown just on the floor. 

You would also hear locals shouting "Cheap price, good price!", trying to sell you their products, or "Taxi!" and "Motorbike?", offering transport services; you'd pick up English and various European languages being spoken everywhere by tourists; the loud traffic around you; birds chirping in the background.

On that same short walk, one would already see that colorfulness is one of the dominant features of Balinese nature, trade, architecture—of Balinese life. Colors are everywhere. Temples, which one can find almost on every corner, are lavishly decorated in colorful frills; the mesmerizing fauna and flora in themselves are a wild debauch of paint; the only stores with a color-themed window display are the designer western brands.

And you would not be mistaken for a second that this place, indeed, is somewhat foreign—ladies on the street carrying big, heavy baskets on their head (often while holding a baby), men transporting their whole food stalls on scooters, toddlers being driven on a motorbike without a helmet. And yet, life in Ubud could be surprisingly western. If you only tried a tiny bit.

Ubud has developed rapidly over the course of the last couple of decades and is now fully caters to any type of tourist. From low-budget backpackers to the richest of them all, options are vast. And you can enjoy many of them even if you do not have the resources to stay in a luxurious resort.

Only the access to the pool of Hanging Gardens Bali would set you back over a hundred euros

From all sorts of western restaurants to services like Apple store or eyelash extension salons, Ubud doesn't let you down. You never really have to try too hard to get your laptop fixed, grab your daily dose of Starbucks, buy a new Ralph Lauren polo, have your body waxed, find a modern, fully air-conditioned gym, get your laundry done, or, even better, get your nails and hair done, have agents take care of your visa extensions or real estate purchases... If Bali is 'Asia for beginners' (as Roel once said), then Ubud could just as well be 'Asia for complete beginners'.

(And still, you will find a hint of Balinese culture and religion everywhere, be it the little offerings placed in the corner of your yoga studio or the view of Balinese architecture in your gym. While Ubud offers western amenities, it often does so with an eastern touch.)

But Ubud is usually known as the Balinese capital of culture and spirituality, and it did not disappoint in that regard. The main roads may have been chaotic, loud, and dirty, but just several meters from the craziness, you could find serene places with yoga studios and healthy cafes. And while Eat, Pray, Love's portrayal of Ubud is widely inaccurate, for me, those places came closest to the peaceful and spiritual atmosphere Julia was after. And these are also the places that capture a key feature of the town's character.

The Ubud Palace

Monkey Forest

Jungle Fish with an infinity pool in the jungle