Description: Ubud is the self-proclaimed art capital of Bali. It is the most-visited town on the island apart from the coastal regions. Nevertheless, it is still a beautiful town in the midst of gorgeous rice paddies. You will pass some nice scenery on the way from Denpasar. Around the town there are a few sights, like Gua Gajah (elephant cave), that are worth a visit, but Ubud itself remains the region's main tourist attraction. The small town with 8,000 inhabitants is dotted with many historical buildings and
puras (Hindu temples). A walk around will bring you to many of them, like Pura Desa or the former royal palace right in the city centre. Visit the palace for sure, as it is beautiful. There are still a few Indonesian people living inside it. An old man living there spoke to us, and we were surprised to find out that he still spoke Dutch. He used to be a servant for a rich Dutch colonial family, which apparently brought him some wealth as well, because his house was amazing. Due to its status as a tourist town, Ubud has lots of accommodation, shops, restaurants, and bars. We stayed in a nice place between the town and the monkey forest. The beautiful double room (it was actually a small house) was only 100,000 (around 8€). You can find much cheaper rooms even, but they will not be as spacious or clean as the one we had. The food around town is excellent. If you are here for a few days, it's a good idea to try the region's excellent specialities, smoked duck. You will have to order it 1 day in advance, and it's not very cheap, but it tastes excellent. If you would like to buy some souvenirs, it is a good idea to visit the Ubud market. Apart from the shops selling food or kitchen appliances, there are a large number of shops selling tourist items. A good investment may be a sarong, as many temples require you to wear one and will sometimes charge a small renting fee for one of their own. A sarong is basically a rectangular piece of cloth that you drape around your legs to wear as a skirt. Normally they have bright colours and contain images of animals or plants. You can use it as a beach towel or tablecloth as well.
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