Ubud is located north-east of Bali’s capital Denpasar, in the central uplands regions. Cheapflights Australia will get you to Denpasar where you can grab an airport taxi or hire a car. The trip generally takes 1-1.5 hours. Note there are no airport shuttle buses.
Ubud is the hub of Bali’s arts and culture, together with yoga and nature. The Ubud area is surrounded with forests, rivers and cooler temperatures. Some of the small “boutique” hotels in and around Ubud, offer spa treatments or treks up Ubud’s nearby mountains. Ubud’s central market is a popular attraction also.
Ubud’s other star attraction is the ‘Ubud Monkey Forest’ where visitors can see the hundreds of macaque monkeys which live in the reserve. Visitors can buy bananas at the front gate to feed to the monkeys, who may even try to steal from you! The cheeky monkeys love objects which are shiny, so glasses, earrings and metal objects are often stolen…so be on the look out!
Travel Photos of the Week: Shopping at the Port Vila Market
On our recent family holiday to Vanuatu we spent quite a bit of time in the produce market in Port Vila. We had this recommended to us by regular reader Julie. The food is fresh, run by locals for the locals, making it very cheap by Australian standards. The market for most of the time was full of locals with few tourists. We chose to visit on days we knew the cruise ships were not visiting. Apparently on these days not only is the place swarming with tourists but the price of ‘everything’ gets trebled! So we visited on the quieter days and stocked up on tomatoes, pawpaw, mangoes and oodles of bananas. At this time bananas were very expensive at home with much of Queensland (the banana producing State) devastated from Cyclone Yasi. Bananas were a luxury item, so here we gorged on the most divine sugar bananas and one large bunch (bottom photo) was no more than AUD $1.70.
Ho Chi Minh City, formerly known as Saigon until 1975, is situated in southern Vietnam within the Mekong Delta. It is the largest city in Vietnam with more than six million people. It is a vast metropolis that is heavily populated with motorbikes and vespa’s and has come a long way since it’s early fishing village beginnings.
There are many places to visit that invariably relate to the Vietnam-American war, such as the War Remnants Museum, Revolutionary Museum and Presidential Palace. However, other places of interest for the visitor include the bustling area of Cholon where you can find the Ben Thanh Market. The Jade Emperor Pagoda and Reunification Palace are also significant landmarks of Ho Chi Minh City.
One great reason to visit Ho Chi Minh City, especially if you love bustling city life, is to experience the electric atmosphere filled with chaotic vespa drivers!
This guest post is by Angela Pearse. Angela is an Auckland-based travel writer who loves Italian travel destinations. Angela has supplied a number of posts for Travel Tips Plus of both Italy and Japan.
Greve in Chianti lies slightly off the well-beaten tourist track between Florence and Siena in the region of Tuscany. Originally just called Greve it was renamed in 1972 after inclusion in the Chianti wine district.
The heart of this market town is the triangular piazza which features a 13th century church and a bronze torso in remembrance of Giovanni da Verrazzano, a local explorer who discovered New York’s harbour. The piazza also houses an impressive collection of specialty shops which sell local products including meat, wine, olive oil and cheese.
The Chianti region is renowned for its wines and extra virgin olive oil while restaurant menus commonly feature wild game such as rabbit, pigeon, venison and wild boar. Both black and white truffles are also a Chianti delicacy.
One great reason to visit Greve in Chianti is to sample prosciutto (and a glass or two of Chianti) in one of the oldest and renowned butcher shops in Italy, Macelleria Falorni.
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Ubud is located north-east of Bali’s capital Denpasar, in the central uplands regions. Cheapflights Australia will get you to Denpasar where you can grab an airport taxi or hire a car. The trip generally takes 1-1.5 hours. Note there are no airport shuttle buses.
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