BALI: HOW AMED STOLE MY HEART
SOMETIMES IT’S THE PLACE YOU STAY, SOMETIMES IT’S THE PRICELESS VIEW, SOMETIMES IT’S THE PEOPLE YOU MEET.
When you fall in love with a destination, sometimes it’s the place you stay, sometimes it’s the priceless view, sometimes it’s the people you meet. For me in Amed, it was all of the above. I was slightly hesitant to visit the Northeast corner of Bali, considering I had a finite amount of time on this trip, but I’m glad I did. Amed should be on the list of anyone heading to Bali, especially those in search of peace, quiet, snorkeling and diving.
I stayed at The Griya Villas & Spa which is a boutique set of fourteen private pool villas and an incredibly good restaurant, serving both western and Indonesian food and the freshest mahi I’ve ever had. The quietude of Amed, the grateful nature of the locals for visiting tourists, and the morning opera of crowing roosters and barking dogs were medicine for my soul. I had visited Canggu for two nights prior to Amed and escape that dense, busy setting to Amed was exactly what I needed.
THE GRIYA VILLAS & SPA
Griya is perched between Lipah Bay and Jemeluk on the cliffside overlooking the northern Bali Sea. The staff, the spa, the food(!) were more than five stars. When I booked my stay, they only had a Deluxe One Bedroom Pool Villa available, which I didn’t really need but it was my only option. Upon check-in, they’d had a cancellation and they graciously downgraded me to a regular One Bedroom Pool Villa, which featured an outdoor living room and kitchen, infinity pool overlooking the hillside and water, and a bedroom bungalow with outdoor bath. Similar to Ubud, the villa was a bit fatigued from two years without tourism, but the service made up for it in every way.
DAY ONE
On my first day, after checking into my lovely pool villa, I decided to walk in the direction of Lipah Bay for some beach time and lunch. Like many in Bali, the beaches in Amed are black sand, and here they’re lined with fishing boats from one end to the other. I walked into Mahi Mahi restaurant at Coral View Villas and settled down for lunch. There were only two other people in the whole restaurant and we quickly engaged in conversation from across the room. The two Aussies invited me to join them for lunch. They had just ridden in via moped from Lovana and were assessing where to rest their heads for the night. As our lunch turned into the consumption of countless Bintangs and afternoon shifted to sunset, they settled on the villas right behind us.
I’ll be honest – I’ve always liked Australians. I have dated a few in my time. These two were no exception, exchanging barbs like boxers and welcoming a solo American traveler in their affable way. They ended up being two of the most memorable people I met during my whole trip. We headed to dinner in Amed and then in pursuit of both live music and a functioning ATM. We were successful on the first but not the latter (a warning to anyone traveling to Amed, bring cash with you or exchange cash as working ATMs are hard to come by). To be clear, this wasn’t a romantic connection, but a meaningful one nonetheless. More Bintangs, an Indo band and some new European friends brought a close to one of my favorite days in Bali.
DAY TWO
My Aussie buddies were leaving the next morning, so on day two I was on my own. I decided to check out the snorkeling and village surrounding Jemeluk, where both a sunken temple and a sculpture garden waited below the surface of the water for underwater exploration. Explore I did, until I happened upon a water snake and went scrambling to the shore. I sat on a beach bed at a warung all day, getting to know the local family that owned it.
The female proprietor said something that continues to resonate with me. Her mother owned the land and their house next door, then they built the warung (a restaurant/cafe in Indonesian), and snorkel equipment and beach loungers followed suit. She said every year it’s like a tree that grows. As I set out to start my own business, it’s a good reminder that everything doesn’t have to happen all at once. In fact, sometimes it’s better to start small and make thoughtful and pragmatic decisions on the next phases.
DAY THREE
This was to be my final day in Amed, so I wanted to spend some time in Amed Village. I got a ride down and had lunch at Rimba Café, a European style spot that was packed. I had a delicious panini and a very pretty yet over sweetened iced tea and read my book for a while. (Side bar: I was flying through books - I think I read about 17 in total over the course of my seven week trip.) I drifted through some of the local shops and went in search of some beach time. I stumbled upon two French girls looking for the same and we joined forces, ending up back in Jemeluk at another beach warung. I skipped snorkeling that day because of my snake encounter, but enjoyed the afternoon practicing my French and awaiting the sunset with my newfound friends.
That night I wanted to try out Warung Agung which had been recommended by several folks and my trusty book and it did not disappoint. The warung is owned by husband and wife team Dewi and Dewa. Dewa mans the kitchen and Dewi strums the guitar and sings American country tunes throughout the evening. A couple I’d met at dinner the night prior at Griya appeared at the door and waved for me to join them. Also Australian, they invited me to look them up at their sailing club if I made it to Darwin on the next stage of my trip. I stayed a bit longer than they did, because my travel guide (thanks again, Alexa West!) said Dewi also offered moped rides home from time to time and I wasn’t thrilled about walking back in the dark. As the night started coming to a close, Dewi joined me at my table with the last few stragglers in the restaurant where he animatedly read us our Hindu horoscopes. Amongst other things, mine warned me to be careful around water. Gah! I was in the water every day in Bali, snakes be damned. And as promised, I was transported home on the back of a moped for my final night’s rest in Amed.
