Uluwatu Day 1 Finding the Beach Reset and New Friends

My first full day in Uluwatu began with yoga. I wanted to take as many classes as possible on this island because it is unlike anywhere else. I didn’t know much about the class except that it was a morning rise yoga session, and in a nice hotel that did not allow phone use. Interesting, yes. So, I left my phone with security at the front and entered into the lobby. 

We had an amazing view of the ocean from our yoga studio, I wish I could show you but we didn’t have our phones, so here is a photo of Istana that I got online. At the beginning of the class, we had a really long warm up and I just thought it would be an easier class as we warmed up for almost 30 minutes (that is incredibly long for only an hour long class). Finally, we started moving into some stretches and flows. I was thinking she would start to wrap it up as the time creeped closer to the 50 minute mark, but we continued on with no letting up. When the timer passed one hour and we were still going strong, I questioned how long this session really would be. Once it hit 90 minutes and I was yogaed out, I truly feared that we embarked unknowingly on a 2 hour class. We were at the point where the stretches and positions were so hard that I didn’t have the flexibility to complete them (thankfully I wasn't alone and half of the class felt the same and just chilled in childs pose). My body was sore from the hike the day before and I was mentally not expecting such a long session. Thankfully, the class wrapped up with a long rest with the rush of the waves passing into our ears, calming me back down after a long stretch session this morning. 

At 11am, we completed our class and now had access to the rest of the hotel. We meandered our way to the nearby cafe which had a view of the infinity pool and on the edge of the cliff that we got an unobstructed view of the expansive blue ocean (another stock photo to help imagine this little paradise). We got a mix of breakfast and lunch, an order of blueberry porridge and Vietnamese spring rolls. I also got a coffee and as Sabrina said goodbye to me as she only had one full day in Uluwatu and wanted to spend most of it at the beach, I stayed there and worked on my laptop, catching up on some journaling that I fell majorly behind on while prioritizing friendships and adventures in Ubud. 

I finally left around early afternoon because I needed to check my phone to see if Natalia reached out me. We had talked in the car ride yesterday about going to the beach together in the afternoon, and as it was already 1:30pm, I prayed that she didn’t think I ghosted her. I recommended the free yoga session for them at The Path, the same class and instructor I went to just a week ago in Canggu because they went there for the day to make perfume. So, knowing that class was from 12-1pm, I had a feeling that it would work out timing wise to stay at the oceanside cafe, off the grid, and writing with a perfect view of the water. 

I thought I’d just head to the beach and meet them there when they got back. I stopped at an indian place to get lunch, I got a free coffee if I wrote a review and it took me a moment to drink that because it was a masala chai beverage and very hot. I finally made my way to Padang Padang Beach, found a spot in the shade, and within 15 minutes, Natalia joined me. 

Paulina was at a silver jewelry making class still, so it was just Natalia and I, and we had so much fun. I wanted to read while on the beach because my book was coming due at the online library, but I gladly put it down to talk to her some more. She is from Germany but her English is literally perfect, it’s my pipe dream for my Spanish to get to that point. I think that we connected more as there was no language barrier and we also happened to be such similar people. We chatted for over an hour until she had to go meet Paulina to watch the sunset at a bar, but I stayed on the beach to watch it there, finding my book and journal to write and reflect as I stared at the peaceful sunset.

We met back up for dinner, that’s why I didn’t feel too bad for not joining them for sunset, eating at a place called Ours. I had a spaghetti bolognese and split a chocolate brownie with them. I loved having someone to share food with again, loving that they also had a sweet tooth. We talked for a while that night, making plans to hang all day tomorrow, and I said goodbye to them around 9pm, returning to my hotel after being out all day. I had such a great day, a mix of being with two different friends, surrounded socially and also by some spectacular nature and on an island with the best food... to say I I'm in good hands is an understatement.