Day 5: Markets, Noisy Neighbors & A Balinese Cooking Class
We had a slow start again, rolling out of bed just in time to catch breakfast at 9:45. The hotel feels busier now — packed with new arrivals, and for some reason, a lot of Portuguese guests.
And let me tell you…they are loud.
In fact, it seems like each nationality brought its own unique soundtrack:
The Polish guests — loud on their phones
The Spanish kids — loud everywhere and puking
The Portuguese group — loud all together
The Italians — well, let’s just say their family breakfast dynamic could’ve used a little teamwork
The Icelandics, Estlandics…where ever they are from…very quiet
I wasn’t judging, just observing, but it was definitely a noisy morning.
The Quest for Real Bread (and Nutella!)
Denise had a craving: real bread, Nutella, maybe some cheese. The hotel food is good, but it lacks variety. So we hired a driver and headed to Pepito Market — basically the store for expats in Ubud. Think Nutella, Philadelphia cream cheese, imported snacks, fruit juices to mix with Bali’s bland bottled water, and yes…bread that at least came close to what we have in Germany.
Mission accomplished: we left with arms full of fruit, sweets, chocolate, bread, and, most importantly…Nutella.
My Afternoon: A Balinese Cooking Class
If you followed my first Bali trip on WordPress, you might remember that I once did a cooking class here. I love cooking (I’m actually a trained chef), and this time I wanted to dive in again. @Grandma, Grandpa…it´s all in English, sorry.
Denise, with her HSP (high sensitivity) condition, finds Ubud overwhelming, so we agreed: the afternoon was mine and she stayed in the hotel.
I walked the 45 minutes to the meeting point in Ubud’s center, dodging scooters and trucks in the humid heat, arriving right on time at 3:45. A group of us — a mix of Germans, Belgians, Dutch, Spanish, Swiss, and even a Welsh traveler — boarded a bus and left short after. Except…20 minutes later, we broke down on the side of the road.
40 minutes of waiting after, two smaller cars came to rescue us. In Bali, 18 kilometers feels like a world trip, but eventually we reached the farm north of Ubud — nestled high in the mountains, surrounded by rice terraces and misty clouds.
Learning Balinese Flavors
The cooking class started with a tour of the organic farm. We picked fresh vegetables from the organic farm and learned how to prepare Bumbu, the aromatic Balinese curry paste that forms the base of so many dishes.
It’s a powerful mix: galangal, ginger, turmeric, shallots, garlic, chilies, lemongrass, candlenuts, shrimp paste, coriander seeds, cloves, nutmeg, pepper, and coconut oil. Pounded into a paste, it transforms into pure flavor.
With this, we cooked:
Starter: A refreshing salad of spring onions, chili, and crispy fried tempeh.
Main Course: A vegetable curry simmered in coconut milk with fresh spices.
Dessert: Sweet black rice pudding with coconut milk — miles better than the dry coconut you get in Europe.
We cooked in pairs, I teamed up with a young Dutch lady, and while chatting I realized I was definitely the “grandpa” of the group — most were under 30. Still, the vibe was great, the food delicious, and the evening unforgettable.
On the way back, Vanessa from Cologne kindly lent me a power bank to revive my phone. We all said our goodbyes at the drop-off point, and I ordered a Gojek ride back to the hotel. Walking through Ubud’s traffic at night wasn’t on my agenda.
Our host did take some videos and it got edited while we were eating - pretty cool.
Back at the Hotel
Denise had spent her evening with a vegetarian pizza and an episode of Foundation on Apple TV. When I got back, we wound down, chatted a little, and were both asleep before midnight.
A day of food, culture, and — despite a rocky start — a truly memorable evening.