One Last Night in Bali

Leaving Komodo was harder than we expected. After several days at sea, the bright blue water, small islands and sunrises from the boat still felt unfinished. Our flight was delayed for a while, but eventually we returned to Bali for the final night of the journey.

The island felt different the second time. Our driver met us at the airport as arranged, and the streets outside held details we already recognized: tropical trees, roadside shops, even a modest Mixue storefront and the tall curved penjor decorations. On our first arrival, they had all seemed unfamiliar. After only a few days away, I felt a small, surprising sense of return. A place can find its way into your memory quickly.

South instead of north

Our earlier drive from the airport had taken us north to Ubud’s rice fields, valleys and temples. This time we headed south toward the coast and Umana Bali, an LXR Hotels & Resorts property. The grounds were so large that we drove for several more minutes after passing the entrance. Villas were scattered among trees and hills, apart from the reception area. Staff greeted us with ginger tea, towels and a small bracelet with a copper charm, handled the check-in while we sat, then sent us to our villa by golf cart.

The golf-cart ride through quiet, tree-lined lanes became part of the stay. A cart was available whenever we wanted to go to breakfast, dinner or the gym, although many places were only a ten-minute walk away. Moving slowly through the grounds suited the resort’s pace. Our one-bedroom villa had much more room than the name suggested: a bedroom, spacious living area, kitchen, courtyard and private pool among tropical plants. We even saw a monkey passing through the trees. The villa was polished, but the unexpected visitor kept it connected to the place around it.

We booked the night with a Hilton Free Night Reward. For a villa that often carries a high cash price, it felt like a valuable use of the certificate. What mattered more to me, though, was how a practical last stop had turned into a night we would remember in its own right.

The cliff at dusk

We took a cart to Oliverra, the resort’s cliffside restaurant, for dinner. We arrived too late for the actual sunset, but there was still light over the Indian Ocean. The food was good; the wide, slowly darkening view stayed with me longer. Ubud had been green with rice fields and temples. Komodo had been blue with open water, islands and pink sand. For days we had kept moving toward the next sight. Now we could simply sit at the edge of a cliff and let those places settle in our minds.

Back at the villa, we looked up at a sky clearer than it would have been in the city. There were more stars than I expected. We did not need another planned activity. The quiet was enough.

At breakfast the next morning, Commune was livelier than the rest of the resort had seemed. Its buffet was generous and carefully prepared, with a distant glimpse of the sea. I had gone for a run before eating; afterward we walked, took pictures and spent a little more time by our private pool. The water was cooler than we wanted for a long swim, but having nowhere to hurry felt like a luxury. If we returned, I would stay several days: exercise in the morning, a slow breakfast, time by the pool, perhaps the resort shuttle to the beach, and one evening arriving early enough to watch the full sunset.

Around midday we packed, rode the cart out of the villa and drove more than an hour to the airport. There we waited for our EVA Air flight through Taipei to San Francisco. As Bali fell behind us, the entire route seemed to join together: Bromo’s volcano, Ubud’s valleys, Komodo’s sea and this last, quiet cliff. The streets and decorations that had been unfamiliar at the beginning now belonged to a set of memories we were reluctant to leave.

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