#HelloHomestay Winner Russ Shares his Bali Homestay Story
Russ and his family spend their days travelling the world and learning about other cultures. So when the time came to visit Bali, he figured there was no better way to learn about the local way than to stay with a local in their home. Their host Ketut showed them the best of Bali. I caught up with Russ to hear his homestay story and was thoroughly envious hearing about his Indonesian adventure.
Q What did you do in Bali?
As a world schooling family, one of our intentions in visiting Bali was to experience real Balinese culture. We chose a homestay because we wanted to meet local people and get a feel for how they live there. We spent a lot of time chatting with our host and his family, exploring the area on foot and relaxing in cafes and warungs. A couple of highlights for us in Ubud were the Sacred Monkey Forest and treating our family to a traditional Balinese massage.
Q What was your favourite thing about the area?
The people were wonderful -- friendly, happy, smiling, and always willing to help. We especially enjoyed watching the Balinese people put out offerings to the Gods and feeling their strong sense of gratitude for everything they have and do.
Q How was your experience with your host? It looks like you spent some time with them!
Our host Ketut was awesome. He welcomed us into his family compound where he lives with his extended family. The property and the villa we stayed in were so peaceful. One afternoon he took us for a drive through the country to see some beautiful rice fields. He also took the time to chat with us at breakfast each morning and made suggestions on what to see and where to go around Ubud. The breakfasts his family prepared were excellent -- the best we had in Bali! We also learned a lot about Balinese culture and religion from Ketut and his family. One morning we had the honour of attending a special ceremony for the God of Knowledge with them at the local temple.
Q Any tips or advice for other travellers?
In Bali the term homestay has a rather loose meaning. Some are real homestays, like I've described here, and some are simply suites being rented out but the owner does not actually live there. Read the reviews to be sure of what you're booking.
Q Would you stay in a homestay again? And would you recommend it?
Yes we would definitely stay in a homestay again and would recommend them to anyone looking for authenticity and connection to the place they are visiting. Homestays are an entirely different experience than hotels.
Guss won the costs of his homestay back by sharing a photo of his adventures and using the hashtag #HelloHomestay. You can do the same and who knows, you could be the lucky winner next month.
You can read about Guss's world schooling adventures on his website, Exploring Reality.
Ready to have your own Bali experience?
Written by Kim Gillick
Kim’s obsession with travel stems from a love affair with food and the thrill of ordering a beer in another language. Her first real adventures took her around Asia 10 years ago and she hasn’t stopped since.
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