Bali: why bother?

I once vowed never to go to Bali. The drunk Aussie tourists! The traffic! The noise! The tacky souvenirs! I mean, why would you go?

Well, earlier this month I caved in. They were holding a writer's festival at Ubud, the bustling town in the hills, well north of both the smoggy capital Denpasar and the beachside tourist trap of Kuta.

I wanted warm weather, and it was cheap. Wasn't Ubud full of temples, verdant rice fields and friendly people?

Well I went. And I wasn't greatly impressed.   More Read