Archive for January, 2007
This morning on Kuta Beach, the sun was shining and the tourists who were around, there enjoying the relaxed atmosphere. Down at the bottom end of Kuta Beach, between the pasar seni (art market) and Jl. Pantai Kuta, is a shady walkway, that is popular with older tourists. I spotted an Aussie flag strung up on a tree, at one drink stand. The chairs were empty, apart from the staff, patiently waiting for thirsty customers. Just a few hundred meters north, around the bend on Kuta Beach, dozens of surfers were making the most of the small waves that trickled in. Massage ladies sat well wrapped up in sarongs, long sleeves and hats, under tall palm trees. “You want massage, you want massage, just 50,000rp for 1 hour I give to you.”
Local fishing boats are moored just south of this area and can take you for a snorkel (just make sure the owner realizes he has to bring you back) or out to Kuta Reef. Even though I live in Bali, it always feels like a mirage, when I walk from busy Kartika Plaza, through to the beach and see the tall palm, white sand and blue water.
source : www.baliblog.com
January 24th, 2007
Package tourism can get boring, even in Bali. Jl. Kartika Plaza in Tuban, is wall to wall package tourism, including resorts hotels, family restaurants and Waterbom Park. If you are staying on Kartika Plaza and need to flush your system out with some adrenaline, there is no place better than Bali Sling Shot. This vicious looking contraption, allows to willing subjects, to be locked inside a metal ball, and catapulted into the air, bouncing and spinning wildly for a minute or 2. Today I passed by and asked the guy in charge if I could do it, with only one of the chords attached. The random nature of the swing would add even more excitement.
According to the flyer, Bali Sling Shot fires you up to 52 meters, in just over a second, reaching up to 5G force. Bali Sling Shot is open everyday from 11am till late.
•Prices for a ride are as follows:
•1 person ride only - 200,000rp
•1 person with t-shirt included - 250,000rp
•1 person with video included - 300,000rp
•1 video - 120,000rp
•1 t-shirt - 100,000rp
•Special package (2 person, 2 t-shirt, 1 video) - 590,000rp
Bali Sling Shot
Jl. Kartika Plaza 8X
Tuban
Bali
(0361)758838
source : www.baliblog.com
January 24th, 2007
Sanur is a quiet resort area on the SE coast of Bali. It is also home to many expats, with the International School located there. Today, while checking out some of the shops, along Jl. Danau Tamblingan, the long main street, Sanur felt quiet. It seemed to me many places had ’sale signs’ and the sidewalks were not so crowded. At Jl. Mertasari, I turned of and headed towards the beach for a look.
Today was cloudy and humid, not exactly beach weather. Correspondingly, most of the water-sports people, and beach vendors were sitting under shady trees hoping for business. Further along the paved beach-walk, the rock and leaf speckled beach became a golf course-like scene, with flat rows carved in it, by resort hotel staff. Its the same in Seminyak, where staff rake the beach creating a more picture perfect view of paradise. European holidaymakers at one hotel lounged close to the beach-walk, waiting for massages or the next cocktail. I’m sure you can get deals on rooms right now.
source : www.baliblog.com
January 24th, 2007
Warung Bento is a Sanur eatery, that combines the best of Japanese and Javanese food. From the outside, you’ll notice a Japanese style place, with bamboo decoration and Japanese sign. Inside is seating room for around 20 people, with a simple decor.
The menu features a selection of bento’s including:
•Beef BBQ Bento
•Grilled Beef Bento
•Chicken BBQ Bento
•Chicken Cutlet Bento
•Grilled Chicken Bento
•Ginger Flavoured Grilled Pork Bento
•Pork Cutlet Bento
•Japanese Curry Bento
•Capcay Japanese Bento
•Cumi-cumi Japanese Bento
•Fried Fish
All these sets are 30,000rp
Other items include:
•Fried Rice - 15,000rp
•Fried Noodle - 15,000rp
•Capcay - 15,000rp
•Natto - 7,000rp
•Chilled Tofu - 10,000rp
•Mixed Vegetable Salad - 5,000rp
•Spaghetti - 30,000rp
•Grilled Chicken - 30,000rp
A small beer is 10,000rp
Warung Bento is open from 10am-10pm, but the manager told me for a private party he can stay open till 1am.
Warung Bento
Jl. Tamblingan #27
Sanur
Bali
(0361)282572
source : www.baliblog.com
January 24th, 2007
Wage Silver is a silver jewelry shop located on Jl. Danau Tamblingan, in Sanur. Items on offer include silver and shell bracelets for 272,500rp, earrings for 78,000rp, small necklaces with a stone for 93,500rp, silver rings for 85,000rp-110,000rp, ankle bracelets for 90,000rp. Wholesale prices of 25% discount, can be had for 10 pieces, or a repeat customer.
Most visitors to Bali figure out that Celuk, on the way to Ubud, is the place for silver jewelry. That is true, the street through Celuk is 1km of silver and gold jewelry places. For those people staying in Sanur, who don’t want to travel to Celuk, you might find something eye catching at Wage Silver.
Wage Silver is open from 10am-8.30pm.
Wage Silver
Jl. Danau Tamblingan
Sindu
Sanur
Bali
(0361)289017
source : www.baliblog.com
January 24th, 2007
Dr. Lawrence Blair is one of Bali’s most famous faces. Together with his late brother Lorne, he travelled the eastern islands of Indonesia, exploring and documenting the culture of distant islands. Their documentary, ‘The Ring Of Fire‘ is a fascinating series. For those visitors to Bali, who would like to meet Dr. Blair, nows your chance. He will be hosting a series of films, at Fabio’s restaurant in Seminyak, starting February 1st.
Dr. Lawrence Blair will be presenting another 4 part film series, Myths, Magic & Monsters, over 2 nights at Fabio’s restaurant, located on Jl. Seminyak, up from Bintang supermarket. The schedule is as follows:
•Film 1. Seas. A sailing adventure East of Bali - Thursday February 1st, 7pm
•Film 2. Snakes. Following the traces of Indonesia’s ancient Naga religions of dragons and serpents - Thursday February 1st, 8.30pm
•Film 3. Beasts. A journey into the tangled relationships between the animals and humans of Indonesia, via flying chickens, climbing dogs, Balinese tigers - Friday February 2nd, 7pm
•Film 4. Superhuman. Via the singing gibbons, the orangutans and the tiniest of primates. Friday February 2nd.
Tickets are 100,000rp
Fabio’s Restaurant
Jl. Seminyak #66
(0361)730562
source : www.baliblog.com
January 19th, 2007
Pasar Badung is the huge market area in central Denpasar, famous among locals. Today I drove Ika, Jevon and my mother-in-law there, to check things out. You never quite know how somebody will react to a place. A westerner could view Pasar Badung as a wonderful example of Asian culture, or a stinking example of lack of hygiene and organization. But how would somebody from Java view it? The market is located on Jl. Veteren and took maybe 20 minutes to get to, because of traffic and my driving. Parking across the road on the Jl. Kartini, a Parkirman (parking attendant) quickly got 2,000rp out of me.
There is no entry fee to the market, and our first stop was cruising some of the food vendors outside. Ika and her mother didn’t seem super interested in snacks, as they had each powered a huge bowl of rice, vegetables and tempe before leaving the house. I got a 5 sticks of ikan laut (mashed sea fish, grilled). The vendor asked for ‘empat ribu rupiah‘ (4,000rp) smiling. I offered ‘dua ribu rupiah‘ (2,000rp) and got it, her and the locals laughing. “You don’t know the local price, ” laughed one guy. No worries, I think 2,000rp is okay, and I know by now that hitting the ‘bule‘ up money is a national sport out here. In Asia, your market skills are constantly tested, nothing personal.
Walking around the edge of the market, Ika spotted a cake shop and picked out a bag to take home. Up on the 2nd floor, were bags of spices, sacks of ingredients and piles of garlic. Ika squealed as a mouse jumped off of a sack towards her. Ika’s mum bought a large feather duster for 15,000rp, which would cost 25,000rp-30,000rp in a regular shop. Also on sale were many large pieces of kitchen equipment, such as giant woks, the kinds used to cook pisang goreng (fried banana) at the night market.
Back outside we took a look at the fruit market, and saw wani’s, the mango like fruit with a creamy white meat, and giant mangos. The general consensus was pretty positive and I think Ika and her mother, would enjoy another visit, if they had things in mind they needed.
source : www.baliblog.com
January 17th, 2007
Bali is a relatively safe place to visit, in comparison with other major destinations, such as London, Miami, Rio, Joburg and Bangkok. Still you need to be carefull, and keep aware of the possible dangers / crimes. Here’s a few tips.
•Gaps in the sidewalk. In Europe, America and Australia, we can walk down the road, looking at the sky, fairly confident we won’t fall into a hole. That’s not the case in Bali, and in places such as Ubud, you’ll find regular gaps, dropping down to a sewer / drainage canal, that could do you a lot of injury, should you fall down one. Watch out of holes in the sidewalk.
•Getting expensive belongins stolen. The average person in Kuta probably makes around 800,000rp per month, half of that in the more rural areas. Your $2,000 Nikon, gold jewelry and Toshiba laptop, look mighty good when left unattended. Don’t bring expensive gear to Bali. If you do, put it in the hotel safe.
•Stuck in a rip-tide. The more water that goes up onto a beach, the more that has to come back. Bali gets strong swell, and the power of the undertow is extremely strong. One moment you are having fun in waist deep water, next minute you are 100 meters from shore, madly trying to get back. Avoid swimming in areas marked by a solo red flag, or in areas where you can see more than 1 set of waves breaking.
•Eyes on your wallet. People sit outside a lot in Bali. When I leave my house, a dozen people notice. Similarly, when you come out of a shop, warung, money changer, many people will notice what you are carrying. When I walk along with my keys in my hand, people notice the large carabiner, because it’s shiny. Put your wallet away before you leave the hotel, warung, shop, money changer, not out on the street.
•Tip toe off of the curb. Part of my wake up routine each day, is to get almost run over by a local on a motorbike. In my alley, on small gang, on the main street. Doesn’t matter, if you step off of the curb, be sure to look both ways (including on the sidewalk!).
•Bags inside the restaurant. Many cafes / warungs in Bali have a patio area next to the street, with a row of flowers / bushes, separating the diners from the pedestrians. On occassion, a person has had their bag taken, after leaving it next to the street, unable to spot the hand coming through the bushes. Keep your bag, out of reach from anyone on the street, while sitting in a cafe.
•Slippery when wet. People arriving in Bali from cold climates, often forget to bring sandals, opting to buy a cheap local pair when they arrive. I have made this mistake twice. The fact that the local sandals will fall apart in 2 weeks or less, is good news, as they are a hazard. The light foam material, that is used in these sandals, turns them into rollerskates on a wet surface. Bring your own footwear, or pick up something decent in Matahari in Kuta Square.
•The eyes have it. My eyes are worth a lot to me. My Nike sunglasses are UV protective and are polarizing. Cheap knock offs are on sale in Bali, but if you end up with a pair that doesn’t have UV protection, you are actually damaging your eyes. The dark shades will cause your pupil to open wider, allowing the unblocked UV to burn your retina. There are good shops selling name brands (The Station in Kuta for example) and the price reflects this. Leave those $5 sunglasses with the person who is selling them, your eyes are worth spending $100.
•Who to call in an emergency. If you find yourself in a spot of bother, who do you call? You might jot down the address and phone numbers of your consulate, plus the numbers for SOS International and BIMC.
There are of course, many tips depending on what activity you plan on doing. Safe travels to Bali.
source : www.baliblog.com
January 11th, 2007
Living in Bali and not Pommy-land, I feel like the luckiest man alive. Seriously, this afternoon, strolling down my gang (alley) in Seminyak, I had to do a double-take, at how bright blue the sky was and how intensely green the trees seemed. Was it that mushroom-shake I had for lunch, or the tropical sunlight? Whichever, I was momentarily blown away by the power of the colors. Many people in the UK know one color very well…grey. That’s why the smart ones do their best to get down to the ‘Lucky Country‘, for a year’s fruit picking or pub work.
People flying down to Australia stop off in various places, including Thailand, Goa India and Bali. I like all those places, and recommend them as cool stop off points, to people about to embark on a RTW trip. Arriving in Australia, you might want to make sure you have a place to stay, particularly in times like Christmas, or during events like major sporting events. Fortunately you can do a hostel search on BootsnAll.com, and check out what going on in the Land Downunder on the Australia travel guide.
On my first night in Sydney, I couldn’t sleep, the excitement was too much. King’s Cross, guys playing guitar with no strides on, and a weird de ja vu (Sydney looks like parts of London, in winter) all conspired to create a great time, finished off with a felafel from a Turkish place. Memories!
source : www.baliblog.com
January 11th, 2007
Owning land and building your ‘dream home’ in Bali, is a dream for many people. Some people try it and have success, others find it a frustrating experience, others still don’t bother and simply rent. I’m in category ‘C’ for right now. A post on the Bali Expat Forum, asks about the legalities of your Indo wife owning property in Bali.
The question posted, asks if an Indonesian woman loses her right to own land in Bali, if she marries a foreigner. You think the Indonesian government is that stupid? This is one of the best ways to get money out of, and away from, foreigners. Friends of mine, who are married to locals from Java, put the land in their wife’s name, no problem. As I understand it, if the couple divorces at a later date, they must split their assets, 50/50.
An English guy once told me he moved to the kampung in the Philippines, and built a beautiful house. “Wonderful” I said. “No” he said, “it was the worst thing I ever did, all the relatives came to visit and never left.”
source : www.baliblog.com
January 11th, 2007
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