You are better off going to Java. Bali is a shit hole full of drunken tourists and locals hassling you to sell you shit that is 5 teams cheaper in Java. If you buy drugs they dob you in to the local cops and you get 10 years in a worse shit hole.
Go here instead http://www.yogyes.com/
Yeah, I saw a book in a Melbourne store “Snowing in Bali” by Kathryn Bonella. JAva sounds more peaceful. Or how about Lombok as an alternative?
You’re quite right, it was 2002. I was probably thinking of the tsunami, which struck in 2004. Can’t imagine it was so long ago. Seems like only a couple of years since it (tsunami) happened.
Orion - are you headed there ?
Depending on your style - are you a party animal, new ager, middle class western person, spa or yoga seeker, traveller/backpacker ?
Bali is all things to different demographics. But if you get your own wrong you won’t be comfortable in the wrong environment.
A week or less is not long enough. Two weeks is about right. Any longer and you’ll go native.
That lake view is from Kintamani. There are many restaurants and a temple on the rim. From memory it’s about 5km across. Most tourist trips will include it. There’s a village of the original inhabitants on the lake, they are famous for their open air burials.
If you are reasonably fit, I highly recommend a bicycle tour starting there. They’ll pick you up at
your hotel, you get breakfast overlooking the lake and ride about 30km downhill, on backroads down the volcano to Ubud, then ferried home. Great to meet the locals and get a feel for the place. Google “Bali bicycle tour”.
Try to learn a few phrases in Bahasa, the locals will be even friendlier. I can upload a list if you want.
Take hand sanitizer and use it regularly. Only drink bottled water. Do eat the food, it’s fantastic, especially Nasi Campur for breakfast. Drool.
Take Dukoral before you go.
Bargain in the markets and shops. EG: I bought a shirt. Was first quoted $45. Ended up getting it for $5. If you carry an SLR you’ll pay more !
I’ve been there 8 times, first in the 90s, and usually on the way to or from Europe.
Rode a motorbike around it for 10 days the first time.
Twice this year, was there for the 10th anniversary of the first bombing, coincidentally.
Last time we were invited to meet the family of one of the villa staff members, it was an honour to visit an ancient compound inhabited with multiple generations. One of the kids had a pet tree shrew, they had many caged songbirds and raised cacao, chilli, vanilla, manioc/cassava, papaya etc, too steep for rice.
Also Lombok and the Gilis. (Across the Wallace line.) Good snorkelling fishwise, but the Great Barrier Reef was better for coral and other marine life, especially in the 1980s before the first great bleaching event.
EDC is right about Kuta and Legian, we usually get a villa near Ubud or further out.
Every time we go we spend more on accommodation !
My first time was around $7 per night in losmen, last time was here.
Bali. So close, so exotic, so friendly, relaxing, great food, cheap, lots to see and do.
Quite a few middle aged western women looking for Eat Pray Love.
Gidday Orion,
Just some advice, never been to Bali but I live and have travelled most of South east Asia.
My advice, get lonely planet. Don’t trust internet deals as they are usually overpriced and probably trying to take advantage of you. Lonely planet is great for pretty much everything, in particular in finding trustworthy hotels.
Probably a good idea to check out the scams sections, but don’t let this deter you. You’ll meet plenty of wonderful local people and other foreigners, just keep an open mind.
Don’t plan anything until you get there, there will be plenty of travel agencies everywhere and on the ground it will be a lot cheaper. Plus travelling impulsively is more exciting, in particular you may want to stay in one place longer or change your mind about other places.
Even if you haven’t booked accommodation, never tell that to a taxi, tuk tuk, etc. Tell them you have a booking, have a set place in mind on where you want to go such as a hotel out of lonely planet, and go there. Don’t let yourself be taken somewhere else where you can be scammed.
Just enjoy the moment and stop thinking about the future. Have fun.
You’d be able to get much cheaper Maleria tablets on the ground, but there are some side effects of the meds and I know most travellers don’t bother, and as an expat in the region it isn’t feasible to take medication for Maleria. You might be concerned if say there was an outbreak of it in the area you’re in, otherwise I wouldn’t be too concerned. You’d have to be incredibly unlucky to get Malaria or Dengue fever, be like winning the lotto especially if you’re there for a short time.
If you’re really concerned and get the sniffles, you can always get a blood check and take medication at that point. I know of one expat that had the worse grade of Dengue fever, horrible disease but extremely rare. If you get dengue fever you’d more likely just to get mild flu symptons. Yes dogs are everywhere in the region, I know I haven’t bothered getting rabies injections like most people here. If you get bitten by a rabid animal there may be cause for concern, again extremely unlikely and from what I understand you can get medication after being bitten, so pre emptively getting it may not really be worth it. Rabies you need something like 3-5 shots, spaced one week apart, or so I’ve heard.
whokilledJR is right, especially about travelling impulsively.
But don’t tell immigration you don’t have accommodation !
You must have at least the name of a hotel or something.
Pretty much like Europe, you can get anything you want.
You don’t need to take safari gear, it’s not remote.
We found medical supplies cheap but not common, some specialized medicines are not available in Indonesia at all, and there are good hospitals in part thanks to the Australian aid efforts after the 2002 bombing.
I’ve never bothered with Malaria medication there, Bali is supposed to be free of malaria, but have in other parts of Asia.
What torches are you taking ?
I’m not heading there yet. Just a mid-age worker who runs to burn off the beer before it forms a belly and enjoy the occasional massage when travelling. A week or 2 is ok if I get to do their 2nd marathon.
But I’ve noted down these :
- Kintamani open air burials
- Bicycle tour to Ubud
- Learn some Bahasa
- Take hand sanitizer
- Only drink bottled water.
- Eat Nasi Campur
- Take Dukoral
- Bargain in the markets/shops
- Carry no SLR
- Ride a motorbike
- Attend the anniversary of the bombings
- Visit a family villa
- See them grow cacao, chilli, vanilla, manioc/cassava, papaya, rice.
- Avoid Kuta and Legian
- Stay at a villa near Ubud
- Spend less on accommodation
- Befriend a few middle aged western women looking for Eat Pray Love
[quote=Orion]
I went through this mental process when I went backpacking in Asia. If you look at guidebooks you read about such things and you start to worry. Then I thought about it. There have been riots and bombings in my own town, in London, in… Most places have had some sort of trouble at some point.
Any area frequented by lots of westerners is a risk. At the same time try drinking in some of the locals bars on your own and you’re more likely to get into fights etc. Just don’t be a dick, flash your money or ignore local customs and you’ll be fine most places.
If it does all go crap shaped then at least you’ll go out with a sun tan and a nice cold one in your hand.
I will take note of the following :
- Check lonely planet for trustworthy hotels
- Be wary of overpriced internet deals
- Check out the scams sections
- Meet local people and other foreigners
- Keep an open mind
- Don’t plan anything until there
- Check out cheaper travel agencies on the ground
- Travelling impulsively/excitingly
- Stay in one place longer or change my mind about other places
- Never tell a taxi I haven’t booked accommodation
- Never let myself be taken somewhere else to be scammed
- Enjoy the moment and stop thinking about the future
- Have fun
I haven’t any torch bling but it’ll probably bring an old beat up CR123 light and some spare batts. Anyway I don’t expect to be doing any bushwalking in their outback.
I will take note of these :
- Be wary of risky areas with too many westerners
- Don’t drink in locals bars alone
- No flashing money
- Observe local customs
- Get a sun tan
- Have a nice cold one in my hand!
I forgot the highlight of my trip…a traditional Babi Guling (all types of pork) meal. http://wiki.egullet.org/index.php?title=Babi_Guling. I have a cast iron stomach, so i preferred one of the “local” restaurants (cheaper, less expensive, and more….well, innards), rather than a tourist version. This meal something not available in other areas of SE Asia, and possibly anywhere else in the world.
I purchased a hotel package for one of the beach resorts for about US$100/night at the airport when I arrived. I was told by a trusted source this is cheaper than buying ahead of time. however I was visiting in June, which is not the busy season, per my understanding. I stayed at the Ramada resort near Denpasar, for what its worth.
Someone earlier mentioned that there are lots of trinket shops selling tourist crap. Yes, just like every other tourist area on earth! Your guide, should you hire one, will take you to spots - shops, “art” galleries, restaurants - where he gets a kickback. I had a recommended guide I hired for about $75/day, and he provided a car. I am adventurous by spirit, but I would not rent anf drive a car in any part of Indonesia, because the roads are busy and you are open to being blamed for any accident by local police (this is similar to many other countries). To hire a driver with car is cheaper than to rent a car at a car rental agency, plus they can act as a type of guide….again, knowing they will steer you toward kickback shops, etc…
I also want to comment on not taking medicines. I am required by my company to visit a travel doctor before international trips and get meds per the region. So yes, they are free and I take them. However, I am also a seasoned recreational traveller with several hundred thousands of miles in travel under my belt over the last 30+ years. I have travelled with someone that contracted dengue fever, and on a separate trip cholera……it was not something I would want. I HIGHLY recommend that at the least malaria meds be taken and mosquito repellent be used. Yes, cholera an rabies can be treated after, but malaria is for life and would affect you for life. My grandfather contracted malaria while fighting the Japanese on New Guinea is WW2 and despite all of Uncle Sam’s best treatment he was in the hospital once every 1-2 years for 2-4 weeks each visit with malaria fevers. Its up to you to take the chance, but millions of people in the tropics contract malaria every year.
I will definitely consider these :
- Traditional Babi Guling (all types of pork) meal with innards
- Local cheaper restaurants not available anywhere else in the world
- Hotel beach resort package at US$100/night at the airport upon arrival
- Try June, which is not the busy season
- Stayed at the Ramada resort near Denpasar
- Hire a guide for $75/day with car
- Taking medicines for malaria
- Use mosquito repellent
Babi Guling in Ubud is legendary.
The restaurant “Ibu Oka” has been reviewed by
Rick Stein http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wz23levHlbU
and
Anthony Bourdain. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zFmB9JsVCEM
It’s right in the centre of Ubud, and they’ve now opened a second restaurant up the street, where the kitchen was.
$4 for Babi Guling.
The skin is thin and crispy, not like the bubbly cracking we have here.
Yum.
Also try crispy skin duck at another restaurant, Dirty Duck Diner is a good one.
I must :
- Try legendary $4 Babi Guling with thin/crispy skin Ubud at “Ibu Oka”
- Be like Anthony Bourdain who has alcohol with food on video!
- Try crispy skin duck at Dirty Duck Diner
Here’s a typical menu from a local warung in Ubud.
12.000 = $1.20 or so.
Pundi Pundi in Ubud is a good restaurant.
Janet de Neefe has a cafe called Casa Luna, and restaurant called Indus.
Both are good, and she has cooking classes too.
If you could only pick one restaurant in Ubud, go to Cafe Lotus. Have a meal on the low tables.
The setting is unique. On a lotus pond in front of a temple.
If you’re down Legian or Kuta way, Ku De Ta is pretty cool.
Modern grooves and dance music, expensive, on the beach.
I’m so gonna try these from a typical Ubud local warung menu for about 12,000 Rp ($1.20) each :
- Nasi Goreng (Fried Rice)
- Mie Goreng/Kua (Fried Noodle/ Noodle Soup)
- Soto Ayam (Chicken Soup)
- Sop Buntut (Oxtail Soup)
- Ayam Penyet (Extra Spicy Fried Chicken w/Chilli)
- Tempe* Penyet (Extra Spicy Tempe* w/Chilli)
- Sate Ayam (Chicken Satay)
- Gado-Gado* (Mixed Vegetable)
*Tempe is deep fried fermented soya bean fritters
**Sate/Satay is kebab of roasted marinated meat
*Gado Gado is a salad tossed in peanut sauce