In Reply to: Stop it !! posted by elmore on Sunday, 27. March 2005 at 01:21 Bali Time:
(that is, if you carry a camera and wear a sarung that no local person would be caught dead wearing)then you are more likeley than the average balinese to be approached by a street hawker, REGARDLESS OF YOUR RACE. I am japanese (from Hawaii) and my friend is filipino (also from Hawaii). My friend could pass for a southeast asian person (balinese & filipinos are both malay), but that didn't stop the the street hawkers from making us offers. It was our cameras, our woven palm hats and our gaudy silk sarongs that no balinese would be caught dead wearing that tipped off the locals. I submit that japanese tourists from japan are probably more likely to be propositioned because they are peceived as being more affluent than the average euro-american and they always leave a decent tip to keep up appearances (according to my friend who used to work in a Waikiki restaurant, so i guess he's sort of an authority ;-) Try blending in and smile a lot.