In Reply to: not looking forward posted by polgara on Wednesday, 20. April 2005 at 05:43 Bali Time:
Hi there Polgara, just to put my two bobs worth in. I'm glad that the first time that I stayed in Bali, I stayed in Tanjung Benoa and not in the Kuta region. I also caught up with a friend and her mother that were staying in the middle of Kuta the day after I arrived (as they were flying out the next day). These two things did a couple of things for me. One, it meant that I could go into Kuta and then leave when I wanted to. It showed me that Bali wasn't just Kuta but completely different in different places. and Two: meeting someone there that goes every year and loves the place, showed me how to react to everything. It was so exciting from her view point. This lady also carried a little pocket dictionary with her and at any opportune time she would bring it out and test her knowledge of Bahasa Indonesian on the locals, they loved it and she learnt more about them and their language.
A comparison was that my sister went with some friends and stayed in Tuban (south Kuta) and hated it. As soon as she walked out of the hotel she felt that she was confronted the whole time. Her friends wizzed around the place (because they knew it all) and didn't help her to explore at a slower pace and when I asked if she learnt any words and spoke to the locals, she said No what would she want to do that for. Totally different approaches, two different introductions. That was before I found the Bali forums. Talk to people at your hotel that have stayed there lots of times, they'll be a great help and inspiration.