In Reply to: perceptions of security in Bali posted by scottywayan on Tuesday, 13. December 2005 at 10:09 Bali Time:
hi, i'm heading over on the 27th with my sister, our partners and my parents. we also lost our $ on air paradise tickets and coughed up a second time for garudas - i didn't think twice about it either though it has been the most expensive trip to Bali for us yet!
my partner and i went to bali last new years aswell with another group of friends (all late 20's) and we were all a little apprehensive about security then. we flew in on new years eve and after the initial heat and smells sunk in we felt completely safe. we ended up at paddys that night (through metal detectors at the door) and carried on til the wee hours. there was a moment not long after midnight when we all acknowledged that this was what it must have been like just before the 1st bomb went off. it was a bit eerie but only for that moment.
the rest of our trip went down with no worries at all. there was security (metal detectors) at most larger tourist venues we went to (like waterbomb and bali hai cruises) so we generally felt very safe. like many have said before, even safer than when we go out here sometimes.
i know this was before the 2nd blasts but from what i have read here on the forum it sounds like its only got alot tighter still.
i'm too excited about going to be worried. i read the govt warning in the paper this morning too, and it reads pretty much just the same as every year since no.1 just think how much the govt would be blamed if they said nothing and it happened again?
try and put it out of your mind. be responsible on the big nights like NYE, and maybe stay away from the clubs or even avoid them all together if it makes you feel safer - afterall there's much more to bali than its nightclubs right.