In Reply to: Denpasar Markets posted by balifan on Saturday, 22. April 2006 at 00:23 Bali Time:
A Must experience like no other ! Fantastic bargains , full of colour and atmosphere, lively characters, hundreds of stalls all packed together with higgledy-piggeldy things hanging from the ceiling and blocking the passages, Aladdin's cave and a real treasure trove .. the 2 things which I found hard to take were the smell ( and it's really strong, not just a whiff, not sure I could face entering any cafe there! ) and the persistence of the guides at the entrance. They argued with my driver/ guide and one hit him on the arm , and still they trailed after ..not sure how you could get past this , it didn't seem to matter what he said they just wouldn't leave us alone. I wouldn't be brave enough to go in on my own . Apart from that, I just loved it all , bought some great unbrellas and other things which I couldn't find anywhere else
I'd say Go for it, maybe working out first what you want to buy and roughly how much then TRY to find it :-)
Also enjoyed the Sukawati markets, open air except for a 2 storey part which I didn't attempt because it had what loked like a hundred ricketty steps to get up there .. apparently that's where the fabric is. Good bargains around the rest , you may be ambushed when you get out of the vehicle to buy sunglasses watches beads etc but hey what's new ! Either will be an enjoyable and unforgettable day :-)