In Reply to: $2 Australian coins to Bali posted by silvafox on Sunday, 21. December 2008 at 18:54 Bali Time:
I like to try and keep a large stash of smaller 5, 10 and 20,000 IDR notes to show my appreciation. The money changers swap small USD bills, such as $1. I cannot however remember any money changers changing coin. It's just not the done think. Also, A$ and US$ notes would be annoying to staff, as they have to go to the money changers to change into local currency.
Alteratively, you can always do what I normally do when ordering at restaurants, which is bump it up to the closest 10,000, 50,000, or 100.000 depending on the cost and service.
PS: I normally buy most of my drink when walking at Circle K etc, and give them a 50.000 IDR note. This allows you to get some smaller notes for tipping. Also, sometimes locals ask for notes from Aussies in exchange for coin. If it's in my last couple of days, I normally exchange if $5 or $10, so your generosity would not be wasted.