In Reply to: JBR - For first timers posted by balinewbie on Saturday, 23. June 2012 at 15:33 Bali Time:
JBR but I'd like to disagree with a few things...
• Unless you need a van, there is no need to pre-book your transport from the airport to your hotel. The prepaid airport taxis are convenient and efficient and much cheaper than a driver.
• Learning to speak Balinese will do you very few favours, Bahasa Indonesia is what you need. Indonesian is the language most people you meet will speak and you won't be as likely to offend with your attempts to use it.
• You have been misled about the cost of eating on the beach at Jimbaran. Jimbaran's seafood restaurants vary in price from ridiculously cheap to OTT expensive and the Lia Café and others in that area offer beautiful fresh seafood at a good price. With the sunset, Tiki torches and music it really is Bali at its romantic best and to travel all that way not to embrace the whole seafood on the beach experience is a wasted opportunity. Trust me, chewing on a bread roll while eavesdropping on the music just doesn't compare.
• There are plenty of tackle shops around and they have a huge range of rods, reels and bits and pieces.
• I'm assuming you were joking about using water pistols to discourage the hawkers and you would never consider it ok to treat people like dogs. If you were to try it though, expect to find yourself on the end of a response reciprocal in its unpleasantness. There are restrictions on where the hawkers are allowed on Kuta Beach. If they really are bothering you, find the invisible line the hawkers are not allowed to cross and swap rudeness and behaving like a twat for walking that little bit closer to the water.