This month, I flew to Bali for my 16th trip. On this trip, I stayed only in Kuta and Ubud.
For $A168 return (cabin luggage only), I flew to Bali from Perth with Air Asia Indonesia. The AA ground staff did not weigh my small trolley cabin bag or my large laptop computer bag. Each bag weighed 7 kg each.
Onboard, passengers could buy:
Bintang Beer Rp 80,000
Coca Cola Rp 20,000
Iced Tea Rp 20,000
Black Tea Rp 20,000 [only coffee whitener is available, rather than milk]
Instant Noodles Rp 50,000
Sandwiches Rp 60,000
Turkey Roll Rp 60,000
Chicken Rice Rp 90,000
Chicken Béchamel Rp 90,000
AA accepted Rupiah, $A and $US. All change was given in Rupiah.
The plane landed five minutes early at 11.40pm and we had to take a bus to the terminal. The tarmac was shared with a giant An-124-100 heavy lift aircraft of Volga-Dnepr Airlines.
When we arrived at the terminal, there were no VIP/Fast Track greeters with signs. I paid $A55 for the VOA. However, I advised two Germans in the VOA queue to go straight to the Immigration Counter and save themselves $A110. Now citizens from 75 countries are eligible for visa exemptions, but alas not Australia. It took only ten minutes to get through Immigration. Customs stopped me and checked out my old army jacket and money belt. As I was clean, I missed out on a stay at the Kerobokan Hilton.
The airport money changers were open but offering Rp 600 per $A1 less than PT Dirgahayu Valuta Prima in Kuta.
Dodging the Taxi Mafia who operate the Taxi Counter, I walked to the airport gates. It is an easy walk. Just find the crosswalk in front of the parking station. Walk through the middle of the parking station to you get to the other side of the station. Cross the roads until you get to the road with the traffic heading to the right. There is a footpath next to the road. Follow the footpath. You can either go through the gap in the fence or walk up to the toll booths. The last 50 metres before the toll booths, you have to walk on the road.
The taxi drivers understand what you are doing and will agree to use the meter even before you get to the toll booths.
I rejected the offers of transport by touts, as normally they are offering ojeks (motorcycle taxis).
For Rp 38,000, a metered taxi took me to Kuta. There was a police road block at the corner of Jalan Patih Jelantik and Jalan Legian. There were about twenty Polisi checking the papers of local and foreign riders. They waved my taxi through.
I returned to Taman Sari Cottages in Poppies Lane 2, Kuta. For Rp 230,000 a night including breakfast, I had an air conditioned room with a balcony, a fridge, a bathroom and access to a small swimming pool.
Next day, I had to go shopping because of LAGS restrictions on my cabin luggage. I bought a 350 ml bottle of Lida Buaya shampoo for Rp 8,000 and a plastic safety razor with a blade for Rp 7,500. Five additional blades cost me Rp 13,800. Lidah Buaya actually means crocodile tongue, but the name of the shampoo refers to the shape of the Aloe Vera leaves.
More shopping at Janoko Tailors in Poppies 2 Lane was required. This time I bought a custom tailored black suit with a Nehru collar and hidden buttons for Rp 620,000 including material. This is the stipulated uniform for a forthcoming wedding. I had my hair cut at Potong Rambut in Seminyak for Rp 15,000 for the wedding as well.
For Rp 10,000, I caught a bemo from just north of Bemo Corner to the Tegal Bemo Station in Denpasar. From there, I walked to Jalan Hasanuddin where I 33counted 25 gold shops. I also checked out the textile shops in Jalan Suluwesi and the florists in Jalan Sudirman. I finished off my expedition by visiting Rimo Mall again and Mal Bali almost opposite. I had lunch at a food court near Jalan Sudirman.
I checked out the evening buffet at the Skygarden in Jalan Legian. The buffet starts at 5 pm and ends at 9 pm and costs Rp 99,000. The food is western with a different theme each night. My favourite is Tuesday night, when the theme is Mexican. As well as the buffet, there is unlimited alcohol and soft drinks for the four hour period. Each person can take two drinks from the bar, each time they visit the bar. The choice of alcohol is restricted to San Miguel beer, Smirnoff Ice or Smirnoff Red. For those who want to keep drinking from the free flow after 9 pm, you can buy another wristband for Rp 120,000 or Rp 150,000 on Fridays and Saturdays. This entitles you to the same drinks from 9pm to 11pm. I was lucky enough to score a free gold pass which gave me free Smirnoff Ice or Smirnoff Red, one drink at a time from 8.30pm to 11.30pm.
I also checked out the Bounty, which was very quiet the night I went. The Bounty no longer levies an additional charge to go upstairs to the discotheque. The Surfers Bar in Jalan Legian and Alleycats in Poppies Lane 2 were still busy.
Still closed are Mbargo, Macaroni Club and Mothership. There is no sign that these venues will ever reopen.
Walking around Kuta, I found the Celsius Sea View Bar at the back of the top floor of the Ramayana Department Store in the Discovery Mall. Many years ago, there used to be a food court in this spot. The Celsius Sea View Bar food seems to be reasonably priced when you consider the magnificent view of Kuta Beach.
After my new suit was ready, I hired an old semi-automatic motorcycle for Rp 25,000 per day and rode to ...........the nearest service station, as the owner had left only one litre of fuel in the tank! After fuelling up at Rp 7,400 per litre, I headed off to Ubud.
This time, I followed the advice of the Lonely Planet Guide to Bali & Lombok and rode to Ubud via Mambal. The advantage of this route is that the roads are not lined with tourist shops. The disadvantage of this route is the complete absence of signage. A local couple on a motorcycle offered to guide me to Ubud, I gratefully accepted their offer and zigged and zagged in their wake to Ubud.
I took a room at the Raditia Homestay in Jalan Hanoman, Ubud for Rp 130,000 per night including breakfast. The room was cooled only by a fan which is acceptable, as Ubud is cooler than Kuta at night.
In Ubud, I met a young Czech fellow who complained about travelling by himself. I mentioned to him that there were hundreds of young women doing the Sunrise Trek to Mount Batur and doing courses at the Yoga Barn. However, he told me that he was on a budget and did not want to spend any money! In contrast, a young Frenchman took advantage of the situation by chatting up young women walking past Warung Laba Laba. A young German lady liked his accent so much, they became a couple.
In Ubud, I also met oil rig workers who are now beached due to the low oil price. Others were long term expats from all around the world.
At the Pondok Pekak Library in Ubud, I took a course in Bahasa Indonesia for Rp 660,000 for 7 X 2 hour lessons.
My three favourite restaurants in Ubud are now Warung Laba Laba in Jalan Hanoman, Dian Restaurant in Monkey Forest Road and Warung Komang in Jalan Goutama Selatan. My old favourite the Kafe has now gone upmarket and switched off the WiFi for most of the night. My other old favourite Dewa Warung in Jalan Goutama has now moved 4 km away to Jalan Sriwedari, Tegallang.
Tegallang is an attractive area of Ubud, as the local banjar has banned the huge resorts that have ruined Peliatan. Tegallang consists of normal Balinese houses, warungs, villas for rent and homestays.
On the closed list is the once popular Jazz Cafe.
One night I went to Cafe Havana, but it was expensive by Indonesian standards. Every night there is a live band and salsa dancing. The waiters take the ladies for a twirl on the dance floor.
The Paradiso Cinema in Jalan Goutama Selatan is still open selling admission tickets for Rp 50,000 each.
I walked 9 km up and back Campuan Ridge including the rice fields behind the Mozaic Restaurant. With frequent stops due to the heat, this walk took four hours.
One evening, I rode north for 3 kms to the village of Petulu where I watched the herons flocking to trees in the village at 6 pm. Definitely, only a very minor tourist attraction for Rp 20,000.
Another evening, I watched a Legong dance performance at the Rajah's Palace in Jalan Raya Ubud for Rp 80,000.
One improvement in Ubud that I noted was the absence of stray dogs as they had been culled due to a rabies outbreak in Bali.
From Ubud, I rode back to Kuta, just in time for the Mexican themed buffet at the Skygarden in Jalan Legian. I also returned to Taman Sari Cottages in Poppies Lane 2 paying Rp 230,000 a night including breakfast.
During my three week trip, it only rained three times. In Bali, the Balinese were praying for the drought to end. One of their ideas was for every Balinese to fill a bucket of water and all pray together at 11 am. I saw no sign of rain after their prayers.
The smoke haze from Sumatra and Kalimintan spread over 75% of Indonesia and several neighbouring countries. I could smell smoke, but I could tell where the smoke was coming from.
I flew back to Perth with AA. The landed 30 minutes late due to congestion at Perth Airport.