Listening to Rika, a hot and young Indonesian pop star, felt good while chilling on a bed at Aneka Kuta hotel. Nothing mattered but the moment.
My day had been an adventure and I wondered what to do next during my stay in Bali, Indonesia’s most famous holiday island. I thought about why on earth anyone would want to bomb any part of this peaceful place.
But that’s exactly what happened on October 12 last year. A bomb ripped through the tourist area of Legian Street in Kuta, killing 202 people in a nightclub and blasting this Balinese hot spot across the world’s headlines.
The dead were mostly foreign tourists and Bali’s tourism trade took a nosedive from which it is only just beginning to recover.
I took a walk down Legian Street. Restoration work was being done, but the sad signs of mourning were still present. Tourists flocked to have their photos taken at the place where the bomb shattered lives.
A year on a feeling of loss and hope go hand in hand. Shop-owners lament how tourism has dropped, and that’s bad news in a place where most residents depend on this industry for survival.
Kuta itself is a densely populated tourist area close to Denpasar airport and right on the coast.
Like the rest of Bali, Kuta is decadent, dream-like and drop-dead gorgeous.
Luscious greenery lines the way to Aneka Kuta hotel where I decided to spend a few days. I couldn’t keep my eyes open wide enough to get it all in.
Travelling through Bali is like living in a playground 24-7, with so many activities to choose from and oh-so-little time.
The great thing about Bali is that it is affordable for South African budgets. The Aneka Kuta hotel comes in at the top end of the range, with comfort a forethought. But after experiencing a room with a TV, hot shower, nice meals on the menu and a swimming pool, I chose to try a more universally affordable option at a backpacker’s establishment called Rita’s House.
Rita’s House is situated a stone’s throw from the Aneka Kuta hotel, but the cost a night is less than the price of dinner at the hotel. And you still get a bed and shower within walking distance of the beach. I didn’t worry that breakfast and other meals weren’t part of the deal, as there were so many shops selling food and snacks nearby that it made having a meals-included package a non-option.
Rita’s House is ideal for the traveller. Who really needs a fancy room when all you’re going to do there is sleep and take a shower? For the rest of time it’s all exciting exploration. And in any event, for the upwardly mobile young set, Rita’s House offers a really affordable and efficient laundry service, meaning that you don’t have to worry about washing your underwear in the shower after a hard day’s fun.
Kuta, like most of Bali, offers the good life. A walk down Poppies Lane nets you more curios than you could ever wish for and a host of other pretty things.
On Pantai Kuta Street, opposite the beach, you’ll find Bali’s Hard Rock Café, which comes alive almost every night of the week. The decor at this international venue includes plenty of memorabilia from the hey-days of The Beatles. The entrance at the club even greets you with a Beatles quote: “In the end the love we take is equal to the love we make.”
Beautiful island, beautiful people, beautiful everything.
And if you’re a nocturnal creature then Bali offers a party all night long. Just seek and ye shall find.
Everything comes at a price, of course, so make sure you’re travelling with your plastic ready. But at the end of the day the money fades into insignificance when compared to the absolutely priceless experience exploring Bali offers.
A predominantly Hindu island, Bali is covered with temples and large statues of Hindu gods like Ganesha, the half-man-half-elephant. Temples abound, with most of them in the gardens of people’s homes.
There’s even an area in Bali where the three major religious populations — Hindu, Islamic and Christian — have places of worship right next to each other. Peacefulness engulfs that area.
It makes the images of the bomb wreckage and broken bodies that were beamed around the world this time last year all the more incongruous.
Ultimately, Bali is a hands-on place. There are so many amazing activities on offer that knowing where to begin is a major dilemma.
I opted for the little office of Made’s Bali Tours, situated opposite the beach. This one-stop info spot can organise all kinds of tours, including luxury sailing, ocean rafting, island cruises, snorkelling, fishing trips and camping expeditions and can direct you to a number of spas for some tender love and care.
I opted for diving at Nusa Dua and a trip to get high on some traditional Balinese dancing in Denpasar, all within driving distance from Kuta.
Made’s driver picked me up from Rita’s House in the morning and delivered me back safely before sunset after yet another memorable day. Sunset is the time for those “forever” walks on the beach, watching the sun sink beneath the horizon. But sadly the romance is shattered by the hoards of vendors who will try and sell you beads, T-shirts and even handmade bow-and-arrows. Perhaps a backlash to the terrorist threat?
The best way to avoid them would probably be to hire a bodyboard and immerse yourself in the calm, warm but cooling ocean waters.
There’s nothing like the sea after a day of hot sun. And Bali is so hot that you will mostly be taking cold showers while there.
My journey took me from Kuta to the north of Bali and a beachfront inn called Kalibukbuk hotel in Lovina, another coastal tourist hot spot.
Kalibukbuk was affordable, but would probably not rate on a grading system of any kind. It had no hot water — not that anyone would need it — and no restaurant or after-hours service.
At least Thomas, the hotel manager, gave me some soap and towels daily. And the toilet was in working order, so I didn’t complain.
Lovina is the ideal getaway and offered me the chance to live right on the beach. It was blissful, once I got over the insecurity that comes with the first night of hearing the waves while surrounded by complete darkness and wondering whether I would be alive the next morning. I made it, suffice to say, and was greeted at sunup by Thomas, who had prepared some activities for me — a morning of dolphin watching and an afternoon of snorkelling.
Chatting to some locals after my busy day secured me a guided motorbike tour of Lovina for the following day.
Up early, we zoomed off to the Singaraja market where live chickens, flowers and incense for use while praying to the Hindu gods, cheap silverware, food and fresh produce are all on sale. The motorbike ride was littered with scenery too — rice farms, temples, greenery and a stop at a natural phenomenon, the Permandian Air Panas, or holy hot spring, situated in a mountain with greenery and a river running past it.
Here I soaked my body in the warm waters that find their way through the mountain and into swimming pools built with natural materials. The waters flow through these pools, down the mountain slopes and into the river below continuously. The Balinese have no idea how lucky they are. Imagine living within walking distance of this deeply desirable spa destination.
One downside is that you need to constantly stock up on bottled water as you journey because you can’t drink water from the taps anywhere. And while you can purchase water in most areas, be sure to check that the seal has not been broken. You don’t want any tummy problems.
Another magnificent stop in Ubud is the Mandala Wisata Wanara Wana, or the Sacred Monkey Forest Sanctuary. In this lavish forest, with trees as high as the eye can see, wild vegetation and never-ending rivers, you’ll find monkeys everywhere. And you’re welcome to feed them some bananas as you check out holy temples built there in the mid-14th century.
This island in the Indonesian archi-pelago has a history that spans centuries, and was formed millions of years ago by volcanic action. While there are still some active volcanoes in Bali, the action has become all fun, sun and happy days. It’s all colourful, creative, beautiful and inspiring.
So the best way to do Bali is to live as if you’re semi-retired. After all, you’re spending some time out on the island where rock stars tie the knot, where soul-searching comes with heavy doses of instant gratification and the days are fabulously mind-blowing. There’s really nothing like it.
The low down
Malaysian Airlines and Singapore Airlines fly to Bali, depending on which country you may want to stop over at. Both airlines offer an airfare of just under R7 000 from Johannesburg, and connecting flights from anywhere else can be arranged via Flight Centre on 0860 400 777 or 082 280 0777. You’ll be there — from South Africa — in about 12 to 14 hours.