I have a couple of friends who grew up in Jakarta and they go back for the holidays every year. This year, I accepted the invitation to tag along, so I am going to Indonesia for two weeks. They have a house we’ll be staying at in Jakarta and we’re going to Bali for a while, beyond that I have no idea what the plans are, though they assure me that we’re going to see some cool stuff.
Any Doper advice, warnings, suggestions, well-wishes, etc?
Bali’s fantastic, but I highly recommend getting away from the coast as soon as possible and heading uphill. Unless, of course, you like nightclubs and surfing, then by all means stay south. My absolute favorite “city” is Ubud, a town of artists and artisans where we stayed for several nights. We splurged big time there and rented an adorable little hut in this hotel with amazing landscaping, a sparkling pool, fabulous waitstaff - and we paid, for the two of us, $26US per night (five years ago), which included a real breakfast cooked to order by two charming ladies. Two of the staff even took us to one of the local non-touristy temple festivals, first taking us to their home and dressing us up in proper clothing (thank goodness the woman had the only fat person in Bali for a sister - she actually had a blouse to fit me!) It was amazing - we were literally the only white people there, so we started out very self-conscious. But everyone was gracious and welcoming and wonderful.
I wish I could remember the name of the place. All I remember was the huge beautiful statue out front and the gigantic concrete statue of pigs mating just inside the gate. (A common statue in Bali, but this one was at least life sized.)
I didn’t get a chance to visit Krakatoa when I was in Indonesia, and I regret it to this day. If there’s a chance you can do a tour, I strongly suggest it.
I LOVE bali. I went last year - my folks shouted me over for my 30th.
I am completely in love with South Sanur. Bin Tang rocks and the people are so very lovely.
Some advice:-
Be prepared to haggle, but don’t screw them down to nothing. They expect you to haggle for prices for a little, but really, it makes such a difference to them, and it’s only a few cents for us.
They love children - if you have kids they’re going to have a great time.
Kuta is where the nightlife is - i’m not in love with it - there are countless little bars on the sides of the road that are much more fun.
If you are going to ride a beamo, agree up from - from Kuta to South Senur is around 35000 rupiah.
Take another person into the money changing places with you to help you count the money - the money is hard to figure out.
Internet access was at best sllllllloooooooooooowwwwwwwww dialup. be prepared to wait 15 mins for yahoo to open.
Above all HAVE FUN. It’s a brilliant place with brilliant and beautiful people.
Colour me jealous. You’re going to have heaps of fun.
I second the vote to get to Ubud, on Bali, if you see the chance.
Indonesia runs on rubber time, which means the train goes when the train goes, no matter what your ticket or the sign says! It’s part of what makes it fun so relax and enjoy it!
Learn to say; Terima Kasih ( pro: Te-ree-muh Kah-sih), which means Thank you.
You’re definitely going to get some use out of it. Sounds like you might be travelling in the upper scale of society. The difference between the ‘haves’ and the ‘havenots’ in Indosnesia will be quite striking to see, I’m sure.
Going back and forth in two short weeks will be brutal on your body, take your vitamins and eat and sleep well in the days leading up to your holiday. Also take your vitamins when you’re on holiday, it’s stressful even though it seems like all fun, plus you’re exposing yourself to a new world of nasties. Avoid the no sleep, heavy partying departure ritual, it’s a real long flight and this will only elongate your recovery from jet lag, and has the potential to easily make your journey nightmarish.
Take lots of money the shopping in Indonesia is great; woodcarvings, textiles, clothing, leather, etc, etc.
Oh! I almost forgot! DO NOT RENT A CAR!!! No, really, don’t. Rent a driver instead - they’re not that much more expensive (like only a couple of bucks a day more than renting a car), and it’s totally worth it. Not only will your driver know where things are (although some of them do unofficially have arrangements with their cousin to suggest their cousin’s shop as the “really good secret place I can take you to!”, and that can get old pretty quick), but the driver will deal with the psychotic behavior that the Balinese like to call “driving.” I mean, really insane behavior (and I thought the switchback, hairpin mountainside single-laned roads in Ireland were hair raising - like watching a fishtank compared to Bali.)
Plus, if you hire a driver, he’ll stop all the other guys from yelling “transport?” at you every 10 feet.
But those little tiny bananas they sell at the side of the road more than make up for it - have you ever had a juicy banana? Like nothing available here in the states.
I think that may be one of the places we’re going to see, since she (the friend) was talking about an immense, spectacular Buddhist temple. Of course, I don’t remember the name of the place, but Borobudur certainly meets that description.
The Australian travel warnings Cunctator linked to look pretty similar to the State Department warnings. They sound fairly dire, but how worried should I actually be? Did any of you that have been there feel like you were on the verge of being kidnapped?