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Welcome to my travel log! You will find here a lot more than in the travel reports, stripped from political correctness. Enjoy! 
Sep 14, 2007 02:00 PM Jersey - a day trip
Not part of the United Kingdom, but a crown dependency, Jersey is a rich country, which established itself as a tax heaven. Yet, life moves very slowly there. At least that is the impression. I visited on a weekend, so I guess I did not witness any of the weekday rush. And still something tells me that all that busy-ness goes on in the background, somewhere behind the scenes of the many offshore finance businesses.
There were two places on Jersey that I could call my favourite:
1.The bay in the Gorey village by the castle
2.Corbiere Point with the view to the Corbiere Lighthouse
I remember Jersey from the one British TV series, that had probably the best sounding main theme tunes ever, Bergerac. However I could not remember much of the places...
I wandered around the island. I visited the castles, the beaches and the lighthouse at sunset. It was a good day, but I thought it would be slightly more animated. I looked almost like an island for the retired people.
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Sep 07, 2007 02:00 PM Guernsey and Herm - a day trip
Not part of the United Kingdom, but a crown dependency, Bailiwick of Guernsey is more Norman than it is British. The country includes the islands of Guernsey, Herm, Sark, Alderney, Jethou, Brecqhou, Burhou, Lihou and some small islets. A few of the islands have their own languages.
I visited Guernsey and Herm. These were rather short visits, but I managed to see what I wanted. Well, almost. On Herm, I did not get to see the puffins and on Guernsey, I did not see the Little Chapel. However, since Guernsey is so easy to reach, and the tickets are so reasonable, I will almost certainly go there again. If only to see Sark island as well.
Although the air on the islands is Norman and the landscape looks and feels like northern France, the vast majority of the Victorian architecture resembles southern England. An interesting hybrid, I suppose.
Oddly, the remarkably insignificant, yet unique and important site of the Fairy Ring (first top left picture here) is not very popular. It is superbly located. Very few people knew how to direct me. Even the friendly and talkative taxi driver, who eventually took me there, did not know what I was referring to. Even though he had been there before - some 20 years before... And it is (supposedly) an ancient Norman or Norse burial or rituals site!
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Aug 26, 2007 02:00 PM Bali - Last night
I could not get enough of the mojitos and I let Made to just keep making them. A couple of customers trickled in and out, so for the most of the time, I was the only one at the bar. The French owner was so impressed with me (and the depth of my throat) that he gave me one mojito on the house from from his highness himself.
Every now and then, someone from the employees joined for a talk about life , the universe and everything. At some point, I chatted to Maria from western Timor, employed by the bar as a PR manager, whose job was to simply tout outside in the street inviting people inside, and then eventually talk to them at the bar. I have to say that I was impressed with the ambiguity of her job title. There were three other PR managers at the bar - all young ladies dressed carefully to show as much as possible without crossing the line of decency. And no, none of them were working girls! They were real touts luring people to the bar. No other service was provided.
Maria told me that the situation on Timor was still really bad and she thought she was lucky that she was born on the western part of the island. Her conservative Christian family, who lives in Timor, does not know exactly what she is doing on Bali. And whenever Maria can afford the 2 million rupiahs return flight home, she visits her relatives dressed as modestly as possible. She confessed it was a struggle for her, as she did not maintain this kind of wardrobe.
It was Obsesion where I first heard voices that Bali should perhaps become independent of Indonesia. Allegedly, but highly likely, Jakarta pockets huge amounts of money from Bali’s tourism industry and gives back very little. And the recent voices of crating a conservative Islamic state do not please the Balinese. They have nothing to do with Islam. The government has already made it difficult for Bali by creating prohibitive taxes and duty charges on alcohol. The Balinese businesses have struggled to obtain good wines for their restaurants. This drives the customers away.
I would have to agree that Bali might have been better off on its own.
I stayed in Obsesion to the very end. As I walked back to my hotel, a few gay bars were still open. I was not prepared to be chased by ladyboys almost all the way to my room! Some of them did ask if they could follow me to my hotel room, but some did not. I did not appreciate this jogging exercise at 3 o’clock in the morning! Actually, I was running for my life as fast as could, as fast as the wind in my arse could accelerate me. My state of weightlessness was not helping. I did thank the gods for shoes with high heels.
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Aug 25, 2007 02:00 PM Flores - Labuanbajo
This small town in western Flores is a total hole. I am sorry to say, but is true. The town is developing only to its gateway status to Rinca and Komodo islands. It has nothing to offer other than an authentic Indonesia experience of a small coastal town. There is nothing to see or to do there. The only attraction appear to be a string of local and seedy restaurants positioned along the harbour offering view to the bay. They do offer some food as well, but their cleanliness is so poor that is requires a significant bravery to order anything from there. Not even a bottle of coke!
Interestingly, Labuanbajo houses a number of Muslim families, who allocated themselves the vicinity of the harbour, while the Catholic majority lived in the suburbs and in the hills overlooking the bay.
The Komodo Labuanbajo Airport was very primitive. Goats, cows and dogs wandered around happily everywhere, including the runway. Whenever there was an airplane coming, a siren would go off and two guys on motorbikes would go up and down the runway chasing the animals off. A group of people and their children would help out by collecting stones and other debris. Shocking!
The guy responsible for screening the luggage would not even look at the machine’s screen but play tunes out of his SonyEricsson P900 mobile phone smoke cigarettes, one after another. I then realised what the European Union meant by banning Indonesian airlines from their territory.
Perhaps the only better accommodation option near Labuanbajo, the Bajo Komodo Ecolodge is located about 3 kilometres to the south-west of the town centre. It is an airy place excellent for relaxing. The main building, housing reception, kitchen, dining room, lounge, terrace, and a few guest rooms is like it was transported from African bush. The first floor upstairs has no windows. The vertical shutters and high ceiling create an illusion of great space like an interior of a cathedral.
Food served there is of top quality and great value for money. I could not believe that I almost ate at one of the terribly filthy eateries in Labuanbajo’s harbour!
What also made the EcoLodge special was its bar policy. It was an honorary system normally found at backpackers-type accommodations and youth hostels. There was a book at the bar, where guests would claim one page, put their name on it and help themselves from the bar noting on the page what they took. Then upon check-out they would pay for the drinks.
I had a beer, sprite and a bottle of not-to-shabby Australian Cabernet-Shiraz with my dinner.
Happy voices and loud music kept reaching the upstairs terrace from a disco club across the road. It was clearly fully licensed place. That Saturday night was, I think, a karaoke night, whose quality was steadily deteriorating into the night. I was almost gagging to go there, but the thought of a very comfortable bed after a day full of adrenaline was stronger. Much stronger! So, sadly I went to bed a few minutes before midnight.
When I woke up, free of mosquito bites (my huge mosquito net over the bed and the ceiling fan did their jobs well), I realised that I had a bed partner with me for the entire night. It was a giant and very colourful spider. I have no idea what it did during the night, but in the morning, it was sitting on the inside of the mosquito net staring at my testicles. I cannot say I was very comfortable with this. I felt used. Quick examination of my lower body parts revealed no sign of penetration so I guess was not abused. Still, I thought that a thorough shower was in order, and I sprang out of bed like being ejected from a cannon. All within a few seconds from realising that I did not sleep alone.
After the shower, I quickly checked the surroundings of the lodge. Although it was located near the beach, access to the water’s edge led through high grass field. The beach was not maintained. It was a communal one, used by the villages for daily domestic matters and was not indented as a relaxing place for tourists. It was a pity, I guess because it would significantly increase the attractiveness of the lodge. Also, swimming seemed very possible directly from the shore, which often not the case on many spots on the other islands.
A short snorkelling trip to Bidadari island was priced at €25 regardless of the number of passengers, but I guess the boat would struggle to take more than twenty people.
I did go to Bidadari Island. It is is a very small one. Its entirely territory is a conservation zone. The beach was small but lovely and the approach to the coral reef was free of stones, rocks and unpleasant sea creatures. The water was getting deep quickly so it was a great swimming place, far away from the hassle of tourist resorts, beach boys selling watch copies, beads, necklaces, bracelets, pirate DVDs, small wood carving, pendants, etc.
Eh, I so wished I could have stayed in the area for a few more days.
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Aug 24, 2007 02:00 PM Rinca Island - Komodo National Park
An island, one of two, either of which must be travelled through en route to the famous Komodo Dragons, which can be visited on the islands of Komodo and Rinca. Theoretically, the varanuses live also on Flores, but I did not find any information about possibilities of seeing them there.
The west coast of Flores is one of the few places, aside from the island of Komodo itself, where the Komodo dragon can be found in the wild. The Flores Giant Rat is also endemic to the Island.
In September 2003, at Liang Bua Cave in western Flores, paleoanthropologists discovered skeletons of a previously unknown hominid species. Homo floresiensis, affectionately termed hobbits after the small characters in the Lord of the Rings, appear to be miniaturised versions of Homo erectus standing about one metre tall. They may have existed until as recently as 11,000 BC. Local reports of elf-like people, the Ebu Gogo, or the Orang Pendek of Sumatra, have caused speculation that Flores man may have survived into the historical period, or even to the present. The discovery has been published in the October 28, 2004, issue of Nature magazine and the April 2005 issue of the National Geographic Magazine. However, on August 21, 2006, the National Geographic Newsletter published an article reporting that several scientists now believe that the remains discovered in 2004 were not of a different species but were pygmies. Flores was also a habitat of the extinct Stegodon dwarf elephant until approximately 18,000 years ago. It also was the habitat of species of giant rodents. It is speculated by scientists that limited resources drove the few species that lived upon the island to gigantism and dwarfism.
There are many languages spoken on the island of Flores, all of them belonging to the Austronesian family. In the centre of the island in the districts of Ngada and Ende there is what is variously called the Central Flores Dialect Chain or the Central Flores Linkage. Within this area there are slight linguistic differences in almost every village. At least six separate languages are identifiable. These are from west to east: Ngadha, Nage, Keo, Ende, Lio and Palu'e, which is spoken on the island with the same name of the north coast of Flores. Locals would probably also add So'a and Bajawa to this list, which anthropologists have labeled dialects of Ngadha.
Portuguese traders and missionaries came to Flores in the 16th century, mainly to Larantuka and Sikka. Their influence is still discernible in Sikka's language and culture.
Flores is almost entirely Catholic and represents one of the "religious borders" created by the Catholic expansion in the Pacific and the spread of Islam from the west across Indonesia. In other places in Indonesia, such as in the Malukus and Sulawesi, the divide is more rigid and has been the source of bloody sectarian clashes.
Having said that, I must state that when I went to Flores, I only met Muslim people. They were everywhere - on the ships, in the shops, in the restaurants and even the young personnel at the lodge where I stayed overnight was entirely Islamic. It however had absolutely no impact on their attitude towards me. The lodge staff was not just professionally polite - they were all genuinely friendly!
Smaller and closer to Flores than its more famous sister island of Komodo, Rinca is considered a better place to see the Dragons. It is possible to come closer to the animals and it is generally easier to spot them. Rinca has the same population of the creatures as Komodo (approximately 2500 lizards) but it is smaller.
The trip from Flores to Rinca takes approximately two hours of sailing on a rather basic wooden (motorised) boat, depending on weather and the roughness of the seas. (To Komodo it takes 4 to 5 hours.) Rinca is much closer from Flores that the sailing length suggests, however the boat landing and the conservation centre are located at the far end of Rinca and much of the sailing is actually along the island. But there is really nothing to look at on the way.
The wind slowed the boat down considerably making waves hard to navigate. The boat did not rock heavily, but large splashes kept reaching the deck. Nevertheless, it was a great trip and I was very happy that I decided to do this part of the holiday this way.
Of course, it would be even better if the sailing was taking much less time. The landscape en route was not spectacular enough and having the possibility to spend more time exploring the island would make the trip perfect.
The thing is that a faster option is very available, for example through the EcoLodge, who offer transfers by speedboats. It is much more costly though.
My first encounter with the dragon was right at the boat landing. A large male was resting at the pier. It was lying in a shade, close to the path. Zooming camera lenses did not appear to bother him at all.
The personnel at the Komodo National Park were polite. They accepted the $15 fee efficiently and their English was adequate. Soon, I was expedited into the interior of the island to achieve the primary objective of this entire holiday. I did not have to wait long to achieve it (if the boat landing encounter was not to count). A few large and lazy Dragons were resting in the rangers’ compound counting on residents’ dinner leftovers.
The first great sighting of a Komodo was a pregnant female digging up a whole to lay her eggs. She was well aware of my presence and she briefly stopped her struggle and watched me carefully. As soon as she realised that my camera was not a threat, she resumed. She managed to throw the soil high in the air with her front legs. The dirt would travel well over two metres away from the hole. It was exhilarating. Moments like that are priceless! It is actually very difficult to describe feelings, but for sure they make the moments unforgettable.
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Aug 23, 2007 02:00 PM Bali - Sanru, Pura Uludanu-Bratan, Pura Besakih
Dramatically located on a lake filling a crater of an extinct volcano, the popular Pura Ulundanu Bratan is perhaps the most photographed temple on Bali. And I definitely contributed to this fact. I was lucky to arrive there during a large ceremony involving couple of hundreds of people. They carried fruit and animal offerings, flags, umbrellas, and there was a band with drums making the rapid traditional sounds.
As I arrived in the morning, the sun was my enemy. It was shining right into my lenses when I wanted to take a picture with an interesting background - hills and mist. Well, it was my fault as I should have investigated thoroughly before I went. I attempted to take some good pictures but most of the time I was cursing. I made many adjustments to the settings yet the pictures kept coming out either over exposed or no details of the temple could be captured. I really should have come in the afternoon, which was easy to achieve. I should have made the route in the opposite direction.
Large parts of the temple were off limits to visitors and reserved only to worshipers.
My driver suddenly announced that there was an interesting temple on the way to the one I wanted to see. He suggested that I went there to see it. ‘If it is on the way, then why not?’, I said.
The temple’s name was Pura Maduwekarand. It was a small one, and I am not sure if it was significant. An interesting one, perhaps but not necessarily beautiful.
Two young guides kindly imposed their services. One of them claimed that the temple was erected in the eighteenth century. The other guide however showed me an engraving of a Dutch man riding a twentieth century-style bicycle. I found it intriguing but was ready to believe that the engraving might have been added later.
There are very many temples on Bali and this one did not offer anything unique, it seemed to me. I am not quite sure why the driver wanted me to visit this one while we must have passed a thousand of other temples.
Hordes of women with sarongs to rent and postcards to sell swarmed the entrance to this large and majestic temple. They kept screaming like crazy that one needs a sarong to enter the complex. Other temples did not require a sarong. A scarf wrapped around the waist was sufficient. Yet these women were adamant, driven by profit, obviously. They were demanding ridiculous prices. One of them tried to extort 10,000 rupiahs for the rent of a sarong. That compared with 10,000 to 15,000 rupiahs for a price of a new sarong if I wanted to buy one from many of the shops around the beach resorts! In the end I gave her 5,000 rupiahs and she did not even blink her eye. I obviously overpaid.
This temple was the first one that felt like a real one. It was spacious and had several yards for worshipping. Between the first and the second gates, there was a large enclosure that would fit several thousands of people. Then, after the second gate, there were two other yards, even larger ones. The one to the right of the first one was divided in two, and contains many small shrines and stupas. The one directly behind the second gate was vast, and contained the main temple, behind which, there were several pagodas and stupas. Further down, there was a separate temple, separated by a small wall and another gate.
Mother of all temples and Bali’s holiest sanctuary. Many guidebooks available in 2007 warned about (hence de facto advised against) travelling this weaving road up to Pura Besakih. They described at length how horrible the local guides were, how dishonest, how nagging, how pushing, etc. The guidebooks were wrong. Yes, there were a few people trying to sell postcards at the temples and some guys who tried to tag along hoping to get a job of a guide. But the guides were less persisting than the vendors and the entire experience of walking along the temples were superb.
The Pura Besakih is actually a group of some twenty temples situated at a steep-ish slope of a mountain. They are all great and the atmosphere around them is unique. There are always many worshippers around and a number of ceremonies take place at some of the temples everyday.
The locals take their religious devotion very seriously and when I visited it was forbidden for non-worshippers (Balinese people who did not arrive specifically to pray were also not allowed) to enter the temples. I did not mind that as all them could be admired from the paths. And if I wanted to take a closer photograph, I could do so from the doorstep of the entrances. No-one had a problem with that.
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Aug 22, 2007 02:00 PM Bali - Sanur
Posher and quieter than Kuta and Seminyak. Although the hotels are more expensive and deteriorate steadily year by year, the restaurants in Sanur are more value for money than the ones on the west coast.
Sanur is also much better organised than the west coast towns. The main street runs parallel to the beach and there is a beachfront promenade lined up with beach bars and beach restaurants. Some of them are adjacent to the hotels or are hotel restaurants, but it does not matter since anyone can come there and dine or have a drink.
Then, at the back of the hotels, there are other restaurants, bars and shops. It is much easier to navigate Sanur. There are less clubs and the eateries and cafes are more classic than trendy. However it does not matter. They often offer tastier meals and cost less than in Kuta or Seminyak.
One afternoon I kept walking from one beachfront restaurant to another trying to establish whether they would have grilled lobsters and how much they would charge me. Somehow I had this strange urge for a garlic grilled lobster and freshly grilled, crisp squid. I could not explain it. I just wanted it, almost as if I really needed it.
The Benno’s restaurant, where I tried excellent squid was the first one I asked. They said that they do not have it on the menu, but they contact their acquaintance who was a fishermen and ask i he had any. I requested therefore that they did that. They did. It turned out that they could get almost any amount of live lobsters and grill them for me. It would cost me 350,000 rupiahs for 1000 grammes of lobster. I thought it was a little steep and told them that I needed to think about it. What I meant was that I was going to check with other restaurant along the beach and see if there was going to be anyone who could outbid them.
I asked three other restaurants and checked menus of three more. None of them offered live lobsters but claimed that those they had were alive in the morning but were killed and put in the freezer/fridge. They wanted about half the price Benno’s quoted.
The best offer came from Bonsai Cafe, the restaurant managed by my hotel, Sari Sanur Resort. They offered grilled lobster for 212,000 rupiahs per kilogram and included rice and salad in the price. In addition, their grilled squid was 8,500 rupiahs per 100 grammes, which compared with 22,000 rupiahs demanded by some of the chefs. Clearly this one was the winner. Well, winner by price. Whether they possessed any grilling skills was to still to be discovered.
It was seemed like half of the female population on Bali were masseuses. Every hundred yards or so, a group of four to six middle-aged women would shout at a passing tourist - ‘massage?’; ‘you want massage?’.
Surprisingly many tourist do fall in this trap. The ‘massage’ is an awful oil smearing and dubious smothering. The woman would bend over or sit on a flattened deck chair, apply some oil and them move her palm across the tourist’s back. It looked revolting, since it was so obvious that the masseuses had absolutely no idea what they were doing. It looked more like they were simply stroking the tourists like cats. It was so horrible that it almost ruined my appetite completely. The fatter and more obese, or worse - the hairier a tourist was, the more disturbing the sight was, particularly when the ‘masseuse’ would simply look out boringly to the sea rather than concentrate on the muscles or work on someone’s flabby arse grimacing badly.
It gives me shivers only to be writing about it. There is no way I can adequately describe what I was seeing and how excruciating it was.
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Aug 21, 2007 02:00 PM Bali - Legian, Pura Taman
I did not manage to avoid Legian, the stretch of the beach, which was attacked in 2002 by the terrorists. It is a vast beach. It runs for several kilometres and is soiled with countless beach hustlers, from fake watch sellers to fake massage masseuses.
That is during the day. In the evening, just before sunset, the beach becomes very full with amateur footballers. I mean packed. The sandy football pitches run back to back for several kilometres. It is then impossible to walk along the shore. The guys take no notice to anyone. Just kick the ball in ever which direction that helps them win.
In addition, (although I do not know whether this happens everyday) small kids train karate. I saw them practising on Sunday! It was great watching them. They were making some cool moves and dozens of them all at once - synchronised.
Until my last night on Bali, which I spent in the Legian - Seminyak region, I have not seen a sunset. It was either due to weather or me being at the wrong beach, which was facing east and not west. The Legian sunset was spectacular. The sun did not kiss the ocean, but disappeared behind a layer of clouds, however this made a great effect.
I found a local beach bar, got myself a large bottle of local lager and watched how the colours of the sky and clouds changed from blue and white to grey to orange to red to burgundy and purple. The guys were still playing football creating interesting silhouettes. It was a good sundowner.
I took a ride with a taxi to some nearby temples. This temple in Mengwi is amongst the most striking ones on Bali. It is large and well organised. It is surrounded by a moat and the complex contains a small royal temple, which was off limits for the public and a large, public one. The large one is a great one. It has a gate, similar to all temple gates on the island, and a row of stupas, whose height rises systematically from the smallest at the beginning of the temple, just behind the gate, to the tallest at the very back.
Although no access was allowed when I visited, I was allowed to go around the temple and admire it from behind a small wall. I could see almost everything and take some photographs. The pictures did not come out too great, because I could not position myself correctly to achieve the right composition or exposure and weather was particularly bad. Grey skies turned out on the photos as white and I struggled with the light measurement. Anyhow, I did enjoy the visit to certain extent, despite all the inconveniences.
The next temple I went to see was a large and fully accessible Pura Pusering Jagat in Pejeng. It was supposed to house a gigantic bronze drum. I could not find it anywhere in the temple or its vicinity. It was a great disappointment, because otherwise the temple was not very special. It was very different from the previous one, but not so different from many other Balinese temples around.
There was no admission fee to this temple although donation was expected. The lady, who maintained the donation book, bullishly inquired if the 10,000 rupiahs was for all three of us or only for the one who made the book entry. That was very cheeky, because the official entry fee to the larger and prettier temple Pura Taman was 3,000 rupiahs.
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Aug 20, 2007 02:00 PM Bali - Seminyak
At first sight, Seminyak looked very chaotic to me. I was under the impression that all the great shops, bars, clubs and restaurants were located at very random places and that there was no logic to their placement anywhere. Well, I was right and I was wrong (about this later).
Yes, the greatest places for eating, drinking, clubbing and shopping were oddly positioned outside the beach. There was no convenient waterfront walkway or promenade in the Kuta-Legian-Seminyak area since the resorts and hotels were built near the beaches and took considerable space inland, hence making it impossible for any business aimed at the general public to be located there.
Instead, shopping strips and the mix of eateries, bars and night clubs positioned themselves along narrow and weaving lanes leading from and parallel to the beach/beach hotels. So, it was often hard to find the right way to the popular Eat & Drink Streets. However as soon as they were found, the number of places to go out was impressive, and the streets appear to have no end. That was convenient.
And, once one is aware of the reasons and develops a vague picture of the streets’ layout in their head, some of it begins to make sense, and it becomes easier to navigate the way through without having to take taxis for embarrassing short distances, which were happily overcharging for those rides.
I thought it was illogical at first, because on my very first day, I turned from one of few top end beach bars into a wrong lane. I walked and walked and walked and passed through rather rustic areas and rice fields. And I expected the shopping strips to be there instead. I could not believe where I was! I was so disappointed with Seminyak, which came so highly recommended from some of my acquaintances.
There were three streets in Seminyak area leading towards the beachfront hotels, along which the funky bars, clubs, cafes and boutiques were open. They were: Oberoi, Double Six and parts of Abimanyu and Raya Seminyak. Some of the bars and clubs looked very promising, they had great trendy decor and atmospheric lighting but when I passed by them, they were all empty. Perhaps 10:30 in the evening was much too early for anyone. I found later that the parties did kick off later, but also the number of tourists was not great.
The two beach bars, which I visited in Seminyak were the hyper funky Ku De Ta and rather boring Gado-Gado. The former was a combination of a restaurant, a bar, a cafe and perhaps a way of life. It was a very expensive place, though. And I think it was legitimate. The owners wanted to attract only the wealthier crowd and it most definitely worked. The lot that came there to chill, watch the beach, have lunch and drinks looked rather posh. When they were in-taking sunrays vegging on the reclined deck chairs, they did it topless regardless of gender. However, when they stood up and sit down at the table for a meal, they would dress us in cocktail dresses and shirts with cufflinks.
Yet, very bizarrely, the establishment allowed a fat OZ guy, almost completely naked, dripping with sun lotion leaving streaks of white greasy substance on his hairy body, to sit down at one of the tables amongst the slightly overdressed posers, celebrities and new-money rich. I was so glad that I have already finished my lunch by the time he arrived, otherwise I would most definitely threw up pretty badly. It was one of the most disturbing sights I have ever seen. I was terrified that it might haunt me in my sleep in the future.
I thought I ought to check some of the better looking clubs in Seminyak. However, at about 10:30 pm I was falling on my face. I had no idea why I was so unusually tired. I really wanted to see what the fuss was all about, and yet my body was failing me. It does not happen often, so I began worrying that perhaps I was not jet lag free as I thought I was. Fortunately, my last night on Bali I was also staying in Seminyak, so I still had a chance to check the clubs out.
And, when I came back I completely changed my mind about Seminyak! Nightlife there was unrivalled and the choice for restaurants was excellent. Some of the better ones looked like palaces! The boutiques, the shops, the day clubs, the night clubs, the cafes, the pubs, the juice bars... yeah!
I guess Seminyak starts making sense after sunset. The shivering candle lights in all the fun places made the spots irresistible. Many lured customers with happy and crazy hours offering double drinks, etc. My problem was that I could not possibly check all of them out. Oh, yeah, but I would love to!
Obsesion Bar, yes it is its correct spelling, was the one I tried. It was completely empty. No customers whatsoever. The DJ was putting superb tunes and about 45 minutes was left of the happy hours. I started with a questionable coconut drink, which did not taste like coconut. It had, among other ingredients, a mix of Havana Club Anejo Reserva and Malibu rums. It was strong, but I decided to switch to mojitos. The tattooed bartender, Made, must have been a star on Bali. His mojito was perfect, it was strong and minty. Sugar was taking a bit too long to dissolve to my liking, but I cannot say it was a flaw.
I sat at the bar and the DJ let me copy the excellent Smoma’s ‘Something to Remember’ album. It is a covers album but the chill out versions of the songs were superb.
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Aug 19, 2007 02:00 PM Lombok - Kuta, Malimbu, Sade
The next day, it seemed that everyone in Senggigi knew me. Those local guys, including street sellers, knew my name. They also knew that I was from London and some of them called me David Beckham. I really, really had to cringe very badly to that. Arrgh!
Well, I went to the Papaya Cafe twice, I mean both nights. The second night, I solidified my opinion that the bands playing live there have either excellent players or some phenomenal singers. Even before I downed ten Chill Out Baby’s drinks (based on coconut liqueur), I managed to appreciate the quality. The blues and rock’n’roll night was particularly good for vocals. A lady, larger than life, could sing anything - all sitting on a stool. I was genuinely impressed. And I am not easily impressed.
Almost all the waiting staff and the bartenders at Papaya were very friendly. One of the guys was definitely too friendly, but I think I managed to manage him. They all obviously knew my name and did introduce themselves to me, but I never remembered their names.
I asked one of the bartenders about rupiah coins for my father’s collection. At that time, there was only 500 rupiah coin in use, but he managed to collect some more for me the next day. He, at the other had (and more cleverly, I guess) was collecting various banknotes. Banknotes of world’s currencies. As it happened I had banknotes from South Africa, Botswana, USA Eurozone, Singapore, the United Kingdom, Bulgaria, Georgia, The Gambia, and Botswana in my wallet. I told him that I would give him the banknote of 20 leva of Bulgaria, if he correctly identified it. It took him all night to investigate and he still could not find out what country the money was from. He took a picture of it and said he was going to ask his friends the next day. No-one knew. I ended giving the banknote to him anyway. He bought me a couple of Chill Out Baby’s (which I suspect might actually be on the house).
The Marina bar, which came recommended by some of the locals, who apparently knew me was seriously terrible. It was a weird combination of a gay bar, whore house and meat market (pick-up joint). I stayed there for one drink only. My choice was mojito but I am pretty sure that it was a virgin mojito, which did not contain its main ingredient - rum. I had to ask the bartender to check it for me. He did try it and had no choice but to agree with me. Allegedly he put some rum subsequently, however I had to ask him to sell me another shot of rum. I really did not appreciated the attempt that a thimble would be sufficient to a mojito expert like me!
Malimbu is a popular spot for fresh coconut drink as a sun downer. From the hill before the Malimbu beach two Gilli islands are visible. And many people who did not go to the islands go to Malimbu to have a glance at them. However the crescent beach with green hills behind it make a perfect holiday picture. I predict that not long from now, there will be a hotel situated at the beach, which is currently underused. It is a perfect spot, really. The beach is surrounded by green hills and dark volcanic rocks looming out of the sea, and so the beach is shielded from the wind.
Able, one of the guys, who apparently knew me, took me there on his motorbike. Although it is a legal requirement, none of us had helmets and my travel insurer would pound on my head if they knew what I was doing.
Sade is a small Sasak village in south-western Lombok. It is a good example of Sasak architecture. The 150 houses provide roof for 700 people, who are all related to one other. So, Sade is like a large family compound. The villagers are allowed to marry outsiders, but it is much more expensive. The marriage in the village costs three chickens, compared with three cows if outside.
When I arrived, a young guy approached me and said that he would be my guide. I took him, because I wanted to take some photos and it is easier if accompanied by a guide. I also think that it was the village policy anyway, that outsiders should be escorted at all times.
Entrance to the village is officially free but a schoolboy at the gate asks for donations, which are of course recorded in the book.
The inhabitants of Sade have two main jobs and two auxiliary jobs. The main ones are: farming and weaving done by men and women, respectively. And the other two are: village official guide (assigned to males only) and handicraft souvenirs for sale, which can be done by both sexes. The souvenirs are usually small horn carvings sold as key ring decorations and necklaces.
When I went down to Kuta in the south to see a beach there, I did not expect much. It was going to be a beach. There were actually a few beaches there and all of them were near perfect. They were nicely crescent, and their coral sands felt incredible.
I took my camera out and began snapping. As soon as I stepped out of the car, a group of young girls with batiks and sarongs on their heads closed on me like a pack of wolves. When I spotted them, I began running away, like a sheep. They did not find it very amusing. Little do they realise that I did not enjoy they approaching me like that either. I was not planning to buy anything and they did not want to understand that.
Mister, buy one batik from me!, one of them insisted.
I do not want one, I said.
Why you don’t want? Is good price, she replied.
It’s not a matter of price, I riposted. I simply do not need one.
But you need, or your wife or daughter need. Buy one for her, she nagged.
No! I protested. They do not need one and I do not buy things I do not want or do not need. Do you buy things you don’t want or you don’t need? I asked.
No, she responded a little confused.
You see my point then, right?
So, maybe you buy later, OK? She asked like the last twenty seconds of the conversation never happened.
No! I said. I will not buy anything from you. I do not need anything and do not want anything. Please leave me alone. Thank you. Good-bye.
And that was not the end of it. She kept insisting and following me. I had to stop paying any attention and just be busy with my camera. Eventually, I asked my driver to take me to the Novotel Resort, on the beach next door. It is the only five star resort in Kuta. And I think things will change. The new international airport (BIL) is being built some 15 minutes drive from the southern beaches and over 1 hour drive from Senggigi. And also weather in Kuta was much, much better than in Mataram and Senggigi.
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