Korean Job Discussion Forums

[Mr. BlackCat]

Hello all,

I've got a friend who has a hook-up to a good deal in Bali in late July. But because money is precious, I've got some questions.

Are there true cultural experiences to be had on the island? I mean, I'm all for beaches, but over two weeks I'd like to visit some sites and have some contact with locals. Which leads me to my next question...

Is Bali just a resort? Like, are the hotels just fenced off and we're the rich folk who get to use the beaches? I don't like that picture. I've never really been on a holiday like this, so sorry if I sound ignorant on the whole thing. Sincerely. I just don't understand the whole thing, so some clarification would be appreciated.

I'm not just some pretentious art boob, though. Is snorkelling good there? Parties? Are there opportunities to hire a fishing/sightseeing boat? Is July a good time?

Finally, I've had limited (read: NO) experience with Indonesian food. Please share.

Actually, please share everything. I get so little time off and have so little money. I need all the advice I can get! I'd love to island hop, but my bank account and calendar say no.

I also realize that it depends where I stay. I'm not quite sure yet (we have choices) so suggestions are welcome. My understanding is that the island is small enough. Correct me if I'm wrong.

Basically, if you've been to Bali tell me everything.

Thanks in advance!

[Fofazoju]

To be honest with you, I found the beaches to be somewhat of a let-down and had more cultural experiences when I went there. I too had no idea what to expect and thought it was gonna be all beaches but I didnt find that to be the case. Of course, you COULD go all along the coast and hit the "beaches" but a lot of it is surfing anyways.

You are right, the island is VERY small so it is possible to see a lot of it fairly cheaply. You will want to hit Kuta for the partying (obviously) HOWEVER, I found better bars to be a little further north in Seminyak. The bars in Kuta were good, but depending on your age/sex (and I mean yes Im looking or no Im not looking , you will feel like you are in Fort Lauderdale on Spring Break. The bars in Seminyak are a little more classier. And no, not expensive. The one bar I went to was playing Latin music all night and I had some grilled mahi mahi, hummus and some wine for under $7 or something crazy.

Also there ARE resorts but there are a FAR greater number of cheap hotels. Yes the resorts had it closed off and even had guards at night along the beach! But really, its not THAT big of a deal and Im sure in the daytime you can go swimming there (this was NORTH Seminyak....known for the priciest hotels and restaurants. And by pricey I mean maybe $10/meal instead of $2).

There is great snorkeling all along Bali. I didnt go tho so I cannot really give you a good spot. From what I understand Nusa Lembognan (the island to the east of Bali) has good snorkeling. I took a private boat over and it cost me $15. BUT if you get a bunch of ppl going with you it is cheaper. ALSO is you go from Sanur is it cheaper (I went from PandangBai where they dont typically go...which is why I had to rent a private boat). Going island hopping is very cheap. Its like anywhere in SE Asia.

And Indonesian food OH MY GOD is amazing. LOVE it! Nasi Campur, Nasi Goreng (I'm probably spelling them wrong), satay, Gado Gado. SOOO good. And again, CHEAP! You can get a totally decent meal for $2. And these are NICE places. The cheapest I did was $2 for me AND my driver to eat (and that included soda). But that was a TOTAL local joint. But do not worry about the prices when you are there. Bali is CHEAP.

Here is the route I took. And I found it to be pretty good:

Started in Kuta (because its like 5 mins from airport). Stayed there for 3 days (while I was there I did Tanah Lot - which I could have skipped to be honest), Ulu Watu - thats on the South tip (they have Sunset Kecek Dance daily at 6 or so - must see). You could can all around to Nusa Dua but I never did. Then after Kuta, I went to Ubud for 4 days. Ubud was GREAT, especially for shopping. If you go to Kuta there will be tonnes of shopping and depending on what ytou like, I found the shopping to be better in Ubud (Seminyak again has good shopping).

Ubud was great for the cultural thing. Saw some dances there, took a cooking class, took a wood carving class, went along to ALL the shops there. Ubud is also a nice place to base yourself because you are close to many other things. If you are into silver, you can make your own jewlery in Celuk (JUST south of Ubud) for fairly cheap. There is a great Tourist Information spot on main road. PLENTY of tours you can sign up for. The place I stayed was great. They offered day tours for about $15 and you could see like 4 different spots. GOOD deal (tho I never did them - I had own personal driver

Aound Ubud you could do some places like Goa Gajah (elephant cave), Taroh (30 mins north of Ubud) has an Elephant Safari park (was OK but again, could skip and wasnt worth the money), Tampaksiring has Ganung Kawi which is a nice little area. Also the rice fields are Ubud are GREAT. Just find a path or ask a local and you within 10 mins out of the city you will be surronded by them.

Good lord can you tell I work in a public school haha LOTS of time on my hands.

What else....oh I went to the volcano Mt. Batur - GREAT area. I would recommend staying a few days there and climbing the mountain. I didnt get a chance to but I wish I did. They have morning hikes where they pick you up at like 3 am and you hike it to see the sunrise. If you are up there you could always hit up Lovina. It is supposed to be a great chillout beach town. Its pretty close.

I also went to Bedugul where there is a "picture perfect" temple there and it really was. There was a nice lake area and the whole place was beautiful.

After that I hit up Amed on the northern east coast. Now this isnt really a party town but luckily the night I was there there was a live band which was super fun. Its a total relaxed place with not a lot of tourists but enough where you can still get what you want. The beach wasnt that good for swimming though from what I found. Mostly dark sand, kinda rocky.

Pendangbai had a nice small beach. Candidasa has NO beach now because something about how they chose to fish or something. My driver english no very good So I didnt really get it. But it was a VERY pretty spot to sit and enjoy some gado gado

Hmmm what else. I think thats it. I do think you should rent a boat and head over to Nusa Lembognan, OR you could do Lombok. It takes 4 hours but I also heard there is a lot of crime and people arent very nice over there. So ...i dont know. If you like to dive though, apparently it is a great diving spot.

I think thats it. Basically Bali is cheap, the ppl ARE nice BUT because tourism is their main source of income, be prepared to hear a LOT of "taxi?, where r you going? Massage? Manicure?" It got old VERY fast. But it is a beautiful country. If you do rent a car, get the driver to go down some side roads....OH and rent a motorbike if you can! THAT is HANDS down the best way to see Bali. You can rent one easily if you have your international drivers liscence.

Ok I think I have carpal tunnel now. PM if any q's