Denpasar, Bali, Indonesia

(Photos to folllow)

Sometimes one ends up in a less than desirable place but nevertheless spends quite a few days there. Denpasar is such a place as for example, was Guaymas, Mexico a few years ago. In the current circumstance Denpasar is the main airport in Bali and is the first transit point. I have stayed here because of the holiday travel and because a lot of accommodation is fully booked. So I have to adjust and use a place like this as a base for exploring and/or a place to recuperate. It is a welcome opportunity to stop traveling so much.

I flew from Chiang Mai to Denpasar, Bali, Indonesia on 27 Dec 2011 via Luala Lumpur where I had a long six hour wait. The problem with booking multi - point travel, especially if entering a different country is you don't know how much time to allot between connecting flights given various wait times at check in, security customs and immigration and allowing for what seems like the inevitable delayed departure time. There were two options at KL for onward to Denpasar. One scheduled departure at 4:30 and one at 6:30. As it turned out the flight from Chiang Mai was close to on time and Malaysia immigration (required even though only in transit) was speedy and there was lots of time to make the 4:30 which oddly enough for Air Asia, also departed nearly on time. I had booked on the 6:30 with Air Asia, and even if there had been a seat on the 4:30 and I had wanted to change, I would have had to absorb the cost of the 6:30 ticket and purchase a new 4:30 ticket as there is no refunds or cancellations. So I stayed with the 6:30 ticket and it departed about one hour late.

Anyway after arriving late, getting my Indonesian “Visa on Arrival” at the immigration (with a little kick back to the immigration officer to avoid two line ups) and a long 85000 rupiah taxi ride I got to my 1/2 star hotel, Adi Yasah . There was no one about, so I walked up the street and found a couple of guys sitting and chatting in a playground and asked if they knew where a telephone might be located. I explained about arriving at Hotel, hoping they would understand. The one guy seemed to know what I was talking about and motioned for me to follow. I thought he was just going to show me where the Hotel was but he took me in and got me in my room as if he owned the place. As I found out the next day I discovered he did own it, or his son did ( I am not too clear but the hotel had been in the family for a few generations). It is an old hotel in an area close to the core of Denpasar and close to the government tourist information office. Seven generations of this family have lived here and the 66 year old father and his only son operate it now. He has a daughter married and living in Vancouver.

I had selected this hotel after reviewing a list of budget accommodation on Wikitravel and had booked on line and alerted that I would have a late arrival. Because it is peak season here a lot of places have upped their room rates, so there are few budget alternatives. I wasn't expecting much and I wasn't disappointed.

My first morning I had an expensive, abundant and tasty breakfast at Inna Bali (high end). They had Wi-Fi. So since I have the password, I have been using the curbside outside their hotel for my internet connections ever since. However, because it is the rainy season, it is not always possible to do that.

Many streets here in Denpasar are narrow and clogged with handle bar to handle bar, noisy, polluting motorbike traffic mixed with other vehicular traffic. The sidewalks are hazardous as they are broken up and have frequent step ups and downs and are generally obstructed with trees, vendors, garbage and parked vehicles and signs. A lot of eating places are open to the street so it is not advisable, in my opinion to eat their food as I suspect it contains a healthy dose of hydrocarbon emissions. The main thoroughfares are just as bad for traffic but they do have the occasional traffic light.

Getting around Denpasar is probably the most difficult for me that I have experienced. There is no public transit and no organized taxi services . Walking is difficult because of the condition of the sidewalks and the clogged streets and lack of traffic signals. In addition street names change often, even though it is the same street and lastly, street signs, when in existence, are perpendicular to the street at intersections and not parallel as is the usual practice in every other place I have been. And only one street will be named and not the two intersecting streets. Apparently there are bemos – collective type vehicles which you flag down and, if they are going in the direction you want to go, you hop on and pay an agreed price that usually depends on passenger count. However I have read that these bemos are very difficult to use because they go in every which way and personally I haven't even seen them or at least I have not recognized them.

I have been doing my usual walking around. It is generally quite pointless to ask anyone about directions. The best source is probably the large hotels where I did get a map (sort of). For example there were three traffic policemen at the main intersection of the city and I asked where the government tourist information office was located or where I could get a map. I figured because they were traffic police they would know. No one knew – it turned out the tourist office was within two blocks on the same street and next door to a police station. At the tourist office they were very helpful and I got a couple of maps. The streets that are named on the maps are unreadable because of the the miniature print and most of the streets have no names. Fortunately they show hotels, temples and police stations by numbers on the map against a legend on the side and bottom and that serves as a guide until I familiarize with the streets.

On my first few walkabouts I was quite taken by all the Hindu temples and structures as it was quite a contrast from the fields of Wats in Thailand. However interest soon wanes as familiarity breeds contempt and the Hinduism just becomes part of the background. Apparently, according to the hotel owner, every Hindu family has a temple. The hotel family have their temple where the father's father and grandfather are. There is quite an impressive place around the corner that I thought was a temple but the hotelier told me it was the home of a wealthy family and they did have a temple within their compound.

For the past few days the government has been holding festivals to promote Denpasar and so one section of the city was turned into a food exhibit and another street was home of textile exhibits. See www.denpasar-festival.com. I have been eating at two of the places. Rujak Sayur (spicy vegetarian dish) for Rp8000 with Mangga drink (Mango) for Rp5000 and Nasi (Rice) Kuning with egg, peanuts and veggie and bottled tea for Rp8000; nasi and peanuts only for Rp5000. (compared to breakfast at Inna Bali at 65000 Rp) There is about 8800 Rp for one Canadian dollar.