Where to find furniture in Kuta Bali

Riding downtown today I saw a Pecalang guy (bajar traffic police) standing on the upper corner of Jl. Seminyak and Jl. Raya Kuta.

Rounding the bend I saw an enormous procession underway in which all the participants were wearing black and one guy was being carried on a throne. Traffic was thick and I had nowhere to pull over but managed to squeeze off a couple of shots while in the middle of the road.

Here in Bali everything stops for festivals and ceremonies and as a visitor you are likely to see a procession or ceremony. They are not by the way for the benefit of tourists although for the most part locals are happy to have foreignors watch.

I had a few erands to do and riding around Jl. Tunjung Mekar, the ‘loop’ towards the bottom of Jl. Legian, I stopped for a quick look at the stuff I pass everyday. Jl. Tunjung Mekar is lined with places making and selling furniture and handicrafts. The road is a racetrack for anyone on a motorbike but having stopped I saw what a great place it is for someone looking for wooden furniture. Guys were busy at work in front of me making cabinets, tables and even London telephone boxes.

Some place specialize in modern western style furniture, others in old Dutch style furniture.

Balinese style statues and carvings abound in the handicraft shops there that specialize in decorative items rather than the ‘little bit of everything’ that the handicraft shops on Poppies II sell.

Mick Turnbull went to Jakarta last year to shop for furniture and ended up buying a load of it from a shop on Jl. Dhyana Pura here in Bali! He’s shipped it back to Australia and saved a lot of money. I reckon you could find some decent stuff on this street too.

For those people thinking of buying a heap of stuff and sending it back home remember shipping is cheaper than air freight and you pay by the cubic meter, weight is unimportant. A friend of mine Mark Platt, who had lived in Bali for over 20 years is an expert in sourcing antiques and shipping.

For those people staying in Seminyak who want to check out Jl. Tunjung Mekar simply take a taxi down Jl. Legian towards Kuta and you will swing past it on the way. For those staying in the Poppies Lane area simply walk up Jl. Legian towards Legian and when you come to the right turn opposite the BNI bank that’s Jl. Tunjung Mekar.

One thing I’ve heard about some of the wooden items made here in Bali is that they look great but are not the best put together. Be sure to shop around and check the sturdiness.