Sunday morning I rode over to Café Moka on Jalan Seminyak for my usual Coffee Lovers breakfast ( Kopi Bali, bread basket, water ) which costs 12,000rp.
The place was empty at 10am. Many people here are late nighters and stay out at the nightclubs till 6am or so.
At Moka they give you little saucers of butter and jam. I finished my jam and walked over to the counter. “Some lagi” I said which is incorrect but I thought it would be easily understood to mean ‘some more’. I sat down and the waiter brought me a little pot, inside it contained honey (some honey). Next time I’ll just say ‘jam’.
I had an 11am appointment with a friend of mine named Mark who is originally from New Jersey and has lived out year for years. I visited Mark’s house in my first week in Bali, introduced by another friend and was amazed by his house. Mark is an antique expert and helps people find items, furniture, textiles, stone work etc. that can be classed as an antique.
His house is packed full of stuff and I remember thinking ‘ this guy is Indiana Jones’. Mark has travelled all over the country and has connections in Java, Lombok, Sumbawa and other places.
For the average visitor Bali is bursting at the seams with carvings, textiles and furniture, you can see it all over Kuta and up in Ubud. What’s the difference between the expensive stuff and the junk? Most of the stuff you’ll see in nick-nack shops on Jalan Legian and Poppies Lane sell Balinese handicrafts that have been made cheaply within the last few months. These are not antiques. If someone is doing carvings in Ubud, those are not antiques either, those are new. Getting to the people and places where the antiques are requires local knowledge and also knowledge of the industry.
Mark told me most of the antique stuff comes from all over the country and not especially Bali. His job is to guide buyers and smooth people’s shopping experiences. He’s told me stories galore of westerners coming in waving money and receipts from past transactions trying to impress. All that does is tell the locals they have money.
To me a lot of the old stuff has an almost ‘ unfinished‘ look and seems somewhat crude in fact. Often in a hotel lobby you’ll see a huge table of some other piece with flowers and other decorations on. That’s when you see how it can be used.
Mark is heading off to Thailand soon for a shopping expedition and is available to guide people here in Bali and source specific items.
Man its steamy over here now!
Here’s the latest info the visa restrictions.
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Hello Nick,
Is Mark live in Dalung? His face look familiar.
Visa restriction is a good idea, but how tourist and the visitor will think about it, will you do any survey to the tourist, visitors and locals?
Hi Bazza, Yeah Mark is basically a New Yorker and tells people to their face if they are bullshit. He has developed connections over a very long time and can save people a lot of headaches. Heused to work for ABC, the largest antique store in the world, which is located in NYC.
Juliana, Mark lives in Seminyak and does mot of his business in this area.
I can’t think of nay positive things about a visa restriction. It costs the tourists more money, meaning some just won’t come, it halves the time they can be hear meaning even if they come they will spend less. This is going to put a lot of local businesses out of business.
I don’t think I’ll do a poll, I can’t imagine anyone, tourist or local saying ‘what a fabulous idea!’. The only people in Bali who will be privately chering the restrictions are expats in non tourist related businesses. People who manufacture good for export. For those folks its all good, prices go down, there’s less people around to bug them, more elbow room, less traffic.
I know there be lots of tourist, visitor, and locals think it’s silly idea, even 80% of my self dislike this Indonesian goverment decision. I’m Balinese and what happend to the tourism industry in Bali is giving a big impact to me, my family and nearly every level of peoples in Bali which I really care and realised.
But with a bit of hope (as long as there’s no card game on the goverment’s desk) might we can see it in other ways that with visa restriction will improve the securities of Bali and Indonesia in general and bringing back the trust of the tourist and visitor to come back to Bali without fear.
I’m sure slowly everything will be back as normal, and it’s great that there are people like you, who’s very helful in advertising Bali.
Thanks (^-^)
Juliana, I hope things work out for the better. THe whole security thing is nonsence. Jemaah Islamiyah don’t come from Britain or Australia and can still drive across from Java as always. The governemnt’s use of security is playing on people’s fears ( just like other governments around th world).
Juliana,
I have the same view as Nick. There are no positive outcomes from introducing the new visa restrictions. Originally, this new visa crap was supposed to ‘pay for the security’ in Bali.
If you look back at history in Indonesia, yaitu, the Soeharto regime and through to the present day, it is not the poor people or those who struggle daily to earn a living that benefit from taxes. It’s ALWAYS the big dudes high up in government and big business.
Another scenario - IF, and only if, the whole or 70% of the money received from the new visas were put back into the Balinese community and even subsidised those wishing to start up a small business, then I feel quite sure tourists wouldn’t mind paying the fee.
Juliana, you know yourself that corruption in Indo will never be obliterated. So we have what they call a ‘Catch 22′ in the above scenario.
Getting back to the ‘now’. It would be far more costly for say, a family of four, to holiday in Indo if the new visa bullshit thingie is introduced. It’s far better to let things be, and then perhaps Bali can ‘heal’ slowly. The Indo government is only throwing a gigantic wrench into the works.
Hi Nick and Barrie,
Yes, i think you both are right. I was trying to be optimist with the “Bapak- bapak” behind the big chair. I’m
agree with you Barrie if only 70 % of the new visa money are put back into Balinese community the tourist would not mind to pay the fee, or if only the taxes income from tourism in Bali are subsidised to developed Bali and the poor childs education, but there’re will never be such a thing. We Balinese or generaly Indonesian are feed up with the words “WILL” ‘the goverment will do this,that….’,'President will do this and that…” but nothing happend. Terroris dont come from Britain or Australia I know that very well,I’m the Balinese girl who is very lucky to be hold and sponsored by Australian.
Thank you very much for both of you…
hey can someone help me with mark’s phone number or very easy way to get a hold of him when I come to bali from states on nov 17th?
could you please be kind enough to
give me more information of the whereabouts of mark as i was in seminyak and are going again hopefully in march and i would be interested in collecting more pieces
regards
mandy
Hello,
Does Mark have an email address or is there some way I can get in touch with him about buying some things from him. That would be great. Many thanks.
G’Day Nick,
What an incredible guy Mark is, and doing a great service to the visitors coming to Bali who wish to buy the authentic artifact.
According to my sources at Garuda, the new visa fee will probably be introduced on the 5th December.