Sunday here in Bali means the roads are less trafficed as many people take the time to visit relatives or go to the beach.
The weather is so lovely now with cool mornings and evenings, the only reason I use my ceilnig fan is to dilute the noise from Amnesia night club that wafts over to me. That blanket I bought in Lombok is now a permanent fixture on my bed and is the perfect thickness.
The 26th Bali Arts Festival started yesterday in Denpasar and features exhibitions of Balinese culture and dance. The festival runs till July 17th.
I bought my neighbor Lorenzo a bottle of Italian wine yesterday and left it on his doorstep. He taped a note to my door this morning saying he was saving it and we would drink it together. I look forward to that!
I rode over to Sanur this afternoon for a walk along the beach. Sanur is a safer place to swim than Legian or Seminyak because the big waves don’t crash right on the beach but furthur out.
Sanur beach attracts many European visitors as well as locals on the weekends and beach vendors are set up water sport equipment. Here in Sanur the vendors can come right down to he water unlike on Kuta Beach where they can’t venture past the high tide mark.
I asked this lady in Indonesian how long she had worked at the beach and what days she’s here. She told me she comes on weekends only. I asked the price per hour for her canoes and rubber rings and she said “Local price, 5,000rp.”
Walking down the beach I asked vendors with similar equipment how much to rent their gear and got answers ranging from 50,000rp for the canoe and 15,000rp for the rubber ring to 20,000rp for the canoe and 10,000rp for the ring. Guess what, if I ever come here and want to rent a canoe I’m going to look for the lady first of all. If she’s not around I’m going to tell these guys straight ‘look buddy I know the deal…its 5,000rp, take it or shake it.’
These local kids were flying what looked like home made kites and were doing a good job.
Sanur is a straight shot from Kuta on the Bypass. The roundabout at Simpang Siur in Kuta (next to Planet Hollywood in the lower right part of the map) sends you off in an easterly direction and coming from Kuta you will enter Sanur from the south. The beach can be accessed from major intersections at Jl. Segara and Jl. Hang Tuah. Parking for motorbikes is 500rp.
Back in Kuta I stopped at Bamboo Corner on Poppies I for a meal. I chose their ’sliced fish’ for 12,000rp. It came with chips and veg and was better than I expected.
The flood drain project in Kuta is moving along with workers going at it 7 days a week and some teams finishing at midnight. Here they are taking a group coffee break. For those familiar with Kuta here’s a shot of the scene outside my office…I mean Internet Outpost. Here’s a view of the state of Poppies II outside Kori Restaurant looking towards Jl. Legian.
I am heading home to work on some maps I am making.
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G’Day Nick,
What a lovely way to spend a Sunday!. Geez, PL2 is in a mess. Good for dirt-bike riding though!.
What kinds of maps are you creating Nick?. Yaitu, section maps of Bali or what?.
G’Day Nick,
Just checked out the 2 maps. Good for newcomers to Bali. Geez mate, you’re a cartographer in the making alright!
Nick/
The vendors on the beach have nobody but themselves to blame when they get to greedy. The lady with the canoes and rubber rings who quoted you 5000 rp to the other vendors with their vastly inflated ‘lets rip the rich kid off prices’ just show you that you have to look around….i like the pun Nick ‘Take it or shake it Buddy’ …i will have to try that one on the train on the way home tonight Nick….i will offer the Ticket Inspector £1.00 and tell him to take it or shake it Bud…ha ha…yes Nick you are dead right though mate. Its one thing contributing towards helping the Bali economy and another thing altogether being taken for some Numpty Head with geen back coloured contact lenses and a tatoo on the forehead saying ‘i am stuped’.
Regs Mark
A lovely Sunday in Portland, OR also. And I just returned from Portland State University’s Arts Festival. Not as colorful as the 26th Bali Arts Festival, but still, beautifully shaded, with live entertainment and, some food, and lots of stunning craft items.