Stranger in Paradise: Made Wijaya’s view of life in Bali

Australian Michael White came to Bali many years ago and became Made Wijaya. I have never met him but by all accounts he’s a character. Made has books on landscape gardening, a magazine called Poleng and a website, Stranger in Paradise. Made Wijaya is not trying to please everyone, which is what I like about him. Actually he often rips people for what he thinks they are up to. An example of his wit comes across in an article entiltled ‘Zen and Now’ which talks about the yuppification of design styles in Bali. He’s telling the truth man, people want to create houses that look like they are part of some weird Tom Cruise movie.

Tropical is still popular, but the whole lounge bar (Fuel) and restaurant (Ku De Ta) trend is towards a slick, impersonal look with mindless ‘Cafe Del Crap’ playing in the background. Check out Made Wijaya’s site and fire him off an email if you want to rip him a new asshole. He’ll probably enjoy it.