Returning to Bali

Returning to Bali for me was a mixture of feelings and senses.

I had been away in Portland Oregon for 3 weeks and London for 1 week. The winter weather was a bit of a shock to the system and I remember getting my hair cut in Portland. The lady said to me &#39are you under a lot of stress?&#39 &#39Why?&#39 I asked. &#39When you are under stress the first thing that shows it is the largest organ in your body, your skin, and the part that shows the most is your scalp. Your scalp is totally dried out.&#39 I think the quick change from the tropics to northern winter made my pores and muscles tighten up. There were health benefits too of being in a cold climate, no pollen in the air which meant no sneezing and much better air quality, even in London.

Like many people I watched the mounting death toll from the South Asian tsunami rise and friends had asked my parents if I was okay. My mother who tends to over react was worried in case the airlines had cancelled my flight from Hong Kong to Bali and I would be stranded. Things for me went smoothly though the scale of the disaster was still revealing itself. I have almost drowned in a rip tide myself and can imagine some of the terror the people went through. I made a small donation to UNICEF on the plane and hope it helps push things in the right direction.

Arriving back in Bali I had to re-adjust again and the heat which I was looking forward to. As usual the cultural anomalies were quick to show themselves. Passing through immigration at the airport I had tucked 100,000rp inside my passport hoping that this &#39little something&#39 would take care of my lack of an onward ticket. Handing my passport to the officer behind the desk I watched him flick through it and find the money. &#39Is this meant for me?&#39 he asked accusingly. &#39I don&#39t know.&#39 I said. &#39Do you mean to give me money for something.&#39 He said. &#39Its up to you.&#39 I replied, worried that this guy was going to turn me in for attempting to bribe an officer. &#39I found this money in your passport and was just asking if its meant for me or not.&#39 he said. &#39Yes, yes, its for you.&#39 I said, understanding that he was only checking that we were on the same page. I should of remembered that &#39backsheesh&#39 is so common here that making my intentions obvious is important. Next time I will leave it flapping out of the passport for everyone to see.

A taxi ride back to Seminyak took about 35 minutes due to a traffic jam on the Bypass. Looking outside I could see the fumes coming from buses and trucks, there really are no controls on emissions over here and the contrast to the west is apparent.

Arriving home in Seminyak the place looked overgrown with plants. In my month away everything in the garden had grown about a foot and the green fungus that grows on walls had spread.

My girlfriend Ika was at home and we caught up. My trip had taken me around the world with some pretty good layovers (all night in LA, all night in Chicago and all night in Hong Kong). Air travel is fun for a while but I’m glad to be back and am looking forward to doing great things with Baliblog in 2005.

• Bali airport: An easy place to arrive
• Arriving in Bali
• VOA: Let’s see how it works
• Be Aware of Your Wares
• Dealing with visas in Bali

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