Bali

Prior to leaving for my Bali trip during the Raya holidays, I asked some colleagues who have made recent trips there how much I should bring and if I should convert them to USD or Ruppiah. The answer I got ranged from RM700 (???) to RM1500, to convert to Ruppiah. I can tell you here and now, they either lied or they *puasa-ed all the way during their trips there!!

Why?

Simply because it's a tourist destination. The locals hiked the prices up to 200% upon seeing a potential *waterfish!! That's when all the training I got when shopping in *Haadyai comes into good use - bargain like crazy! But fret not, most of the shops/outlets/stores/people there sell almost the same things so if the owner of a shop looks yucky, move on... :

- handicrafts
- wood/stone carvings
- t-shirts, *batik-styled clothes
- paintings
- cute stuffs
- aromatheraphy/smelly things to burn/put on your body/to display somewhere at home
- etc

There are some really nice shops in the more upmarket areas along the Kuta road to Seminyak, but they are quite expensive tho'. Perhaps I've had too high an expectation, coz I was a bit dissapointed that the place is not well-kept and quite polluted. Especially the Kuta town which has traffic crawling all the time! Since it's a one-way road on a single lane that has cars parked on both sides, a crash and everyone will be stuck in town for the rest of the day! Or rather, *gostan!!

But still, if you're a first timer in Bali, do visit the town just for the feel of it. It's quite a popular spot at night, especially Hard Rock Cafe which had a really long queue the day I was there (of course, I had better things to do than to wait in a 500m line!).

We hired a driver who took us around the island, stopping at some places of interest. Really worth it - from 8am to 10 pm, for only RM200!! On the remaining days, we just hanged out @ our hotel in Nusa Dua. Our hotel is very beautiful and has a wing that clings on to the cliff (well, looks like..) and another wing which spans across the beach. There are many swimming pools, and a giant water slide too! They nearly imposed a ban on me just so that I won't hog the slide every second!! Kidding. The beach is really nice... long stretch and all.. but hotel food is also quite expensive tho' :(

Bali food is nothing to shout about, just the ambience/atmosphere which is a bit different, especially if you visit those classy places like Bumbu Bali (expensive but worth the first try just to get an experience). My fav is Made's Warung which serves a variety of good and delicious food at reasonable prices. The place itself is pretty cool too.

So if you want to get away from the hustle and bustle of the city, go Bali! But if you're really rich, go Maldives!!!

*
puasa = fasting for Malays during the Ramadhan
waterfish = victims/someone who is easily lied to. ~ In this case, buyers who get 'special' tourist prices
Haadyai = a place in southern Thailand
batik = The art of decorating cloth using wax and dye; originates from the Javanese "tik", meaning dot.
gostan = reverse. Previously there was a heated debate in Penang about the construction of a one way flyover, and the politician of the opponent party said, "..if there's an accident in front, we'd have to gostan all the way back down!"