Bali, Indonesia
Blog: By Way of the World - 10 July 2009
By: Erin
Bali, we reflected in retrospect, is really like a country in its own right. It is beautiful, the people are very friendly, but very touristy. The facilities are decent, better than most in Asia and certainly better than Komodo and Java. Bali is predominantly Hindu, and has its own unique culture very different from the rest of Indonesia, which is predominantly Muslim.
We landed in Bali pretty late at night and took a taxi directly to our hotel, the Bali Senia in Sanur. We'd booked this hotel online -- one of the only hotels in the area to even be online -- as we usually do when arriving to a new area late at night, but were a bit disappointed. While we loved how quiet the Sanur area is, compared to what we heard about Kuta (young, partying crowd with lots of touts ready to pounce), the hotel was, well (how to say it?), um, a bit seedier than we expected, and about a mile's walk to the beach (not to mention the bathroom full of mold). We'd been in Asia long enough to know that at $18 per night, we could do better.
Our first full day, we walked down the main drag in Sanur and stopped in, for what turned out to be the first of many visits, at Spike's Diner. Spike's looks like an old-fashioned New York diner, complete with potato latkes on the menu. The owner, Mitch (who, as it turns out, is originally from Long Island), gave us some advice about cheap places to stay. We ended up at a homestay called Donna's off of one of the alleys. Donna's was very clean, cute, and has a fantastic garden.
For $15 per night, including breakfast, with a short walk to the beach, we were sold.
We ended up staying for a full week. We needed another "vacation" from traveling, so we didn't do much except go to the beach, hang out at the homestay on our porch in the garden, and go to Spike's to get some good food, travel advice from Mitch, and free wifi. One thing we did make it to, on Mitch's recommendation of course, was the Bali Arts Festival via bemo (Bali's version of a sangthaew).
It was packed to the brim with locals, and we couldn't understand any of the colorful performance of the Ramayana, but we enjoyed it just the same. We walked around the markets and a comic exhibit on environmentalism. We were pretty much the only Westerners at this free local festival, and it was truly a unique experience.
Our last night in Bali, we went back to Spike's for a special vegetarian dinner cooked by Mitch's wife, Rofina.
It was delicious! Handmade pasta, Balinese spices, homemade sorbet from fresh lychees. It was truly a night to remember. If you find yourself in Sanur, Bali, definitely go to Spike's!
We landed in Bali pretty late at night and took a taxi directly to our hotel, the Bali Senia in Sanur. We'd booked this hotel online -- one of the only hotels in the area to even be online -- as we usually do when arriving to a new area late at night, but were a bit disappointed. While we loved how quiet the Sanur area is, compared to what we heard about Kuta (young, partying crowd with lots of touts ready to pounce), the hotel was, well (how to say it?), um, a bit seedier than we expected, and about a mile's walk to the beach (not to mention the bathroom full of mold). We'd been in Asia long enough to know that at $18 per night, we could do better.
Our first full day, we walked down the main drag in Sanur and stopped in, for what turned out to be the first of many visits, at Spike's Diner. Spike's looks like an old-fashioned New York diner, complete with potato latkes on the menu. The owner, Mitch (who, as it turns out, is originally from Long Island), gave us some advice about cheap places to stay. We ended up at a homestay called Donna's off of one of the alleys. Donna's was very clean, cute, and has a fantastic garden.
For $15 per night, including breakfast, with a short walk to the beach, we were sold.
We ended up staying for a full week. We needed another "vacation" from traveling, so we didn't do much except go to the beach, hang out at the homestay on our porch in the garden, and go to Spike's to get some good food, travel advice from Mitch, and free wifi. One thing we did make it to, on Mitch's recommendation of course, was the Bali Arts Festival via bemo (Bali's version of a sangthaew).
It was packed to the brim with locals, and we couldn't understand any of the colorful performance of the Ramayana, but we enjoyed it just the same. We walked around the markets and a comic exhibit on environmentalism. We were pretty much the only Westerners at this free local festival, and it was truly a unique experience.
Our last night in Bali, we went back to Spike's for a special vegetarian dinner cooked by Mitch's wife, Rofina.
It was delicious! Handmade pasta, Balinese spices, homemade sorbet from fresh lychees. It was truly a night to remember. If you find yourself in Sanur, Bali, definitely go to Spike's!
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