Feeling like a millionaire

Well, I have taken 2,500,000 Indonesian Rupiah  out of the ATMs so far. So I guess that makes us multi-millionaires. What lofty sum does it take to be a millionaire here? $70 USD is about 1,000,000 IDR.

We arrived in Bali a couple days ago, but got in late Thursday and stayed by the airport. On Friday we transferred up to Ubud – an artsy hippy town in Bali. Kinda reminds me of Boulder (in the old days) but even more artsy hippie. Saturday was Indonesia’s independence day – and promised to be busy and heavy traffic – so that turned into a pool day. Finally got out and wandered much of the town today. They have a beautiful ridge walk leading up by rice paddies, a sacred monkey forest, and a couple bustling streets with shops and restaurants. Maybe too bustling for us.

But lets get to the sacred monkey forest. It’s a forest run by the village connected to it, with Hindu temples, and appropriately about 600 Macaque monkeys that they feed. These are the same monkeys that I’ve posted pics and videos from before, so I didn’t care about them as much. And technically the monkeys are free to leave – but I’m not so sure they’re completely wild since they get fed 3 times daily. Sounds like and all-inclusive resort to me! But alas, it was a very relaxing walk in the woods with some amazing sculptures, statues, big old trees, and streams. Onto the pics…

Care for some bullet points?

• Bali is much more temperate than any of the spots we visited in Malaysia. Low to mid 80s during the day, and high 60s/low 70s at night. Feels comfortable.
• But it was a bit of a shock coming here. We had worked our way from busy places to remote places in Malaysia – and jumped right back into busy Bali.
• Bali has a “Taxi Mafia” that makes getting around a bit of a struggle. Disappointing that Grab (essentially the Uber of SE Asia) is difficult here.
• I say it’s busy – but that’s probably not characterizing it properly. The roads are tiny (usually just 2 lane, no shoulder). There’s a LOT of scooters. Some streets – like the one we’re staying on aren’t wide enough even for a single car. There usually aren’t any sidewalks and barely any crosswalks (we love walking). Makes it seem crazy and busy for us getting around – essentially playing frogger in real life.
• It’s probably best to get your motorcycle license before coming to SE Asia. I didn’t and wish I had! Many people online said you didn’t need one for scooters, but…
  • Some people won’t rent you one without it
  • Even if they will, it’s not a great place to ride without some experience (they’re crazy!)
  • Apparently cops are more likely to check foreigners for licenses – so I’ve avoided.
• OK, that’s probably too many bullets. Until next time…