Slouching Towards Bali

In the last week or so I have been drifting, anticipating my nearing vacation in Bali. Work has been good - I still really enjoy the people at NDI and my projects have become more interesting - but when it comes down to it, I sit at a desk, and a break from the routine, more so than from life in Timor, is distractingly exciting.

The plan is to fly out on Tuesday afternoon, December 19th, with my friend Sally. We will split a hotel room in the Legian area for three nights, after which she will fly home to New Hampshire and I will start to scan Benoa Harbor for the arrival of the RV Infinity, the latest incarnation of "the ship." Seas willing, I will stay on the ship from the 21st to the 2nd, heading back to Timor Leste on the 3rd.

My plan for Bali is modest: buy a few new shirts and new sunglasses, go dancing, go birding, recapture my Indonesian, pick up imported foodstuffs and maybe a blender, grab some books, walk everywhere, and most importantly, reconnect with ship folks.

I have not been to Bali since December 2001. It was my first stop on the RV Heraclitus following a 30 day voyage from Phuket, Thailand. I rented a car with Heather and Carol and went through Ubud and then to the cooler north. In the extensive botanical gardens, I remember standing in a greenhouse and describing to the orchid-curator my mother's gardens and great grandmother's roses. Bali was also my introduction to food "expediting," and I did huge shopping trips with Reka, stocking up on 9 mo. worth of frozen meats and specialty foods, and then buying fresh foods from Denpasar's indoor market, which, like a parking garage, featured big ramps connecting three levels of fruit and vegetable stalls.

In 2001, tourism in Bali had been hit hard by 9/11 and people were having a tough time. The bombings in October 2002, which killed over 200 people (including 38 nationals and 88 Australians), further depressed the tourist economy. US travel warnings still caution against going to the clubs in Kuta.

Despite my current preoccupation with getting to Bali, I am leaving Timor after a nice weekend. On Saturday I ran with hash again, and on Sunday put my Tetun to use and helped distribute over 700 excellent Christmas packages (shoe boxes assembled in Australia containing sweets, stuffed animals, soap, toothpaste, sparkly colored pencils, hair clips, etc.) to kids from area orphanages.

I then headed to Tasitolu to watch Timorese-style horse racing, perhaps fodder for another post.

Note on the graphics: Bali has long been subject to American fantasies, and was the subject of a numerous of exploitation/snuff films, known (acording to Wikipedia, natch) as "goona-goona epics." The poster featured above is from the 1933 film "Legong: Dance of the Virgins." I will be taking this time to bone up on my Said!

Below, two maps.