35. BALI HI !

Uluwatu

The Kechat performance - an upbeat updated version of the Ramayana story. In Muslim Jakarta and Jogya, in Buddhist Thailand - the very Hindu Ramayana ballet is a tourist staple.

Jewish friend from the UK

Elderly but spritely folks are everywhere in the places I've been to. They live proactive lives.

Every 5 years or so, I get the urge to re-visit Bali - my other island in the Sun. After the recent second bombing, I made plans to visit.

The second bombing has left Bali high and dry. They've just started to recover from the first - tourists arrivals were slowly picking up. The Balinese have long depended on tourism and the terrorists know that. The drastic drop in visitor arrivals is bad for business but good for me as the place was less crowded.

I stayed in Kuta where the first bombing took place. I had dinner in Jimbaran Bay where the second bomb went off 2 months ago. The folks are as friendly and easy going as always. Despite the slowdown, they were'nt pushy. They seem resigned to karma.

The energy in Bali is positive and the Balinese are a calm and collected lot. Despite being in the cut throat tourism industry for years, they are not corrupted by it. 

There is much give and take among shopkeepers, cabbies, travel agencies, motels and other small businesses. They may be competing with each other for the tourist dollar, yet they are friends who joke and chat during lulls in the business. The service staff are helpful and try hard to please. 

This is rare in Singapore where shopkeepers can treat their neighbours with suspicion, are cold and unfriendly and secretive. Nobody talks to one another, they would'nt know what's going on next door even if the shutters are down a whole week. Even their staff are briefed not to get too friendly with staff from other shops.

When you compete, you do not meet.