Bali photo

Many bloggers give Bali this mystical and beautiful, without any dent or glitch, image making it seem like a paradise on earth. And if you are staying at a 5 star resort it may be so. However, for the rest of us, me in particular, I got to see every side of it. The good, the bad, and the ugly… .

Staying next to a brothel with prostitutes, check! Being scammed on the beach, check! Food poisoning from the street vendor, check. Beautiful house and shower with no walls, check! Celebrating New Years in McDonald’s drive way while buying food, double check! As you can see some experiences were very good, and some were very bad.

Bali photo

In the next couple of weeks, I will cover several topics.

  • Where to stay in Bali depending on your budget and needs.
  • How to rent a house in Bali and what to watch out for.
  • Favorite recipe that is easy to replicate at home.

Stay tuned!

Bali photo Bali photo

Bali photo

If you haven’t joined me on my Instagram yet I have already started the #BaliFunFact series. It is a good way to get even more tips and dive in to the Indonesian culture deeper.
https://www.instagram.com/p/BDi4U1bQik3/?taken-by=julia_boardthirteen

It is all about being prepared. I know I wasn’t. I relied on the bias opinions and not facts of my relatives or other people who had never stepped outside of the resort. I thought it is going to be similar to Thailand. Boy, I was wrong! If you are going there soon here are 10 tips to get you going and know what to expect.

Bali photo Bali photo

10 tips about Bali:

  1. It is an island so internet works when you want to go to the beach and doesn’t work when you need to stay home because it is raining. J Ironic isn’t it?
  2. Local food is best eaten in restaurants for tourists. We learned the hard way that a street food is good for locals only.
  3. Driving is on the left side and most of the cars available are manual and do not drive over 60-70 km/h.
  4. Buying a sim card with good options is best at the airport. The kiosk is located right upon the exit from the airport departure gates. As in your face as it is, their prices were best at the time.
  5. Do not rent in one location for a long time, you might change your mind and go somewhere else but since the money is spent you are out of luck.
  6. Take the toll bridge to Nusa Dua if you are traveling there, it’s worth the $1 toll, will save a lot of time and effort.
  7. Look for dumping pipes on the ocean beaches and try to stay away from them as they can dump raw sewage into water.
  8. If you want durians head north of the island. Even when not in season they are readily available there, but there are none on the south. Same goes for Jack Fruit.
  9. You can drive around the island in 1 day and see all of its different sides in a car, but don’t plan on going faster than 60 kmph.
  10. Drive to the village in Mt. Bratan, and take a jacket, it gets cold up in the mountain. There are restaurants and lots of sightseeing to do there.
  11. PLUS ONE MORE! Don’t fall for time share scams. Hustlers are often targeting unsuspected tourists and travelers on the beach or while offering a tour somewhere. You will be told that it is a presentation of some sort and that you will get a free excursion of your choice and transportation paid. Free stuff is not worth it, at all.

Bali photo

Bali photo

Are you excited for the new Bali series? I know I am! Leave your Bali tips, questions or concerns right below. Would love to hear if you have any!

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Always improving one's surroundings.

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