Driving from the airport in Denpasar and arriving at my Airbnb in Ubud was a huge shock to the system. Especially after being in Japan for the past month. Could I have picked a more different place? Here are my first impressions of Bali Indonesia.
Chaos
From the moment I left the airport in my Grab vehicle, it was nothing but chaos that I saw. Firstly, my Grab was supposed to be a ‘silent ride’. In theory, that should mean no talking and no music. Well, I had both, the whole entire trip.
The ride was supposed to be 1 hour and 25 minutes but because of tourist congestion, I was in that first car for 2 hours and 10 minutes. The driver spoke the whole way, pressuring me to request him directly in the future. Showing me multiple long videos of his son playing the flute. Asking me questions I did not want to answer.
Traffic
The infrastructure has clearly not kept up with the influx of visitors to this island. The traffic is an absolute nightmare. Not only was the drive up from the airport long, but many times we were sitting there, at a standstill, for many many minutes, in a vehicle that reeked of moth balls.
The roads here are small, many barely wide enough for two vehicles to pass at the same time. When the cars stop, the motorcycles continue to dart in and out, up onto sidewalks and the result is a mess.
Garbage
There is garbage and dog poo everywhere. Coming from the ultra clean streets of Japan, this was an immediate shock to my senses. I must admit, I am dismayed at how such beautifully natural surroundings can be trashed so badly. It saddens me. I know its a cultural thing, and I have seen this in so many other countries, its just hitting me hard here.
Rain
I thought I had done my homework and was arriving in the dry season. It has rained every day. Not all day long, but for parts of each day. Huge thundering lightening storms and torrential downpours. I love to watch these, nature and its power. But the muck that is created on the ground and requires walking in and through? Yuck. These rain showers have become a blessing in disguise which I will discuss in a future post.
Sidewalks
I was dropped off by my Grab on the main street, and told to walk up to my Airbnb because the road it is on, has been temporarily changed into a one-way street. We were of course facing the wrong way to enter. Me, my heavy tote, and suitcase were trying to navigate our way up the ‘sidewalk’, dodging motorcycles, poop, puddles, muck, offerings and such and it was awful. Then it began to rain.
Even without luggage of any sort, the sidewalks are abysmal. Don’t dare take your eyes off the pavement, for there are huge holes that have no cover and so many obstacles to trip over.
I’m going to stop there. Let’s just say, my first impressions of Bali are abysmal. It is nothing like I had envisioned, nothing like I had seen photo’s of, and nothing like I had heard it would be. I hope things improve from here on out.
