The capital of Bali is Denpasar. The party capital of Bali is Kuta, which is why most of the tourist life and action is concentrated there.
We departed from Kuala Lumpur this morning not so early and arrived at Bali’s Ngurah Rai International Airport (DPS) two and half hours later. The airport is in fact right next to Kuta and if you play your cards right, you might never see Denpasar.
Visas for Bali
Julia with her Malaysian passport breezed through Immigrations whilst I with my South African passport had to get a visa-on-arrival.
If you’re staying in Bali for 7 days or less, the visa will set you back a mere US$10. However, as luck would have it, call it bad planning if you want, we were staying for 8 days and being more than 7 days, my visa-on-arrival cost me a not-so-mere US$25. Let that be my first lesson.
To buy the visa-paper was very similar to buying the newspaper. I gave them money, they gave me the paper.
It was the first cubicle in the arrival hall after you exit from the hallway the leads from your plane. These guys don’t give a rat’s ass if you actually qualify for a visa-on-arrival, they merely take your US Dollars and give you the piece of paper. Have exact change, as apparently they’re not big on giving change – I wouldn’t know, I had exactly US$25.
Anyway, cross-check a few sources (1, 2) to see if you qualify for a visa-on-arrival and if you have to apply for a visa before you even embark on your journey. Nothing worse than being turned away at the check-in counter of the flight to the holiday of your dreams.
Once you have that $10 or $25 piece of paper in your hands, go to the nearby Immigration counter. They will scrutinise your passport and scan it. If, like mine, it doesn’t scan, they will repeatedly scan it up to 8 or 10 times before they eventually will type the information in manually. If all is well, they will paste a full-page visa in your passport. Make sure you have plenty of pages and validity in your passport.
If you clear this point, you’re in Bali!
Getting to where you’re going in Bali
Amazingly, a supposed taxi driver hassled us at the luggage carousel whilst we waited for our luggage to arrive.
This was the first indication of two things: people will hassle tourists relentlessly, and by greasing the right palms, you can possibly get in anywhere and do anything.
We handed our Custom Clearance Cards (do grab one of those when you disembark, otherwise you might have to walk all the way back) to the Customs Official and headed for the exit. We pretended to know what we were doing so as to avoid being mobbed by the throng of transport providers we knew would be waiting.
Out the the door and immediately to the right was an official taxi booth. Taxi drivers were waiting and the fees to the various destinations were displayed on a white board in the back of the small office. To Kuta said Rp 40,000, but we were heading for Poppies Lane, a series of narrow streets, which apparently warranted an extra Rp 5,000 for effort. We paid our Rp 45,000 and was escorted by the taxi driver to a new, spacious car – late model Toyota Corolla if I remember correctly.
Our driver, as we realised almost everybody does, spoke good English and we told him that we wanted Poppies Lane. He made no additional small talk.
Expecting some industrial areas and open spaces around the airport, I was surprised that Bali started virtually right outside the airport gate. Immediately we found ourselves in narrow streets lined with colourful shops. Traffic was thick, but moving, motorbikes zooming past us.
After not very long at all, we suspected to have arrived in Kuta, prompted by the throngs of tourists we saw. A quick confirmation with our taxi driver confirmed our suspicions. After a 15 minute taxi drive from the airport we were dropped off in front of the McDonald’s and the entrance to Poppies Lane 1, the chosen area for our accommodation search.
Accommodation in Poppies Lane 1, Kuta
Julia had studied accommodation in Popplies Lane 1, a series of narrow streets and allies not too far from the beach. She undoubtedly memorised them all and as we walked into the labyrinth she recognised a few.
We had set a very low budget for ourselves and started exploring to find what we wanted. A signboard, pointing down Gang Sorga, an even narrower offshoot of the narrow lane we were on, indicated several familiar names. We followed the path and soon stumbled upon cottages and accommodations.
We looked at rooms in Berlian Inn, Mimpi Bungalows and a few others, but the rooms were either too basic, not well positioned, or characterless and we kept on going. But with carrying our luggage, it wasn’t a fun walk, so we decided one more and then we make a decision.
We then walked into New Arena Hotel, an aesthetically pleasing facility. As we did, the security guard smiled at us and said “welcome, are you looking for a room? Please follow me.” He lead us to the reception area, with Julia praying “please let it be cheap, please let it cheap”. Another friendly person opened the door and pointed us to the counter where Nadia, the ever-present, efficient and friendly Inn Keeper awaited us.
With the diligence of somebody who does it a hundred times per day, she produced three keys. “This”, she said holding up the keys in turn, “is a standard room with twin beds, this is a standard room with a double bed and this is the deluxe room with a double bed. They are Rp 150,000 for the standard and Rp 200,000 for the deluxe. Would you like to have a look?”.
We were bowled over by the great service, parked our bags and went for an inspection.
The New Arena Hotel consists of a large driveway that leads from the alley. At the entrance is a security hut. Immediately behind that is the Arena Bar & Restaurant. The entire hotel is very characterful, with red terracotta-tile roofs overhanging lush shrubs and greenery, effectively creating a feeling of a Balinese temple.
On the right is the reception area and to the back of the compound are the rooms. The rooms are stacked 3 storeys high and arranged in a square around a decent sized pool. The pool rises above the ground’s surface and we were surprised to learn that it was 2.3m deep. It features a basic, but effective, poolbar.
We had a look at rooms on the second and third floor. They were clean and tidy. We eventually picked the deluxe room for the extra space and the fact that it had a balcony, although we full well knew we wouldn’t be spending that much time in the room itself. A mold-stain in the corner of the room didn’t deter us, as the room was otherwise clean and well-kept.
The rooms are air conditioned and the bathroom features hot water. Bathtowels are provided. It also features a TV, with CNN and the Australian Network being the most interesting channels.
Nadia, at check-in, also advised us that a safety deposit box was provided at reception, which we duly used to stash our money and passports in.
Our accommodation for the first two nights were set.
New Arena Hotel doesn’t seem to have a functioning website, but they can be emailed on hotelarena_in_kuta (a) yahoo.com or phoned on +62 361 752 974.
First time finding Food
By the time we got sorted and settled, we were mildly peckish. Deciding to explore a bit first, we turned right out of our hotel and discovered the alleys that would connect us with Poppies Lane 2. At a small eatery tucked away in the lower end of Gang Sanga, we decided to pause for some food.
Julia went straight for something local and recognisable, Soto Ayam, a chicken soup of sorts, which is also served in Malaysia. I opted for what I thought would be predictable western fair and ordered a jaffle and French fries.
With much anticipation, I also ordered my first Bintang. Bintang is an Indonesian beer, or Pilsner if you want to be pedantic. Served extra chilled, it’s a crisp, bitter beer and very satisfying, especially on a hot day or night. I had a large one, as the large beers are still at least half the price compared to Malaysia. This particular large Bintang cost me Rp 18,000.
Julia’s Soto Ayam turned out to be something tom yam like, but without the spices. My jaffle was a plain sandwich with exactly 9 French fries, but it was enjoyed nevertheless. The beer went down a treat and as a whole it served the purpose of being a snack.
We continued exploring the alleys and eventually followed Poppies Lane 2 and ended up on Kuta Beach Road. From there we went onto the beach itself and walked up towards the busier part of town. Large waves rumbled towards the beach and reminded me of Cape Town with it’s white sandy beaches, blue ocean and big waves.
Being late towards the evening already, the beach was dotted with people enjoying the last rays of the sun as it dipped behind a bank of clouds on the horison. We walked until we were opposite Hard Rock Hotel and on a whim decided to drop in and say hi to a friend from KL who worked in KK and now plies his trade in Bali.
Sudesh is an F&B Director at Hard Rock Bali and directs much more than just the F&B. He told us about the last year since we saw him, and he had a whirlwind ride. We ended up in the Hard Rock Cafe and ordered a a Giant Pulled Pork Burger, a Nanchos Con Queso Platter and a Giant Combo Platter, which between the three of us was nearly too big to finish.
But we were hungry, so we did anyway. The Hard Rock is probably the most expensive place we’ll visit, but I can certainly guarantee that their portions will also be the biggest to be had anywhere.
After dinner and a long walk with Sudesh, we were quite tired. It was around 9pm and we decided to head back to the New Arena Hotel for a short nap to recharge us before we hit the strip infront of Kuta beach to check out the night life.
As it turned out, fatique got the better of us and we slept straight through…