I love Bali
^^inverted comas
Still laughing ;)
Apologies trashy, ^^ brackets.
Can you refer to me as Trashcan and not trash can please, I like it better lol
;)
Trashy is ok
Well done. You picked up on the lack of a capital letter and the implied insult. There is hope for you yet!
The insults on here are like water off a ducks back, not even anywhere near growing up in the 70’s/80’s.
Soft as lol
eggsactly.
Recovery beach;);)
You there now seeds?
Negative!
Anyone traveling to indo soon ? Currently the exchange rate in the street is 10275 rp to oz $ , if you get a wise account you can get a master card debit card and the exchange is currently 10660 and forecast to go up . The wise app allows you to have up to 40 different currencies and for every $1000 you convert into whatever currency you get charged just under $6 . This rate is far better than anything a bank will give you using your Australian debit/credit card and once it’s in rupiah you don’t get charged the added 3% on bill that most hotels & restaurants try to add on as it’s a direct debit and already in rupiah . This will save you hundreds on your holiday and wise is excepted in most places . Can also withdraw from ATM by selecting savings and not getting withdrawal fees . My transactions which have been up to $17,000 have taken at most 14 seconds to transfer funds . https://wise.com/help/articles/2935762/how-do-i-get-a-wise-card
Looks good.
I have been using a Macquarie debit card for OS, no fees.
https://www.macquarie.com.au/everyday-banking/transaction-account.html?u...
NAB used to have the excellent Travellers card. Just transfer online your cash to the required currency and no atm fees or international currency transfer fees
I’ll check out Macquarie next time
seeds wrote:NAB used to have the excellent Travellers card. Just transfer online your cash to the required currency and no atm fees or international currency transfer fees
I’ll check out Macquarie next time
@seeds & @ashsam , what rate is your bank giving you. ? The main reason I switched to wise was because my bank ( Bendigo ) was giving me 1000rp less per Australian dollar which is a huge difference . On international money transfers Bendigo charge $30 no matter what the amount, but with a crap exchange rate I was losing out, the volume of money I’m currently moving , I’ve saved myself thousands.
$30 transfer fee!! Bendigo Bastards.
Yes it’d be good to compare rates on the day and have a couple of options
Edit NAB today are paying 10,382
Bendigo (screwing over the) Community Bank
@seeds , the good thing about the wise app is you can load up your Indonesian rupiah account when the rate is high , it’s varied so far this year from under 10,000rp to just under 11,000rp so about 10 cents in the dollar. The minus about wise is no interest on money in account and if you leave a large amount in for over 12 months they penalise you and actually charge 0.4% on money in account . So you either need to spend it or move it .
seeds wrote:$30 transfer fee!! Bendigo Bastards.
Yes it’d be good to compare rates on the day and have a couple of options
Edit NAB today are paying 10,382
Bendigo (screwing over the) Community Bank
Thanks for that edit , yeah I got 10662 on wise this morning and after their fee it was 10598.
Cheers worth looking into
@seeds , here’s Bendigo rate today, what a farking joke. 
Yeah that is low
Would definitely add up over the few years you’re there
If my maths is correct that’s $1000 extra every $10,000
Spot on there S freak. Been using transferwise,now Wise ,for years.Saved thousands,straight into Indo bank account.Extremely quick.
Highly recommended
5 stars
@Dumai , I was looking at long term deposits in indo banks and not much good news there . I’m with BCA and 2.85% per annum was best I could do . Before covid I remember some banks you could get up to 11% and after tax you ended up with about 8% , any idea what happened ?
seeds wrote:NAB used to have the excellent Travellers card. Just transfer online your cash to the required currency and no atm fees or international currency transfer fees
I’ll check out Macquarie next time
Used to have Citibank plus card which was good no OS fees etc, they were cancelled this year as NAB bought them out, this is the equivalent from NAB they swapped people to. I just cancelled mine and swapped to Macquarie.
https://www.nab.com.au/personal/bank-accounts/transaction-accounts/nab-c...
ING rebate your international fees and up to 5 international ATM fees per month.
We have an account for travel for this reason. Saves $100s on a decent length trip.
Cards that give free ATM fees are good as long as they are giving you a decent exchange rate , some cards you get charged by your bank & the bank who’s ATM you’re using, if you get one of those shit ATMs that only give you 1 million rp to 1.5 million rp at a time it can become expensive to withdraw a decent amount, especially if you’re paying both banks .
Have never used an atm in Bali, take a few grand in cash and change it. Last time only used cash for grab, bought most of it home, just used my Macquarie card or Apple Pay with that card.
udo wrote:https://www.instagram.com/p/C7GiBOQrXU3/?img_index=1
https://www.instagram.com/p/C7AYaksB0Tb/?img_index=1
Udo. Thanks mate. So good.
I remember Chew ‘N’ Spew well.
How things have dramatically change.
I’ve no desire to visit Bali and add to the mass amalgam
I find there’s ample relatively quiet places with great surf amongst all those islands to get your fill. AW
Does anyone know if fast ferry from Lombock to Benete Harbour still operating. Heard it stopped.
cheers
A mate flew in from Perth a couple weeks ago , his flight was delayed and then not sure what else happened but he landed at 3.00am , I didn’t know they would allow flights that late . With international and domestic travel through the one runway, it’s a busy busy place . I’ve had a couple nights in Kuta staying at masa inn , still good value at walk in for 350,000rp a night , steak at Uns was great too . No russians down this end .
Whoa...Solid
https://balibelly.com/pages/uluwatu
udo wrote:Whoa...Solid
https://balibelly.com/pages/uluwatu
Waves for days by look of it.
Know where I'd rather be.
Looks like only about 7 guys out at ulu’s atm , Padang packed as usual as is bingin and a fair crowd at impossibles .
Supafreak wrote:Looks like only about 7 guys out at ulu’s atm , Padang packed as usual as is bingin and a fair crowd at impossibles .
Reckon OC should be on the cook now with arvo low tide???
andy-mac][quote=Supafreak wrote:Looks like only about 7 guys out at ulu’s atm , Padang packed as usual as is bingin and a fair crowd at impossibles .[/
Reckon OC should be on the cook now with arvo low tide???
Yep , and crowd just jumped to 15
Supafreak][quote=andy-mac wrote:Supafreak wrote:Looks like only about 7 guys out at ulu’s atm , Padang packed as usual as is bingin and a fair crowd at impossibles .[/
Reckon OC should be on the cook now with arvo low tide???Yep , and crowd just jumped to 15
can’t see any hipsters or mini mals
Supafreak][quote=Supafreak wrote:andy-mac wrote:Supafreak wrote:Looks like only about 7 guys out at ulu’s atm , Padang packed as usual as is bingin and a fair crowd at impossibles .[/
Reckon OC should be on the cook now with arvo low tide???Yep , and crowd just jumped to 15
can’t see any hipsters or mini mals
Surf schools?
goofyfoot][quote=Supafreak wrote:Supafreak wrote:andy-mac wrote:Supafreak wrote:Looks like only about 7 guys out at ulu’s atm , Padang packed as usual as is bingin and a fair crowd at impossibles .[/
Reckon OC should be on the cook now with arvo low tide???Yep , and crowd just jumped to 15
can’t see any hipsters or mini mals
Surf schools?
Hahaha , not today , they no doubt will find a corner somewhere , here on Lembongan lacerations is packed, maybe 12 at playgrounds and razors has some double overhead bombs with nobody on it , shipwrecks also empty , 1 guy out at muntigs .
How big at muntigs? That joint looks pretty nuts
Predictions have it over 11000rp soon but I have my doubts, today’s Wise rate is pretty good. 
goofyfoot wrote:How big at muntigs? That joint looks pretty nuts
Have to be solid 8ft on the bigger sets
G-land forey
image post
So solid to terrifying then. For two weeks straight.
colonisation
https://thebalisun.com/former-indonesian-president-criticizes-state-of-b...
no colonisation
https://thebalisun.com/indonesian-tourism-minister-refutes-accusation-th...
apparently...
sypkan wrote:colonisation
https://thebalisun.com/former-indonesian-president-criticizes-state-of-b...
no colonisation
https://thebalisun.com/indonesian-tourism-minister-refutes-accusation-th...
apparently...
Lots of different articles in those links about new and current proposals, I’ve a feeling though that no matter what is said the $ will have the last say . Haven’t been out to Canggu or further up that coast since well before covid and I have no intention of doing so , can only imagine the traffic jam. I ventured out to white monkey surf shop on the Bukit, fark so much has changed in such a short period of time .
Stitches out yesterday and it’s healed up nicely . Going to wait a bit longer before I go for a surf to give the inside the best chance of healing . Not sure how it would feel gripping my board and duck diving just yet , especially with the swell that’s running and coming . Geez the 11th & 12th is looking bigger than the incoming swell on the 4th & 5 th . Looking forward to Craigs updates . 
Supafreak wrote:Stitches out yesterday and it’s healed up nicely . Going to wait a bit longer before I go for a surf to give the inside the best chance of healing . Not sure how it would feel gripping my board and duck diving just yet , especially with the swell that’s running and coming . Geez the 11th & 12th is looking bigger than the incoming swell on the 4th & 5 th . Looking forward to Craigs updates .
Heal well mate!
I love Bali.
You wouldn't think that such a thought could be controversial . But it is.
Many people don't love Bali, in fact they proclaim to hate it. Bemoan what it has become, it's lack of purity, it's lost innocence.
Sure, I can see their point. I can't imagine anywhere on Earth that has been transformed as radically as Bali over the last thirty years. From rice paddies and coconut groves to six story discotheques . It's totally unrecognisable in the most built up areas.
But that's not what this post is about. It's about why I LOVE Bali.
I love Bali because ...
- it's still the home of an intense cluster of world class waves. Roping lefts : Uluwatu, freight train right barrels : Sanur, backlit mega tubes : Padang Padang. Rip able reefs, fun beachies. Short , slabby pits and long mellow points. River mouths and bombies. It's got the lot.
- it's still possible to get uncrowded quality waves in 2015 when it seems as though the entire planet has discovered surfing. I was trading crystal clear , rolling right walls with only two other surfers just this morning.
- it's still freaking beautiful. Watching the mist reveal Mt Agung in that unique Bali morning light from a black sand beach as the sun comes up is still special.
- the food is amazing. Walking around town building up a hunger and knowing that at any given time you are within shouting distance of fresh, exotic and delicious meals with enough variety to make your head spin is priceless.
- the Balinese are legends. Friendly, happy and always keen for a joke. Unfailingly polite and welcoming. Healthy, spiritual and decent.
- the Balinese surfers rip their waves and they still own them. A visiting Brazilian would not think twice to drop in on an Aussie local at Kirra. But you won't see the same in Bali. The Balinese surfers are treated with the respect they deserve. Because as everyone knows, if they are not treated with respect there is consequences.
- the water is so warm it's like swimming in silken angels tears.
- telling people that you are going to Bali will often elicit a response along the lines of ......"why would you go to that traffic ridden, noisy shithole ?" And then as you're kicking back with a Bintang watching the sunset over Uluwatu you can imagine them sitting at lights in their car on their way home from work in Perth. Which , for those that have never been , is a noisy , traffic ridden shithole. And this makes me laugh. Which is something I enjoy doing.
- The fruit is incredible.
- despite the millions of tourists, the fast food franchises and the Aussie over familiarity with the joint it's still exotic. The smell of clove cigarettes, the ogo ogos of Nyepi, the Buddhist offerings , monkeys , food and language are all enticingly foreign.
- there is no overreaching nanny state. You want to ride your motorbike with all four of your children and the missus on the back...whilst texting. Go for it.
- you can live like a king on a regular Aussie income. Maybe not such a great benefit for the Balinese themselves though.
- it's close to Oz. Twenty hour plane ride and a shot at developing deep vein thrombosis.....ummm no thanks. It's actually faster to fly to Bali from Perth than it is to drive to Albany. You can fly from Port Hedland in less than two hours.
- you get an opportunity to regularly witness some of the most foolhardy behaviour imaginable on a daily basis. You ever seen a man being doubled on a motorbike through traffic whilst holding a large pane of glass ? What about seeing someone hold a nail between his bare fingers while his mate tries to grind the tip off it ? It's all there folks.
- you can see people making do with not much and making it work. An exhaust system held on with a T Shirt ? An outboard motor attached to a boat with no anchoring system, just held on with a man's brute force ? Why not ? It might not work forever but it'll usually get em over the line.
- the winds can blow offshore for months at a time and when they blow onshore, well , that just makes it offshore somewhere else. It's an island !
- you haven't seen glassy oceanic conditions till you've seen Indonesian sheet glass. It's like an oil slick. And if you're ever near Benoa Harbour that could well be what it is.
- old people are accorded the respect they deserve.
- it's exciting. It's a melting pot of the world. Wide eyed villages from remote Asia, jaded techno princesses from Russia, sleek surfy chicks from Canada , your next door neighbour from Ipswich....it's a party and everyone is invited.
Including YOU. I'll see you there. You can't miss me.
I'll be the sun burnt drunk in a head to toe Bintang ensemble with hair braids and a fresh tattoo of a unicorn across my back . Don't be shy. Come and say hello.