Certain places in Bali are stunning. This was taken during breakfast in 2016. Myself, my wife and my 2 children had headed back to visit my Sister and Brother. (Who, during the last 9 year gap of me visiting, had got married).
The island of Bali had transmuted, I thought back to the very first trip I took out there, the few western visitors I met, the exclusive feel of the place and the genuine hospitality of the locals.
This Hotel, we were staying in was another 5*, another Yew Kuan architectural master piece. I drove from Ubud down to Tabanan, this particular hotel was not exactly easy to find, nor easily accessible. But it was a fun journey, as most are in Bali. The traffic in places, had gone from the sublime to the ridiculous.
The room was stunning, with a view of the spine of volcanoes that supports the spirit of Bali, running through it's core.
Given the amount of time, and my disposition (not easily impressed), myself and my wife really didn't hang around long in reception to do the 'meet and greet' with the newly installed European GM. Mainly because, I'd met at least 50 of these guys in Bali over the decade + I'd been going there. It no longer felt special to be 'personally' greeted by the GM, like they are some kind of celebrity. I find this sort of thing ironic, and was also beginning to understand that these guys were actually part of the issue with the direction Bali was heading in.
Over exposure to these '5* spas + hotels' had bent me out of shape. I remembered the being grateful thing, I was and made the most out of the room, by falling asleep for 2 hours, whilst my wife had massages.
I took a walk and found this stone circle, which I found quite interesting, until I realised it again cheapened the whole experience with it's inauthentic presence. I walked back to the room. Ordered room service. Ate. Went to sleep. Yawn.
I awoke early - to the sound of sweeping, as everyday in Bali.
We had a hearty 3 course breakfast. It was all too much for me. This whole experience was sterile. Too perfect, to well orchestrated. Again, not being ungrateful, but just a warning, all the 5* experiences in the world don't make one feel whole.
We packed up, settled the bill, which was interesting... The room was $350 for one night + breakfast, the food was $200 including a bottle of wine ($85), and the massages $175 for a full body + facial massage.
We were there from 14:00 - 11am the following morning. It was great, but to me - dull. I couldn't wait to get going!
Off we went.
The issue was, I started to notice that the rice fields were vanishing and these hotels and villas were popping up everywhere. I drove back up to Ubud.
It was sad. So, many people wanted to be here the infrastructure buckled under the weight. The traffic is awful. What once took me 10 minutes on a bike from Kedewatan to Jalan Monkey forest, took sometimes an hour and a quarter. Most of this less that walking speed, stuck in traffic.
Trash was building up. Everywhere.
For every inch of decadent hotel or spa. There are 2 km of rubbish. The divide had grown further apart. There were always 'wealthy' Balinese, but now there were lots of wealthy Balinese.
The real estate had become sought after, but the issue was, that the very thing that brought people here, was being eroded every time some was sold for a new hotel or villa.
How long can it go on for? Can they strike a balance between sustaining themselves on Tourism, and will the natural landscape last long enough? The traditions of farming are being lost, why would you graft so hard each day, when you could sell off your land for millions of $?
On my way back to the airport, I saw this;
I didn't remember the hills so close to the runway. It's trash, a literal mountain of trash!
I urge you, please go to Bali, don't be put off, it is beautiful, it is unique. But go soon, be responsible when you are there - before it is too late.