Bali serves up the thrill of living dangerously
Bali serves up the thrill of living dangerously
By Degung Santikarma
DENPASAR, Bali (JP): In the wake of recent violence in Bali
accompanying the presidential elections, tourism officials have
expressed concern that the numbers of foreign visitors to the
island appears to have taken a dramatic dive.
The authorities are stepping up their campaign to restore the
image of Bali as a peaceful tropical paradise, free from the
cares of the modern world and clean of the stain of politics.
On the streets of the Kuta strip, the tourist police, with
their neatly pressed uniforms and shiny leather boots, stand
guard against pickpockets, purse snatchers and the pushy street
vendors who threaten to disturb the flow of business into the
high-priced, air-conditioned boutiques. On the main road from
urban Denpasar to idyllic Ubud -- advertised as an oasis of art
and peace -- police and civilian patrols pull over passing
Indonesians to make sure that they possess the proper identity
cards.
If these locals are accompanying a tourist, they will be asked
to show the appropriate guide license, a requirement that ensures
foreign guests are presented only with the official
interpretation of Bali found condensed in the government slogan
of Sapta Pesona (the "seven charms"): friendly, memorable, neat,
clean, beautiful, culturally preserved and, above all, orderly.
On Jl. Hayam Wuruk, the main thoroughfare between Denpasar and
beachfront Sanur, crews of workers are busy chopping down rows of
shady trees to make room for new sidewalks that will keep
pedestrians safe from the rushing riot that is Balinese traffic.
In the kampong neighborhoods and villages of the island, the
security watch walks the night streets, ready to do battle with
any suspicious "outsider" who might try to invade their
territory.
And in the pages of the mass media and the speeches of local
bureaucrats, Balinese are being exhorted to forget about politics
and return to preserving and polishing their unique cultural
heritage as the ultimate capital to attract tourist cash.
Meanwhile, as the streets are being cleaned, the welcoming
smiles are being practiced and the safety net is being pulled
tight around them, Bali's Western guests are eagerly handing over
their bundles of banknotes to engage in activities that test
their defenses against danger and defy the established wisdom
that the Balinese tourist trade is dependent upon culture.
Blissfully ignorant of the traditional ceremony being held at
the temple down the street, a group of daredevil young Americans
is lined up to experience the thrill of bungee jumping headfirst
from a 50-meter tower, with only a huge rubber band protecting
the sidewalk below from a very unsightly stain. At beaches across
the island, surfboard-wielding Australians are braving the
powerful waves and treacherous undertows to test their wits
against the water.
On Bali's Ayung River, groups of Japanese and Koreans are
piling into rubber rafts for a wild, wet ride through waters the
Balinese believe to be the habitat of hosts of devil spirits
known as tonye. And for those for whom such thrills are not quite
enough of a high, Bali now even offers skydiving, a 1,000-meter
jump with only a square of nylon parachute to save one from
certain death.
To the confusion of many Balinese, for whom daily life -- with
the threat of black magic from jealous neighbors, the worries
about finding work, the risk of illness, the perils of political
pressure or of social sanctions for not fulfilling one's
obligations to the community -- is already dangerous enough, this
new breed of tourists seems far less interested in Bali's
cultural offerings than in signing themselves up for the leading
role in a real-life action adventure story.
In the days before the international airlines and package tour
brokers made Bali a virtual suburb of Australia, just getting to
the island was an adventure. Travelers swapped stories of their
hair-raising journeys and the bravery they displayed in
overcoming Bali's legendary dangers, from black magic and bad
trips to the infamous "Bali Belly" and the mosquito-borne "Bloody
Fever".
They returned home not only with backpacks full of bargain
price sarongs and silver jewelry, but with tales of getting lost,
getting ripped off and getting troublesome social diseases. These
days, of course, Bali is a much tamer place. Health workers roam
the island armed with spray cans of DDT to tame the pesky beasts,
and condoms to stop the spread of diseases like hepatitis and
AIDS.
Stores and restaurants make nice profits off of the sale of
bottled water, Bali's restaurants serve up fresh organic
vegetarian treats and a new string of luxury spas and "spiritual
retreats" offers cosseting and cleansing for body and spirit. And
with its entry into the cyberspace culture of the "global
village", Bali has become transformed from an isolated corner of
the so-called Third World into a typical stop on the
transnational traveler's itinerary.
In fact, these days one needs only to point and click on the
address of a website like Access Bali Online to enter a virtual
Bali where a variety of pleasures and pampering can be booked
from the comfort of one's own home.
And perhaps that's the real explanation for both the declining
tourist arrivals and the new adventure craze. Maybe Bali has
become too easy on its Western guests. Maybe travel agents need
to forget about selling excursions to witness the Barong dance,
visit the authentic psychic healer or experience an enlightened
evening of cosmic cultural consciousness at Bali's "mother
temple" of Besakih.
Maybe they need to get rid of the postcard perfect images of a
hygienic hideaway where timeless tradition holds out against the
modern world. Maybe what will really sell is the "Riot Tour" --
two days and nights of burning tires, looting crowds, shattered
windows and smashed cars. With Bali's hotel rooms gathering dust
and its tour buses standing idle, anything is worth a try.