Besakih nightmare
I would like to bring to everyone's attention (especially the Tourist Bureau of Bali) a most unpleasant incident which took place on my recent trip to the Besakih temple in Bali.
At the entrance, I was forced to register my name and donate some money. I donated Rp 10,000. When the collector saw the amount, he mocked me and my wife and made a big fuss exclaiming that the normal rate was Rp. 40,000, proving it by showing me the register. I refused and he complained.
Furthermore, when I decided to register our donation, he rejected and I suspect the attendants pocketed the money. At that moment, I saw a tour guide from Jakarta and asked him what the normal rate was. He said Rp 2,000. Disgruntled, I started the 400-meter walk to the temple.
Once there, we were immediately approached by several men who spoke relatively good English, asking me where I was from. They told us that they were not guides but rather guardians of the temple and insisted that we could not enter unless accompanied.
The man seemed harmless and so we believed him. Nearing the end of our tour he led us through a gate which opened to a small path. At that moment, two other men appeared and started to follow us. Oblivious to the danger we were about to experience, my wife and I thanked him happily and gave him a tip of Rp 5,000. At this point, the kind and cheerful guardian became aggressive. He said Rp 5,000 was nothing in Indonesia. So we asked him how much he wanted. He demanded Rp 20,000. I got angry and at that point knew we were being extorted. I refused and told him to either take it or leave it.
He fiercely demanded more. So I turned and decided to leave. Suddenly, out of nowhere, a man jumped right in front of me and snatched the Rp 5,000 note from me. He screamed "You cannot go, you must pay more!" We tried to run and they started to chase us. Suddenly, one of them kicked me right in the back. I fell and my wife started to cry and screamed for help. I used my tripod to fend them off. The screaming must have scared them for they started to run away, at the same time screaming litanies at us and denouncing us for disrespecting the temple. What nerve!
It was around 5:45 p.m. in the evening and visitors were starting to leave. We ran all the way out. At the temple's entrance we met some French tourists who asked us if we were okay. We told them everything and they shared with us that they were also told to donate Rp 40,000 and that when they gave Rp 20,000 they were also abused.
It is a pity. Before the incident, we fell in love with Bali. It is so beautiful and rich in culture, but the beauty is spoiled by extortionists and bullies like those we met at Besakih. If no action is taken, I don't think visitors will want to visit the place in the future.
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