NEWS Thrown in isolation and forced to urinate in a water bottle: Inside David Fifita’s Bali cell

[winslow_wong]

Well dear David, there’s only two things now that can make you feel better.

Never go to Bali again and sign a long term contract with the broncos

 

[Cult]

How come whenever somebody gets back from Bali they never tell me about the amazing food, people or the culture? Nobody has ever gone there for that. The rest of Indonesia could be amazing, but Aussies rarely visit the rest. They go to get pissed on a beach. The Bali bogan stereotype exists for a reason

 

[Harry Sack]

How come whenever somebody gets back from Bali they never tell me about the amazing food, people or the culture? Nobody has ever gone there for that. The rest of Indonesia could be amazing, but Aussies rarely visit the rest. They go to get pissed on a beach. The Bali bogan stereotype exists for a reason

The food would be top of the list for me wanting to go to any of those countries tbh. I can get pissed on a beach in Australia.

 

[ningnangnong]

The rest of Indonesia could be amazing, but Aussies rarely visit the rest.

Having been to Yogyakarta and North Sumatra, I can confirm with absolute certainty it is. I saw ancient temples, climbed a volcano, spent the night in a jungle and got up close with orangutans in the wild. I had nasi goreng every day in Jogja, from a different place each time. It was unbelievable.

If you want a cheap holiday, go to one of these places - far more rewarding than somewhere like the tourist hotspots in Bali.

Would love to go back one day.

 

[Huge]

Aussies aren't considered the worst over there ! Plenty of other nations have terrible reputations with Russians placed highly!

 

[broncsgoat]

Yeah locals generally love Aussies and fucking hate the russians.

People don't rave about the food there because indo food isn't overly diverse I've found. You end up eating a lot of western food.

 

[I bleed Maroon]

EDIT: Inappropriate.

 

[Morkel]

Having been to Yogyakarta and North Sumatra, I can confirm with absolute certainty it is. I saw ancient temples, climbed a volcano, spent the night in a jungle and got up close with orangutans in the wild. I had nasi goreng every day in Jogja, from a different place each time. It was unbelievable.

If you want a cheap holiday, go to one of these places - far more rewarding than somewhere like the tourist hotspots in Bali.

Would love to go back one day.

In the meantime, Simpsons. 1pm. Not the worst thing.

 

[Big Del]

NRL CEO Todd Greenberg
“I get frustrated because there’s so much good stories to be told,” Greenberg said

I wanna know how a bloke who can`t even speak English properly becomes a CEO ??

 

[Sproj]

It’s many ado about nuffin’

 

[Kooly87]

How come whenever somebody gets back from Bali they never tell me about the amazing food, people or the culture? Nobody has ever gone there for that. The rest of Indonesia could be amazing, but Aussies rarely visit the rest. They go to get pissed on a beach. The Bali bogan stereotype exists for a reason

I'd suggest that a lack of commentary about those things might say more about the people you speak to or socialise with than it does about Indonesia.

The people are basically impossible to pidgeonhole. Bali itself is home to over 4 million people (for population context, it's like trying to describe the average Sydneysider, or the average New Zealander) and Indonesia is home to over 250 million people, it's the fourth largest country in the world. If people are struggling to describe the average Indonesian to you then that might have a lot to do with it. In my experience, the majority of Balinese were a warm and friendly people. Generally devoutly religious which tends to happen in whenever you're a religious minority (Hindu) in an otherwise extremely devoutly religious country (Muslim). There are of course stark exceptions to this, as a reasonable person would expect in a population so massive.

If your friends haven't noticed any local culture, then honestly that is on them. Bali is positively brimming with culture both Indonesian and uniquely Balinese, with a big emphasis on Hinduisum in contrast to their majority Muslim neighbours.

As for the food, Indonesian food is some of the most colourful and visually impressive food I've seen anywhere. Indonesian are food obsessed like much of South East Asia, and in Bali it is no different. In Bali however, this goes up another level because unlike the majority of the rest of the country, they can eat pork, and if you take the time to seek it out, Bali is home to some simply epic suckling pig, as good as you might find anywhere in the world. There are plenty of other examples I could go on with, but the pork one in particular is a real standout and uniquely Balinese and completely tied to the local culture and religious practices.

Honestly, all the things people say about the crazy nightlife and bogan tourists and dodgy officials is all true, all of it. But a lot of brilliant places have their downsides. It should in no way discourage you from seeking out all the awesome things there too just because you've met people who went there and didn't or couldn't.

 

[CountingMaccasDiet]

It should in no way discourage you from seeking out all the awesome things there too just because you've met people who went there and didn't or couldn't.

Idiot Abroad 2 has @kooly87 taking Fifita with him on a Bali temple tour.

 

[Cult]

I'd suggest that a lack of commentary about those things might say more about the people you speak to or socialise with than it does about Indonesia.

The people are basically impossible to pidgeonhole. Bali itself is home to over 4 million people (for population context, it's like trying to describe the average Sydneysider, or the average New Zealander) and Indonesia is home to over 250 million people, it's the fourth largest country in the world. If people are struggling to describe the average Indonesian to you then that might have a lot to do with it. In my experience, the majority of Balinese were a warm and friendly people. Generally devoutly religious which tends to happen in whenever you're a religious minority (Hindu) in an otherwise extremely devoutly religious country (Muslim). There are of course stark exceptions to this, as a reasonable person would expect in a population so massive.

If your friends haven't noticed any local culture, then honestly that is on them. Bali is positively brimming with culture both Indonesian and uniquely Balinese, with a big emphasis on Hinduisum in contrast to their majority Muslim neighbours.

As for the food, Indonesian food is some of the most colourful and visually impressive food I've seen anywhere. Indonesian are food obsessed like much of South East Asia, and in Bali it is no different. In Bali however, this goes up another level because unlike the majority of the rest of the country, they can eat pork, and if you take the time to seek it out, Bali is home to some simply epic suckling pig, as good as you might find anywhere in the world. There are plenty of other examples I could go on with, but the pork one in particular is a real standout and uniquely Balinese and completely tied to the local culture and religious practices.

Honestly, all the things people say about the crazy nightlife and bogan tourists and dodgy officials is all true, all of it. But a lot of brilliant places have their downsides. It should in no way discourage you from seeking out all the awesome things there too just because you've met people who went there and didn't or couldn't.

I'd say you're the anomaly here, mate. The majority of people who go there do not experience it the way you have. I'm not pigeon holing the people of Bali, but the Australians who travel there. It's not just my friends, it's the general commentary found on social media, youtube, travel videos etc. I'd also like to point out that I am only talking about Bali. I've always wanted to travel to Indonesia since I began practicing Pencak Silat from a young age.

Traveling to Bali for culture is like traveling to Thailand and staying at Patong for the entire trip.

 

[CountingMaccasDiet]

Traveling to Bali for culture is like traveling to Thailand and staying at Patong for the entire trip.

Yeah like supporting the Broncos and only going to the matches v storm.

 

[Dash]

Yeah like supporting the Broncos and only going to the matches v storm.

Surely Bali can't be that bad.

 

[McHunt]

Traveling to Bali for culture is like traveling to Thailand and staying at Patong for the entire trip.

Take it from Cult3: he knows his ladyboys.

 

[CountingMaccasDiet]

Take it from Cult3: he knows his ladyboys.

30k in Bali was steep, but at least they got what they paid for

 

[Kooly87]

I'd say you're the anomaly here, mate. The majority of people who go there do not experience it the way you have. I'm not pigeon holing the people of Bali, but the Australians who travel there. It's not just my friends, it's the general commentary found on social media, youtube, travel videos etc. I'd also like to point out that I am only talking about Bali. I've always wanted to travel to Indonesia since I began practicing Pencak Silat from a young age.

Traveling to Bali for culture is like traveling to Thailand and staying at Patong for the entire trip.

Yeah that's a fair cop, maybe I'm weird, but I just hate seeing people write off all of Bali or Indonesia just because off a couple of regions are overly touristy and crowded.

I'd say travelling to Kuta for the whole trip is like travelling to Patong I guess, but Bali is a massive island and it has way more to offer culturally once you can find a way to clear the Kuta/Legian/Seminyak/Nusa Dua areas.

I tend to love places around the world where there is a minority culture or population thriving. Places like the Basque region etc, and I think Bali definitely fits that bill once you dig a bit deeper.