Some Ramblings about Kuta

After leaving Ubud, we headed to Kuta, a large beach town on the island’s southern edge.  Having heard mostly terrible things about Kuta – a town known for its surfing and nightlife, but also for its overdevelopment, excessive commercialization, and general obnoxiousness – we decided to go there solely because I wanted to take surfing lessons (more on that later), and Kuta is basically the only place they’re offered.  So, with low expectations – particularly on Anna’s part, since she wasn’t going to surf – we left the lovely town of Ubud.

Before arriving in Kuta, I’d heard other travelers who’d been there describe it as “crowded,” “intense, and “only good for a party,” and generally talk about how much they disliked it.  Maybe our expectations were so low that the reality was bound to be a pleasant surprise (or maybe it’s our standards that are too low), but it really was not bad.  Sure, it’s a tourist trap with tons of foreigners, and I certainly wouldn’t have wanted it to be my only destination in Bali, but being there for a few days wasn’t bad.

Had we gone straight to Kuta from Rwanda, I think we would have been extremely overwhelmed – by the number of Westerners, the revealing clothes, the level of development, the huge and fancy mall, and the generally availability of basically everything.  We were shocked by the presence of American restaurants, things that are certainly not in Rwanda and that we had sort of forgotten exist in other parts of the developing world – McDonald’s, Burger King, A&W, KFC, Domino’s, Pizza Hut, Baskin Robbins, Cold Stone, Haagen Dazs, Starbucks, The Coffee Bean – and multiples of most of them.  (As a side note, many of them, including McDonald’s, have a delivery service – usually done by motorcycle.)  We also saw Roxy, Billabong, and Quiksilver stores, which were not too surprising, given the town’s emphasis on surfing.  Stranger, though, were the Ralph Lauren Polo stores (no other Ralph Lauren lines, only stores selling specifically Polo) on basically every block.  There are at least as many stores in Ubud, and, having been in both towns for several days, I’ve yet to see a Balinese person wearing a Ralph Lauren polo – and what foreigner comes all the way to Bali and decides that’s what they want to buy?  I really can’t imagine why they’re here to begin with, how so many of them can possibly stay open, or why there aren’t any other similar stores.  But I digress.

Our hotel in Kuta, Hotel Lusa, wasn’t as completely awesome as the places we had previously stayed, but it was fine.  It was a bit cheaper than the one in Ubud, about $22/night for a double including breakfast, and that was with no discount.  We had a fan, an en-suite bathroom with a cold-water shower, and a patio; plus there was a pool, its the redeeming quality.  The breakfast didn’t include as much as at some places – there was fruit, toast with eggs or pancakes, and coffee, tea, or orange juice – but it was excellent (other than the fact that instead of butter, they use Indonesian Blue Band, which is somehow worse than Rwandan/Kenyan Blue Band).  As in other places we’ve been on Bali, both the Western and Balinese food was great everywhere in Kuta.

Visiting places outside of Bali’s touristy and commercial south coast is an absolutely must for any visit to the island.  But I’d say ignore the people who love to hate Kuta – it’s no different from touristy towns anywhere else, the beach is nice, there’s always a lot going on, and the surfing conditions are great for beginners.