Last week I rode to East Bali to look at how Covid19 was playing out. I’d been disappointed by how coverage had concentrated on high-end hotel chains & wanted to see how small, family/locally–owned businesses—you know, the kind of places that you & I stay in, & love—were faring.

Prob was, nobody would go on record—often people I know. On record? No way. This made the story impossible to sell, so I’m tweeting it instead. Bonus, with random pics. No place I spoke to is in any of these photos. As the whole piece is 1,500 words, this is cut down!

**A ride to East Bali**
Bali is in lockdown light: OS flights are mostly banned, island–travel is essential only, sort of. Restaurants sometimes open, others takeaway. Some hotels ordered closed, others open but few guests. Beach closed, gym open. Welcome to lockdown, Bali-style.

Amed is a coastal dive & snorkel town strung out over a dozen km & a bunch of bays in East Bali. It is, in many ways, quintessential Bali. The peak of Agung overlooks jet–black sandy beaches & crystal waters. Amed is somewhat wealthy, but relative only to East Bali, which is poor

Before dawn hundreds of wood & bamboo jukungs (traditional outriggers) head out. They return after breakfast, bright triangular dhow–like sails fluttering in the seabreeze. Even after seeing it happen for years, the sight, rising sun behind them, remains magical.

There are hundreds of places to stay—from $10 backpacker haunts to high–end private villas. Plenty are small businesses, many are family–owned—most are closed. Guests, like the local couple I met in a beachside bamboo warung had fled the coming lockdown in Denpasar and ridden up.

Tourism plays an important part in Bali’s economy. Figures as high as 70% for its contribution to the economy get trotted out, but they rely on a broad view of what tourism is. This high figure also supports a simplistic Western-centric view of what Bali is.

A more credible Bank of Indonesia report on the economy from 2017 put tourism at just shy of 50% of the economy. To a non-economist like me, that feels about right. In Amed though, the critical importance of tourism is obvious and cannot be ignored.

In Amed, as with Bali, social distancing rules vary. People said I could swim/snorkel Bunatan but not Jemeluk—a km away. The one universal no-no is diving: It is shut down, much to diver’s frustration. As one said, “Tell me a sport with better social distancing than diving!”

On the ride up, mask–wearing: near universal. Amed: usage low. A hotelier said some locals believe foreigners carry the virus—to the point where they refuse to come to work. With the island shut off from international flights for over a month, this belief is shaky.

Bali has community transmission and the number of official cases has continued to rise. Still, the Governor talks about reopening tourism sooner than later.

Tulamben is a scratchy & dusty diving centre 45m west attracting divers for wreck diving straight off the black pebble-strewn beach. It was in a near complete lockdown. Not one tourist–facing business was open. An owner said if I got stuck, I could sleep at their place.

That said, I would need to stay away till nightfall & leave before dawn. The hospitality the Balinese are famous for, yes, but it wasn’t an exactly tempting offer. A divemaster I had been trying to meet with messaged to say they “were not allowed to meet with foreigners”.

In Tulamben, as in Amed, mask wearing was but a fraction of what I saw in the south. A hotel owner in Amed remarked they had offered masks to all staff, which are worn on the premises. As soon as they leave, masks come off.

Friends & family: a recurring theme. Balinese owner talked of power of their frequent ceremonies & societal bonds. Born in village, they’ll die in same: “I go to their funerals & they come to mine." We talked over ceremonies—& role they play in offering immunity to covid-19...

Ties are broader than the village tho. One staffer I spoke to was living in Jimbaran when it hit. Villas their laundry relied on emptied, so they closed. Once school closed there was no reason to stay—so they returned to family...who own the land. Another Amed+: Few foreigners.

I ask, do they believe the virus is a foreign problem? They pause & chuckle. “Well maybe not you, but foreigners brought it to Bali.” I mention returning cruise ships crews, some of whom are +ve. “They are the same as you, they have been outside.” https://jakartaglobe.id/news/thousands-of-foreign-tourists-repatriated-from-bali-as-more-indonesian-ship-crew-arrive-home/

This other–worldly view re the virus isn’t restricted to locals. The crunchy vibe & values of some expats comes in anti-vax & conspiracy tales. “What is really going on?” Both this & a belief that Covid19 is a foreign problem, that Balinese have mystical protection, concerned me.

The accuracy of Bali’s numbers has been questioned & cases increase. Unlike centres in Java (Reuters) & Sumatra (NewNaratif), reports have not surfaced of a spike in deaths in Bali. No more funerals than usual, I was told in Amed. So where the bodies?
https://infocorona.baliprov.go.id/ 

A theory is people already had it, mildly & didn’t know it. Many talk of illness—“I thought had dengue—maybe was covid”. Bali has had a bad year for dengue. Until widespread & reliable testing, we won’t know. Indo has one of lowest testing rates on earth.
https://ourworldindata.org/grapher/total-tests-per-thousand-since-per-cap-death-threshold

These perhaps early cases skipped hospital. In March even getting tested was an effort. When Ms Travelfish had what we think was Covid19, a Balinese doctor advised staying away. “Only go to hospital if you have no choice—if you can manage it at home, stay at home,” he said.

On staff lay-offs, responses varied. One hotelier: “If local they’ll always have fish—& most of our staff are from this village." A Balinese owner shrugged, “No work, no pay”. A foreign owner grated over local extortion rackets re entitlements: “You can get out your credit card.”

Cancellations for June through August (peak season) have come thick & fast. With savings to tide things over running out, harder times are coming. If business stays dead, the above–mentioned credit card will be maxed out. Or more businesses will close.

It sounds terrible, & it is. Riding the strip, up to 75% of hotels & restaurants looked closed. Some hold out, hoping for easing of domestic travel rules. Some may pivot to retreats & longer–stay deals. But this year’s high season is gone. Turning diving back on is imperative.

People I spoke to remained +ve & welcoming.
“We survived Agung & we’ll survive this”
People are not giving up.
So what can you do?
If you’ve got a fave place, get in touch direct & make a deposit for the future.
Ikan Kecil is doing good work in the area
https://www.facebook.com/IkanKecilAmedBali/

cc @ubudroi the trip we talked about!