Warning? Sure, but let's not ruin the whole holiday

Australian tourists at Legian Street's Bounty Club foam party, where patrons are urged to get "wet and wild" in a pool of suds.
Photo: Ardiles Rante

By : Peter Wilmoth, Bali ( theage.com.au)

IT'S after dark in Kuta and the place is pumping. People spill out of the surf shops and the stalls selling luggage, handicrafts and jewellery. But what really speaks volumes is the queue outside the famous Made's Warung, the stylish two-level restaurant in the heart of Bali's tourist precinct.

There's even a bit of Warung rage, as a wiry Aussie loudly castigates a waitress for letting another group go ahead of his. "We were here before them," he snarls.

You wouldn't know the Australian Government had issued a travel advisory warning of the "very high threat" of another terror attack against Western interests and venues frequented by foreigners in Indonesia. People aren't fleeing the hotspots of Bali. Far from it: here, they are fighting to get in.

There's something else interesting about the tourist crowd at Made's tonight. Enjoying their gado gado, sashimi platters and Bintang beers are not only couples and groups, but families with children, escaping to warmer climes during the school holidays. As six kids sit happily at one table, a father throws a laughing baby into the air. Later, about 11pm, a family strolls along the beachside nightclub strip.

These scenes last Thursday night are testament to Australians' resilience in the face of international terrorism and their determination that nothing — not even the shadow of the 2002 and 2005 bomb blasts — will ruin their holidays in the Bali sunshine.

But is this a foolhardy attitude? Are these carefree holiday-makers being too cavalier?

Steve Shuttleworth, a 31-year-old fisherman from Perth, is walking in Legian with his surfboard. He learned about the travel advisory by email.

"To be honest, if I really took it to heart I wouldn't be here," he admits. "(But) I feel safe because I'm making a concentrated effort to avoid nightclubs. I'm going to small restaurants and bars. I'm going to get out of the mainstream area and go to Java.

"It is a concern. I guess you don't believe it can happen to you. Logically you'd be mad to be here. Why would you go somewhere where there's a real live threat of being blown up?"

The sense here is a mixture of defiance, scepticism and denial. Many tourists say they are not going to let the terrorists "win", others say the travel advisory is overly cautious and terrorism can happen anywhere, any time.

Nick, originally from Melbourne, has lived and worked in Sumatra for 15 years, first attracted by the promise of Indonesia's great waves. On holiday in Bali, he scoffs at the government warnings