August 27, 2010 at 10:46Remote work in Bali (Indonesia)
Hello everybody!
This post is about a long trip to work in Bali . From it you will learn about how much, how and when it is possible and conveniently located with maximum comfort for a humanoid price in a place where work via the Internet is in no way obscured by smog from fires, abnormal temperature changes, sounds of a started tractor and other legal disasters.
It was not my inborn vanity or paperwork (which, incidentally, also participated actively in the work and are co-authors) that inspired me to write this post, but the desire to help my neighbor quickly decide on optimizing my work / home infrastructure using radical methods - dumping in Bali .
How to read this post? I know two types of readers,
1. Those who like to drill slowly, for about 30 minutes, savoring pictures and texts of super quality. For these readers, to whom I, of course, relate myself, I have prepared the main text, which sets out thoughts about organizing flights and accommodation with minimal complications.
2. And also those who read diagonally every third letter of the second word in a line starting with the letter X, unhooking only the essence. For such people, to whom I certainly relate to myself, thesis- harmful advice was written that we are too lazy to look for in the main text. To fully consolidate the material, I recommend that you familiarize yourself with the first and second parts, to consolidate the material studied.
And one more thing. Despite the dry introduction, the story will be conducted in an easy manner of laid-back humor with Yevgeny Vaganycham in the honorary box, with a large number of parables, deviations and distortions of Russian words in the most perverted way. If someone doesn’t like this type of presentation for any reason, I advise you to scroll further without going over the habrokat and be happy, that the dear author has saved you from the painful reading on these lines. In fact, this post combines a large study of the issue of traveling to an absolutely unfamiliar country without any agents of burning hell vouchers on the one hand, and a valuable experience for which a lot of money was paid, which you, dear reader of the 1st or 2nd category, can easily save money on a trip to Bali or any other country in the world for remote work. If you are ready
Until departure.
1. Brief information about Bali.
2. When to go. Question about climate / season.
3. Where to go.
4. Buying plane tickets.
5. Purchase / Hotel Reservation.
6. Visa. Insurance. First Aid Kit. Last preparation for the start.
Upon arrival.
7. Transport. Taxi, Dirt Bike, Legs.
8. Housing.
9. The Internet. Wi-Fi, CMDA, 3G. Voice communication (Reserve Internet in the phone.)
10. Rest.
11. The population.
12. General approximate calculation of travel expenses.
13. Bad advice.
14. Conclusion.
1. Briefly about Bali
2. When to go.
From the material given at the link above, it became clear to everyone that the peak tourist season is July, August + New Year holidays. Bali primarily attracts surfers / surfers. And if you go for fresh organs from around the world, then when not now? The advantages of the high season are obvious - traffic jams from taxis and bikes, price increases of 20-40%, primarily housing, services. Well, there are also disadvantages - this is an opportunity to get acquainted with a huge number of mostly positive young people, without putting any effort into it.
The low season is January - March due to the rainy season, which however, according to eyewitnesses, passes unnoticed and mainly at night. Due to its special geographical location, Bali always has about 24-32 degrees, a light breeze from the ocean. Humidity does not press, as in St. Petersburg at the same temperature, which is also a definite plus. There is a special conversation in the sun - the equator makes itself felt. And if you remember behind the sun a bad attitude towards you, here you should not expect special favor either. Be sure to take an anti-tanning cream with a protection factor => 50 and the “Rescuer” gel, if you forget to smear something yourself and signs of sunburn appear. In general, answering the main thesis of the chapter - you can go at any time,
3. Where to go.
Bali is so good that both amateurs in the evening can go and take part in night life, and those who rent a house / villa in groups and away from civilization organize a totalitarian sect or create a social network for% related_syndrome%. For the latter, areas on the northern or central part of the island are suitable, where among the authentic culture you are looked at with an open mouth
The main habitats of foreigners in Bali are Kuta, Legian, Samenyak, Jimbaran, Denpasar. Kuta is considered the central mecca of relaxation due to the simultaneous proximity of beaches, the airport, developed infrastructure and the popular name of the resort. However, when choosing a hotel / house, you can safely navigate to all nearby areas, since there is no problem getting to Kuta by bike in 15-20 minutes. Moreover, living on Legian and Kut for a long time seems rather difficult due to the very dense traffic of people and cars, constant noise. The best option, in my opinion, is the north of Samenyak and its environs, Tuban, south of Kuta or Jimbaran. There are a lot of private villas on Sameniac, this is a relatively expensive area, with all the consequences and wiping you for the money consequences. Tuban is a pretty good place; there are many private houses for rent.
4. Buying plane tickets.
Everything is simple here. Momondo.com offers one-way ticket options in the high season somewhere for 18-20 thousand rubles. Typically, this is 2 transfers and 25 hours of flight, taking into account the connections and expectations. Pretty cruel, but quite tolerant. Plus, if you take Emirates or something on the level, long flights will be brightened up with free food and drink, which will reduce the road to a few bottles of wine. A ticket, of course, is best taken in advance. The second option is a direct charter to Denpasar ( Ngurah Rai Airport ). Only 10 hours of scoop on board and you are in place. It is worth it to tolerate) At prices - you can take last-minute tickets, 1.5 weeks before departure, for 15-18 thousand rubles. Plus - this is a direct flight, without connections, screening, etc., nishtyakov's favorite tourists. Find Transaero tickets here.
5. Purchase / Hotel Reservation.
Before renting an apartment / house, you should look at the options, orienting yourself on the ground. Therefore, booking a hotel is not expensive for a few days. Usually 3-6 days of active searches are more than enough to find yourself a good option.
The hotel can be booked through Hotelscombined.ru or Baliblog.com/hotels or through a local agency. The cost of hotels with online booking is $ 15-20 per day. This money includes a full breakfast, daily cleaning, normal infrastructure.
6. Visa. Insurance. The last preparations.
So, the departure dates are known, there is a reservation, the smallest detail remains: this is the purchase of condoms, iodine for obtaining a visa. We are interested in a visa for a long term, at least 3 months. Therefore, we consider the following profitable option.
Receiving at the entrance. A visa is issued upon arrival for up to 30 days. The cost is $ 25. Plus, upon departure, you will be charged an additional fee of ~ $ 15.
To apply for a visa, you must have a ticket to another country before its expiration. However, a simple printout from Photoshop in Russian is enough to be believed. This visa can be extended for another 30 days 1 time and for this you will have to drive 3 times to the migration service (near the airport). For a longer period, all that remains is a visa to another country, where you are already kindly issued a social visa for 6 months (2 initially + possible extension by 4). The most convenient place for such registration is Kuala Lumpur due to the fact that this word is difficult to remember, as well as the fact that it is one of the largest hubs of air traffic in the region and the homeland of AirAsia with tickets for $ 50. The process of obtaining a social visa is detailed in this blog . For the price it comes (for 1 person in US dollars):
25 -Visa for 30 days.
15 - Collection at departure.
110 - The average price of a ticket to Kaul Lumpur and vice versa.
35 - Invitation from a local resident. Issued through the agency.
50 - Social visa. Through the Indonesian Embassy in Kuala Lumpur.
260 - Extension of a social visa for 4 months (65 per month), also through an agency.
50 - Accommodation in Kaula Lumpur.
$ 545 Here is the question price for a six-month stay + 30 days in a tour. visa. Part of this money - flights and accommodation can be attributed to microtourism, because you will not only do a visa there)
What are other visa options? Work visa: requires a bunch of documents. Tourist visa for 2 months. It is issued in Moscow if the hotel has a reservation for the entire stay (information has not been verified) or an extension of the 30-day visa at the local migration service for another 30 days maximum. Finally, a visor with a permanent tourist visa for 30 days. I read somewhere about bribes and extending my stay through them, but I won’t dare to advise anything here, since I wouldn’t go for it myself if I didn’t lose all the money in blackjack on the eve of the post ...
Insurance.Everything is simple here: we go to Rosno or Rosgosstrakh and in 1 hour and 3-4 thousand rubles you can not worry about your life: in which case you will be buried as a local king, in the midst of dirt and poverty. Seriously, insurance is required. If you need urgent medical care, you are first asked for insurance / money, only then they begin to fight for your life. That is, in Indonesia there is a struggle for the patient’s wallet, and only then for his life. The cost of honey. Astronomical services in Bali - a doctor’s call from $ 100 only for delivering it to your body. In general, the average demage can cost you more than one hundred thousand rubles. Insurance can be made both global and local, it will not cost much more. To me, global emergency assistance with coverage of 50,000 euros for 9 months stood at 5.5 thousand rubles.
Next, you need to take care of the first-aid kit . As mentioned above, it is better to attend to creams against tanning and burns. Next you need personal hygiene products - Handwash gel for yourself, Miramistin for local women, a couple of condoms for flights, iodine, bandages, and other trifles. For waiting at the dock between flights, the Vivacity cocktail is well suited - an aluminum spoon, a lighter, a 3-in-1 MacCon coffee bag and Reb Bull. Drugs. Of course, they should be taken with as many as possible, because Indonesia has an exclusive tour for all drag couriers with the death penalty as an extreme performance in one act at the end. In general, on all tickets, visas and airport posts they write about the death penalty, how wonderful it is and how easy it is to achieve with a package of banal grass in your pocket.
With the first-aid kit finished, what else to take on the road? Magazines, books, films and all that will brighten up a long flight. Pornography is also strictly prohibited in Indonesia, so that magazines and books will be taken away by customs officers for their needs, but there is no hardcrypted hard disk, keep in mind.
7. Transport. Taxi, bike, car.
They don’t allow us to steer a plane further than the airport, we’ll have to look for a taxi. We go out to the parking lot, look at the cab with a taxi, privateers on the road we safely ignore. A taxi to Kuta will cost $ 5-8. In general, it is always better to take official checkered cars, since they are everywhere. I recommend a blue taxi (ahem ..) - locally called BlueBird, but it is the most common. Riding to the capital - Denpasar there and back got up as much as $ 8 with the agreement to wait for me there ~ 30 minutes and a couple of stops along the way to replenish the balance of the body. The total travel time with the expectation of the area is 1.5 hours. Dream then Kam Tru.
We get to your hotel. Halt. Now it's time to be taken aback by your wheels. We forget about renting a car - it is not suitable for everyday tasks. Only for long-distance races by the company for several days. On each corner they offer a bike, train, hellicopter. Only the first in real life can offer. There is a bike from 1500 rubles. per month, in local money this is about 550,000 Indonesian rupees (IR). We look at the condition, the abrasion of the bike and the face of the driver-seller. The bike must be in very good condition - clean, without significant chips and other demages, no 50 powerless holy fools - only 110 cubes and above. If you ask for more than 600,000 TS, you can safely send it until the price is 500-550 thousand.
Driving a bike requires international rights; the Russians default on this. For rent, this is not a problem, say that you forgot when you transplanted on the moon / lost during surfing. But the police may be interested. About the bike and the police it is worth telling a little more. In general, the police are quite friendly, but also loves money, so we are watching the 2nd main rules of Bali.
- You can’t
feed a policeman after midnightto ride without a helmet. When renting a helmet, they give it for free, and you need the first helmet that they gave back to the lessee, requiring better. In any case, a cool helmet with horns / in the form of a German helmet / and TP can be bought for 250 rubles on shopping streets. - You cannot cross the dividing line at traffic lights. Even if the wheel drives 10 cm forward or onto it, you will be fined.
If they slowed down - it doesn’t matter, we explain in purely Russian that chocolate is not to blame for anything, the boy went to success. You will be shown the price list of your stocks and offered to give money on the spot. I tried to bargain, it didn’t work out - they talked about their integrity and cleanliness of the ranks, khe-khe. The size of the fine is from 300 to 900 rubles. by default. Lack of rights costs another ~ 600 rubles. If your Skill of trade shows more than 100 in a pip-fight, you can agree on 50 for everything, similar examples of “mercy” from the authorities are found regularly. As for the lack of an international driver’s license, either include your favorite photoshop and make a “copy” of your rights with a couple of seals from the Department of Internal Affairs No. 2 for importance or buy a completely official certificate that documents were stolen from you. There is a certificate - about 1000 rubles, a month is valid.
По трафику. Трафик конечно, плотный на Куте, Легиане и особенно на подъезде к Денпансару, бывают пробки, а пробки из байков это тру пробки) Когда в одну сторону в ряд стоят грузовые байки: с баллонами пропана, с фанатами пои, серфа, а также простых работяг, перевозящих по центнеру барахла в каких-то самодельных коробках, прибытих на слюни местных обезъян к байку, не всегда чувствуешь себя уверенно. Но это до первого стакана рома — ограничений на промилле в Вашем личном двигателе нет, так что можно заправляться чем угодно и сколько угодно. Во время движения на байке главное правило — никаких правил, кто сильнее посигналил — тот и прав, поэтому перед каждым обгоном / маневром рекомендуется сигналить, а еще лучше стрелять в
8. Housing
So, we have a hotel for some time, now it remains only on the spot, driving in a taxi or bike to ask local residents about the rental of an apartment / house and choose a convenient option. There will be no problems with communication, local residents are happy to help in any situation, and even
If we talk about a long-term lease for a period of more than 2 months, as described above, it makes no sense to take housing in Kut / Legian. We look around the neighborhood to make it cheaper and not far from the center if you want entertainment. If you look for laziness on your own, hereThere are several relatively inexpensive options, but the mediator is the mediator and I advise you to resort to the services of this fraternity last. Through Adpost, you can search for housing on your own, in principle, good options come across. The most laborious way is to ride a bike and ask where it is inexpensive to rent a house. Russians and Anglo-agents will soar you that there is no cheap housing, which is expensive, etc., but do not believe them, brothers and sisters. There are options for normal homes for $ 300 a month, in which you can live for 4-6 people. You can even find a hotel / guesthouse with a monthly fee of 200-400 dollars.
9. The Internet. Wi-Fi, CMDA, 3G. Voice communication (Backup Internet in the phone.)
The situation with the Internet in Bali is ambiguous. On the one hand, there are a large number of eateries and Internet cafes with free or almost free Internet, on the other hand, the lack of normally developed access in the private sector. This is due, first of all, to the fact that everything in Bali is imprisoned for tourism and that is why hotels, cafes, temples and other public places are equipped with hot spots. As for ordinary residents - they do not need your Internet for woodcarving, surfing and armed struggle for freedom. If you're lucky and there is a telephone line in the house, you can stir up ADSL. As soon as I meet such a view in real life, I will unsubscribe what it is and at what speeds it runs around the terrain. So either we are looking for an expensive and rare house with ready Internet or we take a whistle-modem of a local operator with unlimited.
What about unlimited wireless internet.
1. Smart Telecom. Provides Internet access through CDMA technology (EV-DO), guarantees true unlimited, without any traffic restrictions. The speed is up to 3 Mbps on paper, it only works for me at 200-300 kbps with Russian ip, the speed increases noticeably at night and on weekends. The cost of the equipment is a CMDA modem ~ 3300 rubles, a monthly fee for 3 months is included. Next ~ 1000 rubles. in month Or a CDMA router that distributes Wi-Fi access to the afflicted. Cost ~ 5000 rubles., Also the first 3 months for free and then as with a modem. The Smart office is located here in Dempansar. Settings: To work, you need to install the application for Windows (from XP to 7th) or Mac from the modem and enjoy the connection.
2. Indosat. Tariff XL.
It is used as a backup Internet and is used by default for voice communication / Internet in the phone. The speed is quite decent - 0.5 - 0.9 Mbps per download via 3G channel. I can’t orient myself at exact prices on megabyte operations, but on the whole it’s quite expensive - they ate 60 rubles for testing communications through Speedtest + opening 2 branches to lady.ru. Total almost 15-25 rubles megabytes ... There are tariffs on the Indosat website for those who need specific packages and prices, but they don’t smell like anlim. You can buy on almost any shopping street. Settings: Setting GPRS Manual: Profile Name INDOSATGPRS User name: indosat APN: indosatgprs Password: indosat Gateway IP: 10.19.19.19 Homepage
wap.klub-mentari.com
Data Bearer: GPRS
Dial Number (depends on your modem) - * 99 #
3. Simpati.
I can not say anything. About $ 0.1 / minute of calls comes out on calls, GPRS tuned, but its speed just killed. speedtest.net did not open until the end in 4 minutes, and this despite the fact that the 3G connection on the modem was on. Feild.
Settings:
Connection Name: APN Telkomsel
Data Bearer: GPRS
Access Point Name: telkomsel
Username: wap
Prompt Password: No
Password: wap123
Authentication: Normal
Homepage: wap.telkomsel.com
WAP Gateway IP Address: 10.1.89.130
Port: 9201 (standard) , 8000 (proxy)
Dial Number (depends on your modem) - * 99 #
Voice communication. It is relatively expensive for other services, a minute of conversation results in about 3-5 rubles. I did not conduct a special study on this issue, but 900-1000 rubles per month should be enough for everyone to talk with the wind for a long time. The cheapest are the Indosat Simpati and XL. SMS costs some cents, XL includes even bonus packages.
10. Rest. Internet, Surf, Drugs, Clubs, Women, other attractions.
Well, finally got to what this post was written for. Of course, I did not participate in anything like this, but one acquaintance of my friend heard from the Holy Father in the Vatican, to whom the sinner confessed, the following information.
Surfing. This case is full. If you want a Russian company, then go to the Endless Summer or Easy Serf surf school. All are similar, the approximate price tag is ~ 6000 rubles for 6 lessons. The price includes rental forms, surf, insurance, training. If you don’t want to give money to compatriots, we are looking for any Indonesian on the beach in Kut who, as we know, are born right on the surfboard, and for 400-700 rubles we take a lesson, the board is on. Many people know more or less Russian, there will be no problems with communication / understanding. In general, to learn to stand and catch the waves under the strength of everyone who has at least 2-3 hands and 1 desire to learn. In the future, it makes sense to buy a surf bu for skiing / breaking and reselling before departure. At least many long-playing tourists do this. Drugs.
Well, to begin with, the death penalty relies on interesting vegetation here. Therefore, sales are mainly on tourist streets by local youth with strange seams around their necks. According to an eyewitness, there is a certain form of the local mafia specializing in frauds in this matter with the aim of blackmailing the newly made victim. In general, the whole conversation comes down to the fact that drugs are bad, but here it can be bad squared.
Clubs.On two main tourist streets / areas - Legian and Kuta, the main gathering of visitors and local youth is going. There are also simple restaurants and clubs and karaoke bars, in general, it’s never boring. White people are treated there appropriately. You and Mr. Franklin are always and everywhere welcome. Alco prices in clubs are relatively high. Normal vodka ~ $ 5, Tequila ~ $ 6, Beer ~ $ 3, etc. Save special promotions and happy moments with special. at the price of certain cocktails. Well, the fact that you can come to the club in any condition, even if you can go only on the eyebrows.
Women.Local representatives of the fauna are distinguished, as indeed all Indonesians, by their friendliness, smile and poor English. Together with a loyal attitude to alcohol, this gives an unimaginably wide scope for maneuvers. The probability of running into paid love is a little more than complete ... The issue of pricing varies greatly - from simple charity to $ 50 per hour.
Other delights. There are not many left, but nonetheless. A pair of volcanoes, lakes, ancient temples and cities, forests with monkeys, villages of the dead, wild islands, religious ceremonies - all this you will never visit as soon as you learn to stand on the surf.
11. The population.
Despite Muslim Indonesia, the people of Bali are preaching the local form of Hinduism, which guarantees their tolerance for our favorite forms of relaxation. All of them are listed in the Old Testament, only ~ ten. Local people amaze with their good nature, bordering on a sincere desire to cash in on you. However, you can always count on finding the right way or orienting yourself in the search for the right services. It is customary to bargain here where there is no cash desk, although there you can also ask for a discount with a few purchases. I myself am not a fan of knocking out excess rupees from the seller, but in Asia this is a form of social game, and if you treat this accordingly, you can enjoy the process. How to bargain in general, many posts have been written, you can google the question normally. It is very convenient to ask anyone on the bike to bring it anywhere, while at the end of the route giving $ 0.5 for tea. By the way. In many restaurants / hotels, they additionally charge taxes / service charges - pay attention to the amount in the check that meets the weighted average expectations.
There are a lot of tourists, many Australians, many Russians, it will not be boring. Among tourists, a rather large percentage of those who have lived in Bali for years, thereby guaranteeing that one day you will not be the only whites on the island in your company.
12. General approximate calculation of travel expenses.
The calculation is very approximate, designed mainly for those who want to pay a little, but get a lot. We take a trip for 6 months, we count on one person in US dollars.
1000 - Round-trip ticket
100 - Hotel reservation for 5 days in Bali
150 - Medical insurance
50 - First aid kit on the road
480 - Visa for 5 months + 30 days for tourist
300 - Rent a bike for 6 months
200 - For gasoline. It takes about $ 0.5 a day, but it all depends on the skater and those on whom he rides
2100 -Housing for 6 months. Very approximate parameter. You can rent a house / apartment for 3x for 400-700 dollars / month, you can villa for 100 dollars a day. You can live in a simple hotel for $ 400 / month, you can buy a box from under the refrigerator.
200 - Internet. $ 100 purchase of a modem with 3 months unlimited + payment for another 3 months. In principle, you can immediately take a Smart router to the company - it costs $ 160, the Internet is the same, but you can immediately distribute the suffering to Wi-Fi.
150 - Voice communication. Here we are talking only about local challenges, for international ones there is meditation and VOIP.
Total: $ 4,730 without spending on vacation / food per person for six months. How much is the last? The spread is very high. In the north, you can dine for $ 1, in local markets you can make out for a penny. At the same time, you can merge in European restaurants and supermarkets / malls for $ 20 for lunch and a shopping basket at the level of Moscow Region. For myself, I pawned about 3,500 in 6 months, so as not to deny myself anything. I will keep it or not, I will write in 5.5 months.
As a result, we get about 40,000 rubles a month on the nose. This includes a fairly wide, up to 50%, opportunity for savings with only one desire. Prices in Bali can vary many times even in one area. If you are targeting European shops / food / service, you need to be prepared for one price tag. This is about $ 15 a day, including lunches and dinners in cafes / restaurants above average. But if you want to feel Asia in all its cheapness, you can even live on $ 500 a month, however this is not enough for every stomach / thirst for consumerism.
For comparison, housing in the MSC costs from 20,000 rubles per month, plus transport - a couple of hours of your favorite metro electric, plus food. In general, it was never possible to leave less than 50,000, no matter how I would like. In St. Petersburg, it’s a little cheaper, but now there is no obvious price difference, only in the field of catering and real estate.
13. Bad advice.
As promised above, instead of a boring text, a couple of practical advice on the merits.
- You can go to work in Bali at any time of the year, the most tourist season is July, August and the new year.
- To take tickets either in advance or on last-minute offers is too cheap, you need to take a day and Aeroflot.
- Insurance for wimps, why pay 4,000 rubles, if in a banal accident you can pay 100,000 for treatment?
- We are looking for hotel and accommodation only through Russian intermediaries who live in Bali and earn their living by renting you the best options at the lowest prices. Remember: Mi, Russians, do not deceive each other ..!
- You can get a visa, do nothing, the main thing is that there is no desire to come back here later when they are expelled.
- You do not need to search the Internet, it is in any SIM card, of course it comes out 100 times more expensive, but we don’t worry.
- You need to rest without bargaining for anything. You can even offer more. Indeed, this is how you can leave several times more local shells during your stay.
- Rights are not needed just like a helmet on a bike. We will help every honest cop in Bali build their own house!
14. Conclusion.
Ultimately, everyone chooses a place and time for himself. Someone likes to work in their native Moscow, among soft dense smog. Someone like the St. Petersburg rains and clouds that obscure the sun for months. The purpose of this post was to show how easy and affordable it is to organize an excellent workplace in a large, spacious house where you can sleep and work on the veranda, there is also a habr. With all this, your costs will almost certainly be lower than if you also spent time in large cities of Russia. Although someone will not like the lack of: snow, passive aggression of the population, the watchman syndrome, small-town service, daily pushing in stuffy vehicles, semek and let SmartAfon call the flat guys. However, this is largely offset by palm trees, a curse, a soft breeze, flickering of one-story houses, buried in verdure, on the bike road, by friendly people from all over the world. And the main thing here is a simple understanding that so many have this opportunity to choose a place for their work and it is much closer than it seems.
15. Disclaimer.
The copyright to the text belongs to me, the material is distributed as copyleft , can be used partially or fully by any user in the name of good, limited by current legislation.
Photos / videos for the post are mainly borrowed from Google images (due to my skill to photos even lower than to writing) and belong to their authors / other persons who have exclusive rights to them. References to the source are contained in the image title.
This text does not claim to be a detailed guide to action and is a short essay based on personal experience and materials from the network. The author is not responsible for anything and to anyone but the local Buddha and Allah, just in case.