On the west side of Bukit's narrow isthmus is one of Bali's finest stretches of beach, gently arcing for several kilometers from just south of the airport all the way to the jutting cliffs of eastern Bukit.
This is the most popular native beach of Bali with far fewer tourists than Kuta/Legian. On a weekend afternoon, Jimbaran’s clean golden sand is crowded with families, strollers, soccer games, prancing dogs and kids flying kites.
Although the warm water is suitable for swimming and bodysurfing, Jimbaran is not known for its marine recreation. Large waves don't break here because of the unbroken coral reef which blocks the entrance to Jimbaran Bay and which only small perahu and sailboats can transverse. Motorboats are not welcome because of the noise and pollution they cause.
After making the turn into Jimbaran from the main bypass highway, you enter a real indigenous Balinese village going about its everyday life. Whereas Nusa Dua’s hotels are located in an exclusive enclave that’s segregated from the community, Jimbaran’s hotel guests are able to mingle with villagers.
Jimbaran, the principal town of the area, is a former fishing village which has long ago successfully completed the jarring metamorphosis into an upscale tourist destination, though it remarkably still retains its village-like atmosphere.
Just a few months after the SARS epidemic, the hotels along Jimbaran’s strip of beach are filled with guests, in particular the Taiwanese and Japanese, this year’s saviors of the Bali tourism industry.
With not much to do in the village itself, the multitudes of eastern Asians are perfectly content to enjoy poolside games, lounge at swim up bars, play pool and table tennis and sunbathe on beaches relatively bereft of itinerant vendors except for steaming corn carts.
It’s eminently safe to saunter along the wide beach or walk the streets of the village at any time of the day or night, and the resort’s location is unbeatable: only 15 minutes to the airport, Nusa Dua or the vast Galleria shopping complex on Simpang Siur near Kuta.
The famous Jimbaran fish market, where nearly all of south Bali’s restaurateurs come to buy their seafood, opens for business at 4 a.m. and is still going strong at 7 p.m. As any housewife will attest, the market has the highest quality and the freshest seafood in all of south Bali, and at very good prices.
As if to give the market added authenticity, the crowded fish sheds where meter-long tuna are sold are surrounded by fishing boats, jukung under shelters and working shipbuilding shipyards, props befitting one of Bali’s major fishing fleets.
If you’re up early enough, fishing boats pull up on Jimbaran’s shore and women with buckets balanced on their heads line up to unload fish, then walk to the cooperative to weigh, sort and sell. This sight you’ll see nowhere else on this scale in Bali. By midmorning the catch is in and the work done.
Pay a Rp 500 parking fee and have a walk around this lively market. In the evening, a portion of it magically turns into a pasar sengol (night market) where children’s clothes, toys, popcorn, cotton candy, fruit and sandals are sold. Bali is little in evidence in this place where Madurese and Javanese merchants hold sway.
Where to Eat
The most exciting and fun places to eat are in one of the very affordable smoky, palm-thatched, open-air restaurants on the beach which serve delicious seafood barbecued on coconut husks. These were once simple little warung but now have grown into full-service restaurants worthy of the patronage of tourists being bused in from swank Nusa Dua resorts.
The fresh catch of the day comes with an array of special spices, sambal, tomato and cucumber salad. These 44 (at last count) eateries are super popular at sunset time, so arrive by the late afternoon to get the best ringside tables. The setting sun, the lights of fishing platforms twinkling across the horizon, the candlelit tables lining the beach, the hearty Batak singers, the barbecue racks billowing smoke, all make for an enchanting atmosphere.
There are three main concentrations, all with good parking (Rp1000) one small strip close to the road on the way up to the Four Seasons and north of PJs, another longer row if you turn towards the sea at Jimbaran’s main intersection, and yet another clump of restaurants to the north on the way to Jimbaran’s fish market.
It is now generally considered that the best are the restaurants lying between the InterContinental Hotel and PJs. Because the staff are current and former employees of nearby star properties, more care goes into the food's preparation and presentation. The restaurants with the best reputations are Bakti, Menega, Ubung and Bayang.
But no matter where you chose to eat, it’s essential that you bargain before being seated because sometimes there are two menus - one for Indonesians and the other for tourists (40% more expensive). Prices for a three-course fish dinner (including fruit) are in the Rp 40,000 to 45,000 range per kilo of fish; Rp150,000-170,000 per kilo of lobster.
But the crème de la crème of the Jimbaran seafood restaurants is PJs, just down the road and part of the stunning Four Seasons Resort (tel. 701-010, ext. 8226). In the hands of brilliant chef Pak Widana, here you can indulge not only Mediterranean-style seafood, but also crisp wood-fired pizzas. The signature dish is the Tabanan Fish (Rp155,000++). Every item is homemade, including the bread and ice cream. The mood is upbeat and casual, the flavors are bold and inspired and the presentation is perfectly in keeping with its romantic beachside location. Open 11 a.m. to 10 p.m.
For those on a budget, the congenial Jaya Sempurna on the main drag (Jl. Uluwatu 29, hp 081-647-07265) serves big portions of fresh Chinese-style halal food on its two vinyl-topped tables. Fast service and unbelievable prices.
E-mail : pakbill2003@yahoo.com
Copyright@2004 PakBill
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