While Bali is not as conservative as say Java, Lombok or
Aceh for example, it is still part of Indonesia, which is
essentially a traditional society. And compared with most
Western countries, people cover up a lot more here. You only
have to look at what people wear at the beach – women,
especially are pretty covered up and virtually no Balinese
wear bikinis. Even the hippest Balinese youths will go on
dates to the beach wearing jeans, sweat-shirts and even jerseys
or cardigans. Don’t freak out (chuckling to yourself
is OK, though) if you see people dating with motorbike helmets
on – I think this is a bit like someone who has ‘left
their glasses on their head’ rather than much of an
extreme fashion statement.
The way locals dress up – especially in jumpers and
jackets – on their motorbikes or on slightly windy days
may surprise a lot of us, but then again we surprise and often
shock them too by the way we dress (or don’t dress).
Visitors here seem to think that because Bali is a tourist
destination, this exempts them from any form of dress etiquette
at all. This explains why you’ll often see tourists
parading down a main road, in, say, Sanur, basically wearing
nothing at all. Talk about ‘sticking out’ (literally)!
This kind of clueless, callous attitude stamps all foreigners
instantly with the ‘all Westerners are wanna-be pornstars’
label.
You have to ask yourself honestly, though: Would I be seen
dead in a bikini or a g-string wandering around in a major
department in your home town? Apart from being too damned
cold, probably, it’d be rather embarrassing –
“Malu, ah!” as the locals would say.
Now you have a fair idea what not to wear, what you should
wear, where and when, takes a bit of behind-the-scenes investigation.
More, next time…
