Ubud is very cheap. Our homestay, for example, is $9 a night, which includes a delicious breakfast of scrambled eggs, toast, coffee, and fresh fruit. You can get a wide variety of excellent meals for under $2. You can rent a bike for $2 a day, or a motorbike for $4.
Getting here was the hard part. We flew into Bali's main airport in Denpasar and stayed over one night there (since our flight got in late). In the morning our taxi driver said he would drive us to Ubud (about 45 minutes away) for 300,000 Rp (that's $30). By comparison, the rate on the local bus for two people is 8,000 Rb (less than $1). While the taxi driver's offer certainly pushed the envelope, we discovered that it's fairly normal to get quoted about 2-3 times the market rate for transport.
Getting to the bus station did not prove simple, however. In our efforts to walk to the bus station, we discovered that anyone and everyone is a prospective cabbie (even people with no apparent connection to any cab service, and no visible sign of transport). We were told several times that it was "very far" to the unmarked bus stop we had read about on the internet (the speakers, of course, egar to take us themselves). The last time this happened, he eventually pointed us in the right direction (when it was clear we weren't going with him), and the actual distance turned out to be approximately 3 blocks.
Once on the corner, the man standing there said the actual corner we really wanted was, in fact, "very far" and offered to take us there. He persisted in this claim until the Bemo actually pulled up to the curb, at which point he pointed at it and said "here it is". (I particularly liked that part).
All of this was fairly stressful at first, but now that we know the system, I think it's great fun. The trick is to remain happy: you and he just keep smiling and laughing and bantering together as you keep re-iterating your point, and he his. Eventually, he'll come around, and you've both shared a good laugh. It actually felt like we were making friends with taxi drivers whose services we refused in this way.
There is one taxi driver in Ubud in particular, who asks us every time we pass if we want a taxi. Today, after probably 10 or 11 refusals so far, he yelled from across the street (normal for taxi drivers), "you want taxi now?" with a big smile. We laughed and shook our heads back. He's a familiar part of the landscape now, and we always make sure to wave and smile at him on our way past. (As well as throw in whatever Indonesian greetings we can think of)
* * *
Using my newfound technique of always laughing and smiling and acting friendly, I tried my hand at bargaining in a shop for a batik sarong (which is cool--pictures of this later). The man in the shop offered 120,000 Rp ($12), citing its beauty and fine quality. I countered with 6,000 Rp ($6) smiling and explaining apologetically that it was truely very beautiful, but I wasn't sure if I would wear it very much yet. After several backs and forths (with reasons on both sides), we settled at 85,000 ($8.50). (This, by the way, was 50 cents more than the target price I quietly had discussed with Jen earlier).
And this is the nice thing about bargaining. I think it was possible that he would have gone lower, but I felt like I was getting a great bargain at $8.50, and he seemed to feel that he was doing well too. (He actually said "good for me, good for you!" when he suggested $8.50). So the whole thing was pretty low stress, and came out well for everyone in the end! I only hope all future bargaining is so friend-making as this turned out. Before we left he gave me a lesson in how to fold it in both a male style, and in a female style (in case Jen wanted to wear it).
As an addendum, I've made good friends with a lady in a coffee shop here--we have spent several hours talking about Bali and California and all kinds of things. I mentioned to her about bargaining for the sarong, and asked (without telling her how much I got it for) how much she thought was reasonable for something like that. She thought for awhile and said "about 85,000" ($8.50). So it seems like I did ok!
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