This morning I headed off like Columbus, into the Denpasar traffic, hoping to find the Bali Museum. The museum is located in Puputan Square and after a couple of wrong turns, courtesy of the re-routing of the one-way system, I reached it. Puputan Square is the large grassy area, that commemorates the Puputan (ritual group suicide) in 1906. The side of the square where the Bali Museum sits, is shaded by lovely tall trees, creating an oasis of clam, in the midst of mayhem. Arriving at the front gate, a local immediately attached himself to me and followed me in. He directed me to a side office, which was closed, then told me he could show me around the grounds of Pura Agung Jagatnatha (for a fee).
Another guy offered me lontar calendars, a lady just held her hand out and a last guy stopped me on the way out asking for ‘money for temple cleaning’. That’s 4 people asking for money in 5 minutes, inside the temple. Can you say ‘tourist trap’? Turns out the Bali Museum was closed today (will be open tomorrow). That’s 0-2 on my attempts to visit the museum, but I look forward to the time when I get to do it.
