Considered one of the world's most popular holiday destinations, the tropical island of Bali in Indonesia has long been the site for Western fantasies about paradise. Over half a million Australians visit the Island of the Gods every year, from families treating the kids to a beach holiday to single men looking for cheap booze and sex. And for wide-eyed schoolies, hardcore partying in Bali has become a rite of passage, but it is not without pitfalls.
Bali is a rough place, as dangerous a place as you will ever encounter. What you don't see in the glossy brochures is the rampant prostitution, the prevalence of AIDS, the bloody turf wars waged between local gangs and the drug- and alcohol-induced Western hooliganism. Tourists are robbed, raped and murdered and Westerners get into vicious fights amongst themselves and with Indonesians on a regular basis.
In this extraordinary expose, Australian author and Bali resident Malcolm Scott reveals the raw underbelly of Bali. He walks readers down Bali's mean streets with honesty, humour and gritty realism and offers up a Bali choking with violent street fights, cheap sex and aggressive crime.
Bali Raw teaches you as much about the underbelly of Australian society as it does about Bali. It is a must-read for anyone who has visited, or is thinking of travelling to, Indonesia's Island of the Gods.
