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THIRTY-THREE SEASONS IN HELL : A PROLOGUE (III)

Eight years ago, I was interviewed for the magazine BaliSavvy “The Official American Express® Guide to the Island”. I found a copy of that old interview recently in an archive of the adversities I have endured since March 2010. I decided to post the 2010 interview here in several installments as a prologue … Continue reading

Author : Susi
Comment Number : 2 Comments
macan tidur and icon asian arts 2010

THIRTY-THREE SEASONS IN HELL: A PROLOGUE (II)

      Eight years ago, I was interviewed for the magazine BaliSavvy, “the official American Express® guide to the island”.   I found a copy of that 2010 interview recently in an archive of the adversities I have endured since March 2010.  I decided to post it here, in several installments, as … Continue reading

Author : Susi
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Rice paddies, like paradise, but with hell just beneath the smooth surface of the waters

thirty-three seasons in hell: a prologue (I)

  Eight years ago, an interview and profile of me appeared in the magazine BaliSavvy, “the official American Express® guide to the island”. This afternoon I happened on a copy of it in my messy archive of the eight plus years in hell I have endured between March 2010 and now. … Continue reading

Filled under : Bali , Concerns , The Saga , Tribal Art , Uncategorized
Author : Susi
Comment Number : 2 Comments
susijohnston.com blog new revived since Bali and now on Vashon Island

All Change

I used to live in London, where I rode the District Line from Parson’s Green to the City for work. God bless the London Underground. I appreciated its no-nonsense and no-frills way of moving humans around. But I cursed the Underground when the loud announcement, “All change! All change!” blasted … Continue reading

Filled under : The Saga , Uncategorized
Author : Susi
Comment Number : 1 Comment

Bali invasion

Interesting little spontaneous essay by “Joan of Bali” popped up in the comments section of one of my posts. Since it was “public” I take the liberty of reposting it here. Thanks Joan. “When I came here I saw a very different economy than I came from but I didn’t … Continue reading

Filled under : Architecture , Bali , Concerns
Author : Susi
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Bali Not For Sale #notforsale

SITUASI SUSI JOHNSTON: Pelurusan Kesesatan dan Kesalahan Informasi

Tulisan ini berkaitan dengan masalah tanah dan rumah tinggal yang berada di Pererenan, Mengwi, Badung, yang sekarang menjadi objek sengketa antara Tety Carolina (mantan “nominee”) melawan Susi Johnston. Tety tanpa hak apapun Tety Carolina tidak memiliki hak apapun atas tanah tempat tinggal Susi. Dia hanya pernah “pinjamkan namanya” kepada Bruno … Continue reading

Filled under : Architecture , Bali , Concerns , Design , Uncategorized
Author : Susi
Comment Number : 2 Comments

Sylvie Goussopoulos Shoots Bali, Oddly Enough

Sylvie Goussopoulos, is French photographer with an eccentric eye. She’s just shot Bali, and her images from the Bali trip are the subject of an exhibition entitled Pas d’amok à Bali, that opened last night at the Librairie L’ivraie in Montpelier. Goussopoulos considers herself and “ethno-photographer,” and her work often … Continue reading

Filled under : Bali , Concerns , Fine Art
Author : Susi
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Bali: How Much Is Too Much

OVERDEVELOPMENT IN BALI: WEB WATCHDOG WINS 100,000 SUPPORTERS

The Facebook-based web page Bali: How Much Is Too Much? passed a major milestone today, by reaching over 100,000 participants. A defiantly non-commercial page, it began at the end of 2013 to expose the sheer scale and quantity of tourism development engulfing the paradise island of Bali. Since then it … Continue reading

Filled under : Bali , Concerns
Author : Susi
Comment Number : 1 Comment
azazel facebook violence despair

PROFOUND THOUGHT FOUND ON FACEBOOK. STILL NO LIFE ON MARS. FILM AT ELEVEN.

I have a news monitoring app that’s customized to do what I want it to, and to be flexible so that I can change its behaviour as and when I like. It feeds me selected news, from selected sources, on selected topics (keywords, tags, metadata). I don’t watch television or … Continue reading

Filled under : Bali , Concerns , Uncategorized
Author : Susi
Comment Number : 1 Comment

10-Point Primer: “Reklamasi” for Regular Folks

The Benoa Bay reclamation debate (“Reklamasi Tanjung Benoa”) You are probably aware of debate and protests about making a megaproject in Benoa Bay here in Bali. Most of the discourse has focused on environmental concerns, which are valid, but not everyone feels motivated or convinced by environmental responsibility. Many are … Continue reading

Filled under : Bali , Concerns
Author : Susi
Comment Number : 7 Comments
Bali Not For Sale #notforsale

The Susi Johnston Situation: Death to Nominee Scams

Here’s an update on the very intriguing situation I have been thrown into, and have navigated faithfully for the past two years. A three-page summary of the news to date (and the background of this regrettable situation) can be downloaded by clicking here: Susi Johnston Situation (3.5MB – Be patient.)

Filled under : Bali , Concerns , Uncategorized
Author : Susi
Comment Number : 1 Comment

Sea of garbage

Look carefully. It appears most of the beached flotsam is organic; leaves, brush, seaweed, etc. This kind of organic material accumulates naturally on beaches. In fact, the banks of driftwood and organic stuff that are swept ashore following storms are an important part of coastal ecosystems. They become living parts … Continue reading

Filled under : Bali , Concerns
Author : Susi
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Batungaus Beach Awash in Sandals

The plastic trash that washes up on Bali’s beaches is something I give a lot of thought to. And a fair amount of energy, too. The problem is multifaceted, and has become a chronic one. Looking at beach trash in new ways can help us to increase our awareness and … Continue reading

Filled under : Bali , Concerns
Author : Susi
Comment Number : 2 Comments

APEC CEO Summit

Looking forward to a very important forum, and hopefully an interesting one. There are so many opportunities for the Asia Pacific region to work together for a better future. I do hope that voices of sustainability and humanity will be heard during the forum. Synergy around the Pacific is not … Continue reading

Filled under : Bali , Concerns
Author : Susi
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My drugs story in Bali

This is a fairly accurate news story about my recent experience here in Bali. One important element does not appear in this story: I was treated with respect, dignity, and pure neutrality by all of the personnel of the narcotics unit of Polresta Denpasar once I had been delivered to … Continue reading

Filled under : Bali , Bali Police , Concerns
Author : Susi
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Bird Flu in Four Regencies in Bali

Since I’m inadvertently serving as ad hoc translator and bridge between mutually-misread populations cohabiting in Bali . . . This news hasn’t filtered through to non-Indonesian-language media yet. For the past several weeks there have been outbreaks of a new strain of bird flu among commercially-raised and traded birds (chickens, … Continue reading

Filled under : Bali , Concerns , Uncategorized
Author : Susi
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Breakthrough in Cinema: The Act of Killing

Today, I discovered The Act of Killing, a newly released film that is of major significance in Indonesia’s evolution, and in the evolution of cinema itself. Werner Herzog, who I consider the most impressive living filmmaker in the known universe, put it this way, “I have not seen a film … Continue reading

Filled under : Concerns , Uncategorized
Author : Susi
Comment Number : 2 Comments

Plague in Paradise? AIDS and Condoms “Misunderstood”

Well, now we’ve gone and done it. HIV/AIDS thrives on ignorance and denial, and it’s thriving in Bali. A decade ago it was almost unheard of here; now it’s the stuff of headlines in the local Indonesian language newspaper almost every day. Today’s headline story, set off from the other … Continue reading

Filled under : Bali , Uncategorized
Author : Susi
Comment Number : 5 Comments

Bali, Paradox Island: What’s wrong with this picture?

Travel guides and glossy magazines call Bali paradise and wax poetic about the island’s glories, and how peaceful and spiritual a place it is. Of course, there is some truth amid all the hyperbole, but reading the local newspapers written in Indonesian gives a somewhat different impression. There is evidently … Continue reading

Filled under : Bali , Uncategorized
Author : Susi
Comment Number : 13 Comments

There Goes the Neighbourhood: “The Seminyak” To Open Soon

In case you were wondering about the massive construction project in between The Legian and KuDeTa on Seminyak beach, here’s the scoop. It’s called The Seminyak. How imaginative. Especially since it’s right next door to The Legian. How much did they pay their marketing think tank to come up with … Continue reading

Filled under : Bali
Author : Susi
Comment Number : 2 Comments

Beachwalk: Massive New Development on Kuta Beach

Well gosh, with traffic already gridlocked and  infrastructure overloaded, it’s hard to feel warm and fuzzy about this new 5.2 hectare mega-development in Kuta spread along 250 meters of  beach. That said, the long-disused site where Kuta Beachwalk will be built has been like the missing front tooth of Kuta’s … Continue reading

Filled under : Bali
Author : Susi
Comment Number : 21 Comments

Four-Hour Queue to Enter Paradise: Bali Airport Goes Kafkaesque

Due to convoluted immigration and security procedures, passengers arriving at Bali’s airport are now forced to queue for up to four hours before they are finally released from its insalubrious underbelly. Ours is now surely the worst airport in the world in terms of user satisfaction. Only the Russian communists … Continue reading

Filled under : Bali , Concerns
Author : Susi
Comment Number : 10 Comments

So Much Building in Bali: Let’s Do the Donga in Kedongan (Or Not.)

This big apartment block is set to rise down in Kedongan, south of Kuta. It’s called The Donga. What’s a Donga? Normally, Donga is a district in Nigeria. In this case it seems to be a truncation of the name of the town where this semi-blobistic  fantasy will soon appear. … Continue reading

Filled under : Bali
Author : Susi
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So Much Building in Bali: Big Resort Plops Down Soon in Sanur (Ouch!)

Will there be one square inch of Bali left? Here’s a villa resort project designed by DPA Architects, Singapore for Jakarta developer PT Pancaran Kreasi Adiprima. This multistorey modern complex will soon drop from the sky onto 100 meters of beachfront, bringing 100 more guest rooms and seven chalets, plus … Continue reading

Filled under : Bali
Author : Susi
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Freaky Friday: Di3va Condotel Oozes into Kuta (Beware!)

Could Kuta possibly get any weirder than it is already? Yes! Here’s a new rubbery-looking condotel called the “Di3va” now almost complete on Jalan Raya Legian. It’s the first business project of a glam three-girl Jakarta music group of the same name (below, as seen on the Di3va hotel home … Continue reading

Filled under : Architecture , Bali
Author : Susi
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The Urbanization of Petitenget: More Apartments on the Way

Urban sprawl is eating up Seminyak, Kerobokan and beyond. Years ago, in Legian they said, “We’ll never be like Kuta! So crowded! Such a mess!” Then in Seminyak, they said, “We’ll never be like Legian!” And in Petitenget they said, “We’ll never be like Seminyak!” But the advance of urbanization in … Continue reading

Filled under : Bali , Concerns
Author : Susi
Comment Number : 4 Comments

The Bali Post: All The News That’s Fit to Print . . . and Then Some!

Fish! Fowl! Pussycats! Rats! And murder most foul! Read on . . . Last year I promised to give occasional reports on the contents of the local Indonesian language newspaper, the Bali Post, which I read every morning. I certainly don’t read it for its quality journalism. I read it … Continue reading

Filled under : Bali
Author : Susi
Comment Number : 4 Comments

Tommy Soeharto Scores Ten Stories: What’s With That, Really?

This image comes from the website of the Pecatu Indah development which has engulfed Dreamland beach and everything around it in the Bukit Jimbaran area of south Bali. The endearing little erection here depicted, called modestly “The Terrace,” will reach to ten stories. Count ’em. Plus those “Rapunzel-Does-Denpasar” appendages on … Continue reading

Filled under : Architecture , Bali
Author : Susi
Comment Number : 3 Comments
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