One week earlier I received an email inviting me to a job interview with an environmental foundation based in Bali. I told my mother about it, describing how compelling the idea of living and working on the island felt to me. At first, she dismissed the notion. A few days later, she came back to the conversation, softer this time, and offered her support.
21 July 2014
I flew with Lion Air from Husein Sastranegara International Airport in Bandung. Upon landing at Ngurah Rai International Airport in Bali, I chose the Airport Transport Service. The driver was disarmingly friendly when I showed him the list of addresses I needed to visit during my stay.
A parking space wrapped in greenery.
On the road, uncertainty followed me. I weighed my options, unsure which place should come first. Eventually, I decided to head to my rented room in Puri Nusa Dua, after asking the driver about the distance between the boarding house and the interview location.
The Interview
The interview was scheduled for three in the afternoon, but I arrived much earlier, sometime between one and two. I met Ms Elly and Ms Kim, and we spent time talking in an eco-park that felt calm and quietly alive. Ms Elly explained the nature of the work and the philosophy behind the place. She asked about my skills and professional background. Ms Kim, fluent in Indonesian, gently bridged the language gaps, translating the conversation with ease.
My First Experience Living in Bali
When the interview ended, I took a taxi back to my room in Puri Nusa Dua. As evening settled in, I went out for a walk, buying food, drinks, and basic bathroom supplies. Simple errands, yet they felt significant, like the first steps of a possible new life.
An Afterthought
I felt genuinely happy to be there, absorbing a fragment of Bali’s globally celebrated atmosphere. I chose to stay in a boarding house to wait for the interview result, and at the same time, to wander a little, allowing myself to witness the island’s quiet beauty up close.