Inside My USD$225/Month Accommodation in Nusa Lembongan, Indonesia

There’s something comforting about staying in the same corner unit where I spent 10 weeks earlier this year. I’m sitting on the same patio with my morning coffee and 5 of my neighbors are still there and remember my name.

You can find hotel rooms on Nusa Lembongan that cost over US$100 a night and private villas that cost five times more. At $225 a month, my accommodation isn’t luxurious, but it doesn’t need to be. It gives me what I need: a comfortable bed, WiFi, hot water, air conditioning, weekly housekeeping with fresh linens and towels, and access to a shared kitchen and swimming pool.

My accommodations won’t be this cheap everywhere I travel. In fact, my upcoming stays next month on the neighboring island of Lombok and Malaysia in September will cost several times as much. But here, comfort can be had without spending a lot. Here’s a look at what US$225 a month gets me on Nusa Lembongan.

Walking In : Bunda 7 Bungalows

Bunda 7 is a monthly “homestay” right off the busy main street and a block from the beach. You won’t find it on Airbnb or Booking.com. Guests find out about it through word of mouth or walk in if the wooden “Vacancy” sign is hanging on the wall. How did I find it? Last December, Piyo, a dive instructor I know, checked out a couple of properties and sent me videos.

Walk through the front gate into a quiet, 18 unit landscaped property. Eight are freestanding bungalows, while the remaining 10 are housed in small buildings of two to four units, each with its own private entrance and patio.

Most residents are European dive instructors or divemaster trainees in their 20s who stay for a month or two. There are a few exceptions – my French neighbor, Silvère, has lived here for nearly two years, and Inez two doors down has been here since December.

I’m at the very back corner of the property, making it one of the more private units. Just beyond the wall is a small Hindu temple. While most of Indonesia is predominantly Muslim, Bali is majority Hindu, and on ceremony days I wake to the sound of bells, the smell of incense and the quiet sounds of prayer.

Inside Bunda 7 Bungalows Unit #7

Unit #7 comes with a large patio with a small table, two chairs and a clothes drying rack. It’s where I start my mornings with a cup of coffee and catch up on my email and work on the New York Times crossword puzzle while listening to MPR (Minnesota Public Radio) All Things Considered show as my morning coincides with the late afternoon news back home.

Walking in through the hand carved wooden doors, my unit is surprisingly spacious. Next to the window, I have a small carved sofa with cushions where I can curl up and read my Kindle or knit. Some guests prefer the free standing bungalows but they are smaller and don’t come with the sofa. My neighbors have moved their sofa out to their patio but I’m a magnet for mosquitos and like the idea of having the option of retreating to an air conditioned space.

Nusa Lembongan sits just south of the equator, so sunrise is almost always around 6 a.m. and sunset around 6 p.m., plus or minus 15 minutes throughout the year. With my end unit location, I leave the curtains open, so I wake up with the morning light streaming in.

There’s a closet but I’ve also purchased some plastic totes – one for my toiletries, including the 6 bottles of industrial strength picaridin and DEET I brought from the U.S. as well as sunscreen, basic first aid supplies and medication. Another tote stores knitting and dive supplies, and the collection of adapters, batteries, and cords that seems to accumulate with long-term travel. Most of what’s in the totes are extras and since my plan is to come back later this year, I’ll probably leave them with a neighbor or at the dive shop when I head off in a couple of weeks.

The bathroom is simple but has a non-negotiable: hot water. That may not sound like much, but two units don’t have hot water and rent for $25 less per month. The small hot water heater doesn’t allow a long luxurious shower but a hot shower after a day of sitting on the beach or diving is well worth the extra cost.

Shared Spaces – Kitchen, Dining Area and Swimming Pool

One of the best parts of being in Asia, whether it be Tokyo, Bangkok, Taipei, Bali or Nusa Lembongan is the food. It’s usually inexpensive, full of local flavors, and yet I can still find a good pizza when I want something familiar.

But after a while, eating every meal out loses its charm for me.

Having access to a shared kitchen at Bunda 7 gives me the best of both worlds. There’s a shared refrigerator to keep a loaf of bread, yogurt, fruit and eggs, a hot water kettle to boil water for coffee and a two burner stove to heat up leftovers and prepare a simple meal when the mood strikes.

The Bunda 7 kitchen isn’t perfect. Most residents use it for storing breakfast foods and beverages (and quite a bit of beer!), but there are occasional challenges. Wayan does his best to keep it clean, but signs reminding people to wash dishes and keep the door closed so the dogs don’t get into the garbage are not always followed. It can also be difficult to know whether food in the refrigerator belongs to a current resident or someone who has already moved on.

Outside the kitchen, a shared dining area hosts communal meals and conversations. After a Full Moon Party, the area becomes much livelier and the conversations go into the early morning hours. Living in the back unit lets me be part of the community when I want and retreating when I don’t.

Right beside the dining area is the swimming pool. It’s not built for swimming laps (I head to the dive shop pool for that), but it’s a place to cool off or unwind with a book and a cold beer.

A Sense of Permanence

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Love,

Mimi & Jingles