Bali - Enchanted Isle

 

 

"For centuries Bali has been a forgotten medieval island where sun-bronzed women dress as Eve, a land where nobody hurries, and all is peace. It is a little paradise where men wear flowers in their hair, and strange gamelan bells ring all night; a paradise where people live happily without money, without clothes, and without enmity; a paradise where you can buy a little thatched bale for a song, and live easily on fruit and sunshine."

So begins "Bali - Enchanted Isle" by Helen Eva Yates, a travel book published in 1933. That was then, when Jakarta was still known as Batavia, from where it took three days on a Dutch steamer to reach Bali. In today's globalised jet-age, when millions of tourists invade Bali every year, it would be almost impossible to find the Bali described in this book.

Yes, there are still some remnants of it left to be seen after you've survived the chaos of Denpasar and turned your back on the fleshpots of Kuta Beach; I even believe I found a few and, had I been in circumstances different from the ones I was in then, I might have been tempted to join the expat lotus-eaters I encounters in those places.

That was many years ago, and my current circumstances are even less conducive to turning my back on the material world that surrounds me, but I'm still allowed to dream, aren't I? So here we go with Chapter I of "Bali - Enchanted Isle".

Bali - The Legendary Isle

 

A collection of beautiful Bali images - click here

 

My favourite place in Bali has got soul

 

 

"Banjar Hills Retreat", my favourite place in Bali, has had a few changes and new owners who have renamed it "Soul Lodge". I miss it and the beautiful people of Tegehe.

My favourite place in Bali is now for sale

 

 

If I were twenty years younger, I'd probably buy it - but then again, I did a lot of stupid things twenty years ago ☺

For more photos, click here.

If you're interested, email me at riverbend[AT]hotkey.net.au and I put you in touch.

Bali on a pension

 

Each year Australian taxpayers pay nearly $800 million to support over 81,000 pensioners living overseas, but changes to criteria could see their Age Pensions reduced or cut altogether.

Over the last two decades, the number of Australians living overseas who receive Age Pensions has tripled. Currently, more than 81,000 full- or part-age pensioners live offshore, with a further 6500 disability support pensioners (DSP) in the same situation.

In 1993 around 23,000 age pensioners and 8455 disability support pensioners lived overseas. In 2013, that number rose to a total of 87,791 being supported.

Most of these pensioners live in New Zealand, Italy, Greece, Portugal, Ireland, Britain and Spain.

According to The Australian, Social Services Minister Christian Porter wants to enforce the “residency-based nature of Australia’s welfare system” but, so far, his wish has been blocked in the Senate by Labor.

“The annual combined cost of these is $765.4m,” said Mr Porter. “$660.8m from the Age Pension and $104.6m from the DSP."

In response to this, the Government has proposed to reduce the period that the means-tested Age Pension, as well as some other payments, can be paid to people living outside of Australia. It plans to reduce this period from 26 weeks to six weeks.

Currently, Australians who receive a full Age Pension must have worked in the country for at least 35 years.

However, the proposed changes to residency criteria, will see pensioners have their rates adjusted according to how long they’ve worked in Australia. So if someone has worked in Australia for 13 years but moves overseas once they retire, they will receive 13/35ths of the Age Pension they’d receive if they stayed here.

“This measure will provide savings of $168.4m over the forward estimates, which Labor has opposed. This change reinforces the strong residency based nature of Australia’s welfare system,” said Mr Porter.

A Labor spokesperson has said that the proposed changes would affect 190,000 “migrant pensioners”, such as those who want to travel overseas for more than six months at a time, as well as close to 90,000 who live permanently overseas.

Here are the current pension rates. Bloody generous, if you ask me (but no-one ever does ☺):

Ag Pension rates

Pension rates per fortnight	Single	Couple each	Couple combined	Couple each separated due to ill health
Maximum basic rate	$794.80	$599.10	$1,198.20	$794.80
Maximum Pension Supplement	$65.00	$49.00	$98.00	$65.00
Energy Supplement	$14.10	$10.60	$21.20	$14.10
TOTAL	$873.90	$658.70	$1,317.40	$873.90
ANNUALLY	$22,721.40	$17,126.20	$34,252.40	$22,721.40

And here are the current Australian pension rates payable to pensioners living overseas: click here.