My motorbike experience

On Thanksgiving, an ex-pat suggested that I rent a motorbike and explore the east side of Bali, rich with scenery and culture.  My only previous motorbike experience was in Nha Trang, and I made it through unscathed.  Looking back, it didn't seem so hard, and the traffic in Vietnam seems worse than Bali. I decided it was a great way to spend a couple of days.  I thought about renting a car, but dismissed the idea for fear of having to simultaneously conquer driving on the left side of the road while seated on the left side of the car.  I started by renting a motorbike for a day to get used to the feel and the traffic before I took off on a 4 hour journey.

This time, I knew how to get it started, which gave the appearance of knowing what I was doing.  However, when I exited the shop, instead of turning left, I lost my ability to maneuver and went straight towards the jewelry shop across the street.  I almost went in.  I turned and looked at the guy who just gave me the bike who was now sprinting towards me, looking frantic.  I shouted, 'don't worry, I've done this before' and was off.  Being on the left side wasn't so bad, just follow the crowd.  I shortly realized that the traffic is about the same as Nha Trang and turning is the scariest thing in the world.  For that reason, I found myself only making left hand turns.  So here I am, going in circles when an oncoming car decides to pass the person in front of them and pushes me into the 10" high curb.  I caught it with my shoe, but it was messy.  From that point forward, I was scared shitless.  I stopped to collect myself and get Petrol from a road side stand that poured the gas from an Absolute Vodka bottle.  Once I was composed, I headed off again, continuing only to turn left.  One of my turns landed me going the wrong way on a one way street.   I saw this as the final sign that I should return the motorbike and call it a day.

I was back at the rental shop within 45 minutes of my departure.  The guy at the shop looked as relieved as I felt when I drove back in.