Negotiating the island’s traffic-choked roads is not for the faint-hearted. Last year, there were more than 500 fatalities, many of them tourists riding motorbikes with­out helmets. A combination of inexper­i­ence and alcohol means a disproportionate number of victims are young foreigners.

Bali’s infrastructure is at breaking point. Literally. Last month, a suspension bridge connecting two offshore islands collapsed, killing at least eight people attending a religious ceremony. Waste management is also in crisis. Not so long ago, the only “rubbish” was banana leaves used as plates - today the island is overwhelmed by the garbage, little of which is recycled. Roadside air is filled with the stench of burning plastic as people incinerate their household refuse while illegally dumped waste leaks into water­ways and floats down to the coast. In the rainy season, surfers find themselves paddling amid floating debris, which explains why there are so many surfer-coordinated beach clean-ups.

Existing infrastructure may be at the limits of its carrying capacity but not every­one is in favour of new development. A coalition of environmentalists, celebrities and 28 villages is opposing a planned US$3 billion reclamation project that will replace mangrove forests, rivers and settlements with upmarket resorts, marinas, shopping malls, casinos and gated communities. Opponents claim the Benoa Bay scheme will deprive locals of the coastline that provides their livelihoods and cause irreparable environmental damage.

A rethink of Bali’s haphazard and often unenlightened approach to development is long overdue. Land continues to be eaten up for yet more hotels and deluxe holiday homes. Well-ventilated traditional build­ings that take advantage of breezes are disappearing in favour of con­crete con­struc­tions with air conditioning rather than fans. Meanwhile, poor-quality ground­water is the result of ever-increas­ing demand (about 60 per cent of Bali’s water is consumed by the tourism industry) and the failure of catchment systems. The answer is to drill deeper wells but as Bali’s water table drops, so do rice yields.

Locals and long-term expats complain of increasing levels of crime. Bag snatching, mobile-phone theft and pickpocketing are rife and there are plenty of dealers selling drugs to hapless holidaymakers, some of whom are caught in possession moments later by police conducting “random” searches. Impoverished migrant workers from neighbouring islands are often blamed for the crime wave.

Tourism has done much to lift the Balinese out of poverty but at what social cost? While no one can be blamed for wanting to escape a life of back-breaking toil in the paddy fields, it’s depressing to watch souvenir sellers, who once worked together harvesting the village rice crop, competing aggressively to sell trinkets to tourists for a few rupiah. Furthermore, craftsmen are retiring without passing their skills on to a younger generation who long ago realised they can make more money in a day selling batiks, copy watches or drugs than they could in a month as a skilled wood carver.

THE UGLY

Indonesia is considering implementing a law banning the production, distribution and consumption of alcohol. The legislation would make the roads safer but enjoying a magical Balinese sunset while slurping a banana milkshake seems wrong somehow.