I ask them about the high number of single western women who live in Bali, many with Balinese partners.

Beth says, "Women are attracted to Bali because they are safe here. You can be walking alone through the rice fields in pitch black with a man walking right behind you sharpening a long curved knife, and you know he's just a man going home from work in the rice fields."

"What is the biggest difference between life in the U.S. and life in Bali?"

Beth says, "We have so many attachments to things we think we have to have. Living here you realize how complicated we make our lives, and yet how simply and well you can live."

Diane says, "I just bought my first TV a few months ago, and that was just so that we could watch videos."

"Would you recommend Bali to everyone?" I ask them.

Diane says, "You have to be a person who is not attached to things and people. Those who come here tend to be people who let life lead them rather than trying to control it. The Balinese don't have a word for future - they don't think about tomorrow the way we do. And the truth is, we don't know. If change is hard for you and if you have big control issues, you don't belong here."

Martial, 42, from France, owner of the Highway Internet Cafe and PT Bali Kreasi Bisnis Martial's expertise, in addition to the computer business, is land and property acquisition and all things visa-related in Bali. He also has a software and printing business. Martial left France and a prospering real estate business because he says,"I worked like an animal to make 600,000 francs a year ($100,000 U.S) but the government took 425,000 of that in taxes!"

"I work with many foreigners who come here expecting to make a fortune. The problem is that while building costs are low, land is very expensive. With 250 million rupiah ($25,000U.S), you can build a very nice house with marble, fine wood, and a pool. But land costs are between 100 million to 200 million rupiah per era. ($10,000 to $20,000 U.S. It takes about two era to build a typical house.) And so foreigners come to this beautiful island and they hear, 'Darling don't you want to build a house on my land?' So you build a house on the land of your boyfriend and after five months or two years, your boyfriend says,  'It's over.' Who is the owner of the house then? The owner of the land."

"Only an Indonesian can own land in Indonesia. On the other hand, the highest right that a foreigner can have here is a lease agreement - a contract which allows you to build on leased land for 25 years and can be renewed another 25 years. After that the land and whatever is on it belongs to the landowner. In my business we provide not only guidance, but loan and lease agreements to secure acquisitions."

"There is one way a foreigner can purchase land and that is to create a PMA, or a foreign company. It costs some money and is a complicated process, but it can be done. However, you will still be a foreigner in Indonesia without the same rights as Indonesians."

"Is now a good time to invest in Bali?" I ask Martial.

"I will say one thing; there is only one Bali in the world. And so if you buy a piece of Bali, it is likely that it will appreciate in value."

"What about visas?" I ask him. "There are a number of different visas," he says.  "Some require you to leave the country every two months (like tourist visas) and there are those that allow you to stay longer (working visas). Regardless of which one you obtain, it will cost you $5 to $6 a day to live in Bali. In our 'How to Live in Bali' package, we can help people with all of this. It took me a year of experience to learn what I can tell a client in 45 minutes."

I ask about Indonesia's reputation for corruption - the payoffs, the palm greasing. Martial says, "I prefer to call it commission. If you were a police officer making $50 U.S. a month and you had two children and a wife, you too would be looking to improve your income. I deal regularly with this as a business owner, and sometimes when they give us good service, we show our appreciation."

"What about medical care?" I ask. "It's good for regular intervention, but if you have an emergency, well, it's not so great. You absolutely must have health insurance to transport you to Singapore in case of a serious illness or injury. If you want to live an adventurous, nice life, something very different, you take the risk."

"What is the best thing about living in Bali?" I ask Martial.

"The absolute, breathtaking, gorgeous beauty of the girls. The women here are great. As business partners they are hard working, they are clear, and they are fast. Balinese women have the most beautiful breasts in the world because they grow up carrying everything on their heads. That means they have exquisite posture and the muscles here (he points to his pecs) are permanently working. I weigh more than 100 kilos. I'm not bad, but I am no more Casanova. When I see a girl in France and I say, "Hello Baby, you look very sexy," she says to me, 'Who do you think you are?' Here when I say hi to a girl here, she looks at me and smiles. 'Terima kasi.' she says. Thank you very much. Unfortunately I was 36 years old before I knew about Asian girls, or I would have lived here a long time ago."

"So moving to Bali was a good decision for you?"

"Every morning when I wake up and see my servants smiling and they bring me a French crepe with some strawberry and some rice and I listen to the birds, walk around with my cats, and smoke my first cigarette, I say 'Oui! This is it!'"

Jim, 60, health practitioner and owner of Cendana Spa, from U.S.A.  Jim came to Bali from Monterey Country, California in 1995. He is a
chiropractor and psychologist who offers healing to tourists in a sumptuous spa environment.

Jim's story of getting to Bali began when the Loma Prieta earthquake flattened the office building where his practice was located. He lost everything, but with the help of U.S. government loans began to rebuild again. A major economic recession hit California in the early 90's and he was forced to close his practice again. He and his wife of 36 years moved to Carmel, rented a small bungalow, and he opened up another chiropractic office. This time his plans were cut short by the death of his beloved wife. "Enough was enough", Jim says. He flew to Singapore to be near his son. Son took dad to Bali for a healing holiday. Dad stayed in Bali. Dad began to heal, and now Dad, remarried recently, is back to healing others again.

"The name Ubud comes from Oebed which means 'place of healing", Jim says. "Bali is a healing place, and I needed it badly."

"It was costing me $5,000 a month to live in Carmel. I am too old to start over again in the U.S and to make enough money to live the way I like to live. At Cendana Spa I offer counseling, tissue cleansing, colonics, chiropractic, nutritional supplements, massage, facials, pedicures and manicures, spa facilities, and neuro linguistictreatments in a beautiful transforming environment. I teach my patients how to change their lives."

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