Coronavirus: ‘Life here is so good, the risk is worth it’ says Aussie in Bali

Foreign Minister Marise Payne was right that not all 11,000 Australians scattered around the world want to come home to sit out the pandemic.

Australian MJ Valentine, 30, with her rescue dog Shadow at her apartment at Berawa in Bali. Picture: Lukman S. Bintoro

Foreign Minister Marise Payne was right that not all the 11,000 Australians scattered around the world want to come home to sit out the coronavirus pandemic.

“It doesn’t mean all the people wish to return to Australia. Many of them are long-term residents of the countries in which they’re ­located,” she said on Sunday.

About 2000 Australians living in Bali have decided to stay put, perhaps reassured by Bali’s low death rate so far — only two deaths from COVID-19, although both were foreigners.

Among those riding out the storm on the island is MJ Valentine, who moved from Perth to Bali last August after eight trips convinced her she had found her new home. When the

Australian MJ Valentine in front of the beach gate at Canggu, South Kuta. Picture. Lukman S. Bintoro

Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade urged Australians to head home from ­Indonesia, she booked a ticket but soon cancelled it.

She has decided to stay on with her rescue dog Shadow in her self-contained apartment in Berawa, Canggu, on Bali’s southwest coast.

“I made the decision to stay for two reasons,” she said. “The lifestyle I have here, even while social distancing, is conducive to very low levels of stress and anxiety … I’m also part of a wonderful, ­diverse and like-minded community here. Secondly, it just didn’t feel right for me to run back to Australia the moment things started to get tough.”

She gets fresh meals delivered daily, and she exercises online with a dance teacher. When she goes out, she wears a face mask.

“Even without having access to the beaches, my favourite cafes and co-working spots, I still have an extraordinary quality of life.”

Yet the spectre of coronavirus is present in Bali, as a Rio Tinto worker found after he returned from his Indonesian holiday. The man flew to Bali in early March, despite government warnings to avoid travel to Indonesia. He was later among 1600 Rio Tinto workers who were tested at Perth airport before to flying to their mine jobs. He tested positive.

Premier Mark McGowan described the man’s behaviour as “pretty selfish and irresponsible”.

DFAT’s travel warning is blunt for Bali visitors, and even expatriate residents. Come home immediately or ensure you have “the support and access to effective health services you and your family will need”.

If Ms Valentine gets sick and seeks western-type hospital care, she will be vying for one of only eight beds in the Bali International Medical Centre.

Bali’s low casualty rate defies the odds in a nation where COVID-19 transmission has spread widely to all 34 provinces.

Ross Taylor, president of the Perth-based Indonesia Institute, said 18,000 Chinese tourists a week were still flying to Bali in February.

Meanwhile, Ms Valentine says she has reduced her stress by “unfollowing” COVID-related postings online.

“I’m continuing to live life one day at a time,” she says.