Balinese Fishermen in Jimbaran Bali

Jimbaran Bay doesn’t get much surf, you can tell by the fact the fishing fleet is based here. Balinese fishermen use the same boat all over the island, which is a narrow outrigger. I have travelled in the Philippines and used slightly larger boats, of a similar design for diving. These boats are home made, easy to launch, easy to fix, cheap to make and very stable. All the fishermen are deeply tanned and I’m sure don’t bother to take any safety equipment with them. These small boats don’t stray too far from shore and the proximity to resort hotels provides a handy market.

There once was a Balinese fisherman who lived on the beach, owned a small boat, and went fishing everyday. He rose to the tropical sun, and after enjoying the afternoon in his village, he’d go fishing by the light of the moon, catching enough fish to keep his family fed. One day he was approached by a businessman from Jakarta, who said “Why don’t you use a bigger net, you could catch more fish?” “Why would I want to catch more fish?” the fisherman said. “If you catch more fish, you can make more money.” said the businessman. “Why would I want to make more money?” said the fisherman. “If you make more money, you can buy another boat.” said the businessman. “Why would I want another boat?” said the fisherman. “If you had another boat, you could make catch more fish, make more money and have your own processing factory.” said the businessman. “Why would I want my own processing factory?” said the fisherman. “If you had your own processing factory, you could make enough money to retire.” said the businessman. “Why would I want to retire?” said the fisherman. “So you could live on the beach, own a small boat and go fishing everyday.” said the businessman.