Morning vibes on Bali’s Poppies Lane II: a different Kuta

Poppies Lane II in Kuta is famous for affordable stays, relaxed bars, and local shops with souvenirs and cloths.

JH Photo - Storytelling ■
​The first step into Jalan Poppies 2 in Kuta at 6 o'clock in the morning feels like entering a secret Bali the tourists never see during the rain season. The rain last night left its mark. The puddles shimmer faintly under the muted morning light, creating tiny mirrors on the uneven asphalt. The air clings to my skin, heavy and humid, carrying the earthy scent of wet pavement mixed with faint diesel fumes and a light trace of food from the day before. The occasional drip from overhanging leaves or gutters adds a soft rhythm to the quiet.

English | Bahasa Indonesia
​BY HANAN, 3 minutes read

​Walking from Jalan Legian, this street now feels like a ghost of its usual self. Almost everyone is still asleep. The shops with their overflowing displays of sarongs, 'Bintang' tank tops and carved trinkets are locked tight. Bars that throb with life in the evening stand lifeless, their signs dark, as if recovering from their own hangovers. Even the graffiti on the walls, so vibrant in the sun, seems muted in this grey morning light.

​It’s so quiet I can hear the soft squelch of my sandals on the wet pavement. People sweep the street, their brooms scraping rhythmically against the ground. A man walks by as if afraid that the rain clouds will soon flood again, while a stray dog sniffs lazily around to find some leftovers from the evening before. Now and then, I hear the faint creak of an old door as someone peeks out, perhaps wondering if the rain will return. I can’t help but pause, camera in my hand and try to freeze this rare stillness. This street is famous for its madness – the motorbikes zigzagging past, the constant bargaining, the laughter spilling out of bars – but not now.

​Have you ever seen a place like this, stripped of its daytime noise and chaos? It’s almost surreal. The street’s narrowness feels even more pronounced without the crush of people and motorbikes. The buildings lean toward each other as if they are gossiping. Their paint, peeling and stained from the humidity, tells stories of countless seasons passed. Overhead, hanging electrical cables glisten with drops of rain, sagging slightly under the weight of the moisture.

​A lone motorbike hums past, its rider barely glancing up. A couple of bicycles follow, wobbling slightly to dodge the puddles. It’s as though the street is waking up slowly, stretching its limbs before the real hustle begins. This transformation is fascinating to watch. In just ten minutes, the quiet hum of life grows louder. A first street vendor arrives with his motorbike and sits on the sidewalk waiting for the first customers to come by for some rice, some snacks such as bakwan, tempe, pisang molen, or some coffee to go. A woman steps out of a 24-hour mini-mart, her plastic bag rustling as she balances the bag on her scooter’s handle and rides off into the morning.

​The street itself becomes a story you can’t help but tell. Every photograph I take feels like a tiny slice of this in-between moment – the calm before the storm. The sunlight, breaking weakly through the clouds, glints off wet tiles and low-slung roofs. The muted colours of the street hint at the vibrant chaos to come, like an artist’s canvas awaiting its first bold strokes of paint.

​By the time I reach Kuta Beach, the sounds of waves replace the faint echoes of the street. Jalan Poppies 2, in its morning calm, feels like a secret. By midday, this lane will be a riot of colours, sounds and life again, but for now, it’s just mine – and maybe yours too, if you ever decide to follow my footsteps.

​Would you walk this street in its chaos or its calm? For me, this quiet hour is its most honest, a fleeting glimpse of what lies beneath the noise.

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​​Hanan
I travel the world to find unexpected stories.

CREDITS Hanan: text, photo
4 January 2025

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