Mega Semadhi

 Mega has centered his entire life around surfing. He’s lived his whole life here in Bali and was coming up in the surfing world at the same time Rizal Tandjung was becoming more and more prominent as a pro surfer.

When you first chat with Mega, in true Balinese fashion, the first thing you notice about him is a smile that can be attributed both to a life spent on this special island and a life dedicated to surfing. He is always frothing to surf and if the surf is flat you can probably still find him on the beach with his rottweiler Daisy. Daisy is goes with mega everywhere and is while she is still a puppy, she already dwarfs all the street dogs on the island.

Mega also owns a small surf shop in Bingin called Daya, which has been open for a few years now. Like most small businesses around the world, Daya is really struggling during this pandemic. I asked Mega how it has been since Bali locked down and he told me that business essentially came to a halt. Most businesses here in Bali make almost the entirety of their income off of the tourism industry. This of course is the case for many tourist destinations, but the tourism industry in Bali brings in far more money than nearly any other occupation.

Indonesia keeps saying that they plan to open Bali back up to tourism soon, knowing how much the economy needs it, but they keep pushing the date off farther and farther. When I asked Mega what he thinks about the government keeping Bali closed, he simply replied with, “they need to open it up man.” In Mega’s opinion, the entire of Bali’s economy could collapse the longer they hold off tourism.

But Mega counts himself lucky for being able to also do surf lessons and surf coaching on the side to supplement his income. He told me than most people don’t have that sort of fall back like he does. Plenty of people are just completely without income right now in Bali, as many are in other places as well.

It’s hard times right now, but Mega doesn’t seem any less optimistic out the future. He still looks just as stoked as always and he still helps out the local groms and organizes community events to help bring the surfing community together. So if you’re in Bali, make sure to shop small, and go give Daya a look while you’re at it.