Living in a Grass Roof Bungalow in Bali

Our bungalow in Bali has a grass roof. 18 years ago when I built this place I thought the notion of living in a grass roof mud house in Bali was exotic and romantic. And even now, I still appreciate the beauty and ingenuity of traditional building materials and the reasons behind them. The grass roof keeps the house cooler. The roof is made from alang alang grass and bamboo which are both very renewable resources.


However I’ve gotten older and more in need of comfort, having a whole food chain living in the roof has become a bit of a nuisance. The big geckos eat the little lizards, the geckos and lizards eat the spiders and roaches. Oh, the tom cats walk across the roof at night looking for mice and sometimes finding and eating them. The snakes eat the frogs and lizards. I’m sure all or most of the above eat the mosquitoes, but mostly the mosquitoes eat us. And the ants just annoy us. It’s just normal now to feel ants crawling on us and we just grab them and throw them off. You wake in the night and they are crawling on you, you go to the bathroom and they are on the toilet seat. If you leave any food out whatsoever for more than 5 seconds they arrive in droves.

The good news is Remy is finally getting used to it and I can tolerate it. Just before we left the states, I was in bed and she was in her room and she yelled, Mom, there’s a fly in my room. I said, we’re moving to Bali in two weeks where there will be at least 20 varieties of insects and reptiles living in your room. What do you want me to do?

So, we have learned to adjust to living with the elements. As my daughter approaches her teenage years, I don’t really see too much diva attitude emerging. Her school is in the jungle so the children often come home covered in dirt and mud with holes in their clothes. Maybe this is preferable to wearing designer clothes and being overly concerned with perfect hair. Life is a bit rugged, and I’m not sure I want to live like this forever, but for now, it’s our life and we’re happy here. Sure, I’m looking forward to this summer in the states and the prospect of sleeping in a cool room with a bed not covered with a mosquito net, but I’ll still be looking forward to coming back home to our little bungalow in paradise.