I visited Bali for the first time in 40 years. God, Aussies can be grots overseas

Now I had this fantasy that Francis, renowned and esteemed for his campaigning on the environment, would issue a broad, international wake-up call for international funding and support to assist Indonesia in a clean-up.

It's the longest international trip of his tenure so there's an opportunity to pack a lot in. For example, at the Istiqlal Mosque, the largest in south-east Asia and a symbol of religious co-existence, he will sign a joint declaration with the grand imam, Nasaruddin Umar.

The Indonesia bishops' conference said the statement would "focus on 'dehumanisation', notably the spread of violence and conflict, particularly to women and children, as well as environmental degradation".

The pope has been an absolute trouper on climate change. He has repeatedly urged the world to do more to combat its devastating effects. That includes rising sea levels, which threaten parts of Indonesia.

But Terence Hull, retired professor of demography at the Australian National University, gently tells me it is unrealistic to imagine the Pope can sort out Indonesia's environment with a quick trip to the archipelago.

Hull is stunned the Pope is even doing the trip. I know those kinds of journeys are hard work, even for the young and fit. And travelling is exhausting. Hull says the Pope will have a team around him. "I think they will be worried about him drinking the water."

I get that. Last time I visited it was 1983. We'd arrived in Bali to celebrate our honeymoon. Nothing could have been further from the busyness of our lives and our work. There were basically no other vehicles on the streets. The odd large animal on the beaches, maybe a buffalo or a cow. Bicycles occasionally. And the greenery was so vivid I still remember it 41 years after my first visit.

It was perfect.

And that was the memory I had when I touched down in Denpasar in June this year. I knew that Australian tourists were on the nose. I'd also heard pollution was out of control.

We stayed in gorgeous hotels - not the kind which would be rated five stars but comfortable with kind staff. And time after time, there would be a moment during check-in where the concierge would make sure I was paying attention.

"The tap water is not safe." Or, "Do not drink out of the tap." Or, "We provide bottled water for your safety."

There was always a hint of embarrassment. But of course, it is not the fault of hotel staff.

Here we are, most Australians enjoying the safety and security of our water supply and then we exploit Indonesia, which has none of that. The streets have plenty of rubbish, in a way we might only see here on New Year's Day. And if you want to swim on some of the country's most feted beaches, you will be competing for water space with empty water bottles, floating cling wrap and other detritus, some more identifiable than others.

Yes, you can avoid that by staying in your little hotel bubble with its blue blue private pool. Or you can do what I observed a bunch of young Aussies do; and that is leave behind a pile of shit on the beach, including plastic water bottles. My beloved prevented me from shouting at them as they left their dirt pile behind. Turns out I can't be everyone's grumpy parent.

So sure, avoid the mess.

What you can't avoid is the catastrophe of Indonesia's water supply. Around 70 per cent of Indonesia's rivers are heavily polluted. According to an international collaboration of authors from across the globe published in January this year, around 45 million Indonesians don't have access to clean water. Nearly double that don't have improved sanitation. And only 5.5 million have access to sewerage. As the authors point out, nearly impossible to have sustainable development with that backdrop.

And here's the real killer. Each and every year in Indonesia, more than 130,000 children under five die. Mostly that's from preventable causes such as diarrhoea and pneumonia. There's been a big improvement since 2016 but diarrhoea remains a major contributor to child mortality. And why does that happen? Nearly 90 per cent of what experts call the diarrhoea disease burden is linked to incomplete water, sanitation and hygiene provision.

It also impacts tourists who then come home whining about Bali belly. Lucky we get to have an instant cure.

Indonesia expert Hull says the Pope will more likely be trying to quell the inter-religious conflict, trying to stop the church bombings. I guess that's about as idealistic as you can get, unless you are trying to fix population health with a single visit.

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What can Australians do? Put pressure on governments to improve foreign aid. But we should also watch what we do and how we behave.

It infuriates me that tourists don't bother to pay the Bali tax, a tiny 15 bucks but visitors still try to avoid it. It's designed to be another source of revenue in the ongoing battle to protect the environment and improve safety standards but apparently we moan about the small amount. I reckon it ought to be higher. Not because I want to put visiting Bali out of reach but because I want it to have the resources it needs to protect and support that gorgeous place.

In fact, I think the whole of Indonesia should be charging us all more. We can't keep exploiting our neighbour in this way.

What else can we do? While you are there, don't shit in the nest. Pick up your rubbish. Take a reusable water bottle. And for god's sake, stop bartering with the locals. But that's a whole other story.