Bali Culture

Hands

Every hand movement should be graceful and calm. A handshake is a light touch of humanity not a show of strength. Hands are sacred, a gift is offered or received with the right hand cupped by the left. Both hands united in greeting or prayer fingers pointed up for God, forward for humans and down for the devil. The hypnotic fingers of the Balinese dancer reflects their importance in spiritual life. Pleasing the Gods is a daily full time job, not just special events or church on Sunday.




In Bali the training for the "Legong" dance begins at age 5 and is performed by girls who have not yet reached puberty. We greatly enjoyed an evening of dance but not so enthralled with the accompanying music.




Parks and Temples

Bali Bird Park (also known as "Heaven on Earth Park") is an absolute must to see when visiting Bali. This park provides a sanctuary for some of the rarest of exotic birds, totalling almost a 1000 birds of 250 different species from Indonesia, Africa and S. America. One needs at least 3 hours here as there is so much to experience. Adjacent is the reptile park, mainly snakes and of the smaller very poisionous variety, however, we were somewhat in awe of the albino boa, just huge, and the cobra. When driving throught the countryside, Ketut pointed out some unusual cage like woven structures atop poles at the corners of the houses.. these are there to prevent the snake from entering the home!



We have toured the exotic gardens of Tita Gangga, otherwise known as The Kings Water Park, both tranquil and beautiful. The Tanahlot Temple situated beside one of the lakes in the mountains is by far the most picturesque. The Botanical Gardens is a favorite place of Ketut's where he frequently brings his family for picnics. Each garden is unique, preserving the beauty of this country, in conjunction with remembering to honor the spirits with daily offerings. It is said that the women spend 1800 hours a year making offerings for the deceased.

Teeth filing

Teeth are seen as the 'seat of feelings' ie lust, anger, greed and the teeth filing cermony marks a time when adolesents become adults - a total of 8 are filed - six front and two back. The file (not the size of an emery board, but similar to one a carpenter would use!) and small hammer are purified first with holy water, special clothing is worn and an instrument similar to a xylophone is played to induce harmony, cloves are provided to dull the pain,- Ketut, our guide, shared that he needed cloves for 2 days! Afterwards, of course a great feast is shared with the families.

Catering to the tourists

One cannot walk the streets without a non-stop stream of offers for a massage, manicure/pedicure (I resisted the temptation to plunge my feet into the sidewalk tanks of fish touted as a great way to rid yourself of dead skin!) There is also the abundunt offer for taxis.... however the one time we needed a taxi there were non to be found... it was at night, and not in the normal tourist area, a kindly motorcyclist sensing our discomfort, rustled up a private car ride back to our accomodation.

The outdoor markets are crammed, each stall looking the same as the next. Browsing is impossible as one is immediately hustled to purchase sarongs, eyeglasses, even rolex watches. The fruits and vegtables, however, are displayed beautifully, with fresh lemongrass and abundant spices.



New experiences

We had the opportinity to peel the bark of a cinnamon tree on one of our drives in the country. Snakefruit is popular but the harvesting has to be a challenge, as they grow in dark nut like clusters amongst the most thorny and lethal looking trees. We were surprised to learn that rattan too is covered by a similar thorny exterior, and the farmers wait for this outter layer to burst open first before gathering the smooth pliable cane. I learned also that the crushed leaves of the hibiscus plant is an excellent hair conditioner.