Stop #3 Bali (cont.) - Notes from Billy

Here are just the few pictures we have from Bali (pre-camera and files being lost)... http://picasaweb.google.com/kersti.miller/200903Bali?feat=directlink

After a full day on Monday (volcano, monkeys, dance), we relaxed Tuesday morning at our hotel. We spent some time arranging a few more items for our trip online, and got some excellent indonesian lunch from a hole in the wall restaurant. They start with a plate of rice, and then you choose what you want to go with it, such as curries, fried potatoes, cooked spinach type vegatbles, etc, all served in small portions from a display case. It was spicey and fun to try so many different things.

There is a religious celebration going on over two days while we areat Bali. Balinese are mostly Hindus, with some animism incorporated in, unlike the rest of Indonesia which is mostly Muslim. They have temples for the trinity of Brahma (the creator), Vishnu (theprotector), and Shiva (the destroyer) all over the island. Each house will have its own temple, so there are literally mini-temples on everyblock. On the first day of the ceremony going on right now, each family celebrates at their own private temple. Then the second day is celebrated at the public temples. The big public temples are the onesthe tourists like us go to. In preperation for the ceremonies, each family has put together a tall decroation made using a bamboo tree as the base, and set them up along the street (in front of each house). It is somewhat like decorated flagpoles all along every street.

Driving through some of the small towns, we encountered these beautiful decorations. Since many towns build RIGHT UP to the road, you can imagine 2 lanes (one in each direction), a tiny side walk (maybe) and shacks/buildings built right up to the curbs. There are businesses selling fruits, souveniers, artwork, food, etc... Anyway, the decorative poles placed in front of the houses draped over the street and just made it feel very alive.

That evening we rented a driver again to take us to Ulu Watu, a temple built right on the southern coast of the island. There were a lot more tourists here, and the monkeys are notorious for being aggresive; it was important to hide all sunglasses and jewelry so they wouldn't steal them! The temple was in a spectacular location, and walked toseveral different viewpoints.
Afterwards, we went to Jimbaran to have some bbqed snapper on the beach and to watch the sunset, which was lovely.