We made our first stop in Asia: Bali, Indonesia! Asia seems so far from the U.S., so finally getting there was super exciting! There are a lot of beautiful places on this fairly small island, but I think their people and the culture they cultivate is the real beauty.
Yoga Retreat
Yoga is a big part of the Balinese culture. While much of Indonesia practices Islam, Bali is largely Hindu which ties into the practice of yoga. Balinese traditional yoga includes chants and rhetoric relating to praying to certain gods. Britta found this really great yoga retreat, Balitrees Yoga Retreat and we had the privilege of spending two weeks there.
More Than a Yoga Retreat
The cool thing about Balitrees is that you can live right onsite. The whole village and community work together to make the experience great for guests. They really make the experience more than just yoga; it is also focused on learning and immersing in the day-to-day culture of Bali.
The retreat is located in a rural, jungle-ish area. You arrive in a small car or moped bouncing along on a rutted one-lane road going up and down the rolling hills. Green upon green of tropical trees and the fruits hanging from them line the sides of your ride. Each home sits practically up on the road with open gates and stone walls guarded lazily by at least one local, uncollared dog. The dogs barely move off the road as you drive up and by.
As you make your final turn up and around to the Balitrees property, a bright green rice field waves up a hill and up to the horizon where the big-leaved trees cover the distance. The sound of water draining into and out of the rice field can be heard as you approach the thatched roof of the Balitrees dining and rest area. When you check-in, you can trek up to the dining area and look out over the rice fields right in front and up from where you stand.
Across the road opposite the rice fields is a little path descending down to a large-tiled, open-air yoga studio, or shala, looking out to the east. Most times of the day, the sounds of bamboo wind chimes click along with the breeze. A rooster often calls out in the distance as the chirp of songbirds fills the quiet space in between.
The activities you do on a daily basis include a couple of hours of yoga, but they also have activities giving you a chance to do or see what daily life is like. You can help cook your lunch in the open-air kitchen below the dining area to learn about traditional Balinese cuisine. You can take a language class taught by a sweet old man named Wayan who even gives you the opportunity to see how traditional Balinese words are written. You can take a traditional Balinese dance class, learn how to make coconut oil, or learn how to make a traditional Hindu offering.
We did many of these activities while at Balitrees. One of our favorites was the Balinese dance class (see above). They dress you in Balinese clothing and we were able to learn the male and female parts of the dance that is commonly performed at ceremonies.
Balitrees also has a couple of masseuses onsite. We loved taking advantage of that since we were doing so much yoga. I hadn’t done much yoga before going to Balitrees, so I was very sore the first couple of days, but by the end of the first week, I had made significant progress in my flexibility and had noticed other advantages.
The People and Culture
As I said before, the beauty of Bali is really in the people and the culture. We met some really great people and got a chance to experience the kindness of the Balinese people during our time there. We got to experience it intimately during our time at Balitrees and learned a lot from the days we spent there.
The Balinese people really live their religion: Hinduism. Offerings are created daily out of banana leaves and decorated with flowers coupled with the scent of incense (see picture above). The people build shrines to gain favor with their gods and find peace and healing. Yoga is a common practice to take care of their bodies and to support their minds. The Balinese people are very accommodating and do their best to support you. They love to share their lives with you and they value their communities. Families are seen together often and elders are respected by the younger ones in the group. Time moves slowly and schedules are loose so as to not drive the person but to let the person drive the day.
Kindness and calmness seem to be the trend I see in the Balinese people. Even driving with the chaos of motorbikes sharing space with larger vehicles doesn’t create visible anger in the drivers. Honking is used to signal things like “I’m here” or “I’m passing” and not as a form of anger like in some other places.
We even had the opportunity to learn a couple of phrases in Balinese that were fun to use around the streets on the island. The most significant one which is seen on some statues and welcoming areas of homes and businesses is the phrase “Om Swastiastu”. It means many things but is commonly used as a greeting in Bali but also basically means “Oh God, I hope all goodness (safety, happiness, and prosperity) comes from all directions”. It doesn’t necessarily mean the Christian God, but any god you wish. Just the fact that this greeting is the common saying of people all over Bali shows the mentality of the people and how much they care about the people they meet or see throughout the day.
Ubud
After leaving the yoga retreat, we moved into the city of Ubud (Oo-boo-d). It is commonly referred to as the artistic center of Bali. Much of the city is built around local art and you can pop into multiple temples and yoga studios throughout the city.
We stayed in a local hotel and had an opportunity to explore the city and the tight streets around it. Motorbikes motor by carrying whole families with the kids standing right behind the handlebars. Some people are carrying grocery bags or reusable bags full of household goods. Others are delivering things like fruits or takeaway food to customers throughout town. Taxi drivers stand by the crumbling, narrow sidewalks soliciting their services to passersby.
The early morning light hours can make walking the sidewalks of some streets a bit more difficult. Farm vendors lay out their fruits, vegetables, and other food items on displays right on the sidewalks. Local patrons scurry through to grab their fresh groceries for their traditional Indonesian dishes of the day. As the day turns to mid-morning, the vendors have already packed up and gone only to return the next morning.
Certain parts of the city have devoted markets for vendors selling a variety of art, clothing, and knick-knacks to tourists or maybe even locals. Each stand’s owner greets you pleading for you to walk inside their small three-walled stands to peruse their goods. They persist as you attempt to walk away or to the next stand where the owner of that stand gains your attention. It can be quite exhausting as you feel like a celebrity on the red carpet just walking through the main stretch of the market.
Nusa Penida Island
Bali wasn’t the only island of Indonesia that we were able to see. We took a day trip to the island of Nusa Penida. This is a fairly popular island as well because of the clean beaches. The island of Bali actually has some pretty poor beaches lined with trash and murky water. Not all beaches on the island are like that, but most of the ones we saw were pretty dirty.
For instance, we took this day trip to Nusa Penida with a guide and it required us to take a ferry boat from the island of Bali. But, Bali’s port with tours to Nusa Penida doesn’t have a pier or harbor to dock the boats. So, the big ferry boats backup as close as they can to shore and the passengers must walk up to their knees or hips in the water to grab the hand of someone to hop on the boat. Getting wet isn’t that big of a deal, but being in this water is; the water is littered with trash like chip bags, toothpaste tubes, etc. It was quite jarring for me, but it didn’t help that our shoes were held until we landed at Nusa Penida. So, everyone is packed into seats on this ferry boat without shoes and soaking wet from at least their knees down.
But, when arriving at Nusa Penida, the water is clear and a dock is provided allowing us to keep dry at least. The shoes (really sandals) are back on and you can start your drive to the various destinations on the island.
The island of Nusa Penida is much more arid than Bali. As you climb to the middle of the island, the views are grander and the landscape is less lush. But, this makes for a great number of fruits being grown with all the rain and the abundance of sun. You can even see small fields of corn being grown along the narrow blacktop roads.
There is one viewpoint where you can see a peninsula poke out into the sea with tropical grandeur. The water is baby blue with white-capped waves slapping the shores. Monkeys busily hang around the cliff around the viewpoint.
Other viewpoints on Nusa Penida show the unique geology etched by the rising and falling of the ocean tides. The semi-high cliffs offer a great view of the water’s clear and blue appearance.
As I mentioned earlier, the beaches are much clearer and more beautiful on Nusa Penida than the ones we visited on Bali. We got a chance to actually swim safely in the water and see the bottom with ease. The water is a refreshing reprieve from the heat of the middle of the day in this part of the world. Some of the beaches even have little beach loungers with umbrellas you can rent out. The breeze is glorious and the view isn’t too bad either.
Temples
Since Hinduism is the major religion on the island and in the culture of Bali, many temples with references to the religion can be found throughout the island. We got a chance to see both Taman Ayun and Tanah Lot.
Taman Ayun
This is a significant temple in Bali because it is one of the few royal temples that was originally built to symbolize unity between the king and the people of the Mengwi kingdom (one of the minor kingdoms making up the Bali Kingdom). Surrounded by a moat, the artfully constructed and decorated grounds make for quite the visit. The main, large gate to the center grounds is only opened on special days of the year or during significant festivals. You can walk around and peer over the stone walls and enjoy the views of the many buildings within while enjoying the outer grounds and the gardens surrounding. They even provide a couple of galleries where you can watch a video or see exhibits of significant history related to the temple.
This is a temple where they have a dress code. Both women and men need to cover their knees at a minimum. But, conveniently, they provide you with long skirts and a sash if you happen to not meet the criteria.
Tanah Lot
Tanah Lot is one of the most popular temples in Bali. It was originally built to honor the god of the sea and today is also a tourist attraction because of where it is located. The grounds are literally right on the ocean shore and in the cliffs above those shores. One of the buildings is even off the shore where you need to walk through (clear) ocean water about ankle deep to access it.
But, to be able to go up the stairs onto the structure on the little ocean island, you need to receive a blessing and give a donation. You wash your face with holy freshwater and a holy man presses rice on your forehead and puts a flower in your ear.
We happened to be here for sunset and since the grounds face the ocean to the west, it makes for a great spot to see it. Though a bit touristy, the sunset is worth the wait.
Our Bali Experience
As I said earlier, the people and learning about their culture was the true treat we experienced in Bali. The infrastructure is shaky and tourism is making its stamp on Bali; but, the people were worth the trip. There are a lot of beautiful places on earth and Bali is one of them. But, I gained more from learning about how they live than seeing the sights.
Recap
Next Up!
- Australia
Read About Where Else We’ve Been
- New Zealand: A Little Bit of Everything
- Vietnam: North to South
- Malaysia, Singapore, Cambodia: New Year’s 2023
- Thailand: Temples, Food, and So Much More
- Australia: The East Coast of Natural Wonders
