New Year in Bali

Reviewing my posted blogs I realize I’ve forgotten to post about one of the most interesting cultural experiences I was lucky enough to encounter while in Bali: NYEPI!!!  Also known as the Balinese New Year.  While most travelers got the hell out of Bali, Hannah, Candida and I decided to stay in Ubud.  I had already been to Ubud and wasn’t keen on going back, but it was better than staying in Kuta.  And those girls could create a good time with nothing but a piece of paper and some dental floss, or more accurately, Deet and a plastic bottle.  

My crew.

We arrived a couple of days before the official New Year and the girls were in need of some serious healthy food so I took them to the good spots: Down to Earth Cafe for a sunset dinner on the second floor balcony the first night, then we stopped by Oka’s Warung and paid him a visit.  It was so good to see Oka and the other guys a month later and they all seemed excited to see me as well.  Oka thought I had already headed back to the US and when he saw me he was shocked at how “tan” I was.  He invited me to eat family dinner with his the next day, which was amazingly gracious.  Of all the cities and islands I traveled in Indonesia the locals in Ubud were by far the most genuine.  The tourist...not so much.  On our walk home we saw the locals already starting their New Year tradition, bringing offerings and prayers to their Hindu temples. 

The sign for the Balinese New Year 1935

Like that couple in Manhattan, but better.  

On the porch of an abandoned art studio.

The next day was the day before Nyepi and the town was like a beehive, practically buzzing with excitement and list-minute touches to their monsters which the locals would later parade theatrically all over town.  I took the girls to Clear Café where I ran into Tom Lang.  Tom is an author of several short story books and also, incidentally my neighbor in Venice.  I asked him if I could pick his brain on book writing and he of course was happy to help.  I look forward to seeing Tom again in the states; he is one of those people who always has great, genuine energy.

Seeing as the town was going to be completely shut down and inaccessible the next day we knew we had to buy provisions for food and water.  We had heard all kinds of rumors as to what to expect, even as far as no electricity and no leaving the porch of your homestay.  So we stocked up on useless unhealthy snacks, only to find out later on that our homestay provided breakfast, a snack and dinner.  Oh well. 

The night before Nyepi is when all the crazy celebration goes down.  Locals have prepared for months in advance for the holiday, building their monsters (some of them more than 2.5 meters high) and preparing for the parade to the soccer field where everyone gathers to look at their artwork.  The night is full of shouting, playing out the characters of the animals and the gods, dancing and telling stories of the battle between good and evil.  

A warrior, just making his way to the Nyepi festivities.  

This is not uncommon at all in Bali.  I'm surprised they're not also carrying a mattress and a fish tank.

The wild boar making its way down the street.  This guy came equipped with sound effects too!

Some comic relief from all of the Nyepi monsters.

A medium size monster making its way down the street.  Notice the sticks being used to move electrical wires...

Poser.

You learn to hold on at an early age. 

The three of us paraded down the streets with the locals, in awe of the details and performance of the monsters and the locals who carried them.  While celebrating I was lucky enough to run into Daniel from Radiantly Alive Yoga (another stellar guy I met through Kate Harrington when I first arrived in Ubud) and give him a final goodbye before we set out for an expensive dinner (most restaurants, businesses and ATMS close early on this day – something we didn’t anticipate).  After dinner we headed back to our homestay, thinking the celebration was over but when we got to the square we realized it was just beginning.  The locals act out the characters of their monsters while the story is narrated to everyone who has jammed themselves into the city square.  The stories of battle and fighting and good versus evil get the kids in town so riled up, there are often several fights that break out during this part of the holiday.  Also, because we were thisclose to the action, there were several times when bystanders were almost a part of the show, with the frames coming within inches of us and one time even knocking over several people, causing a small but exciting panic.  By the time we were able to escape our front row spots we had had enough of the excitement and possibility of being trampled and we were ready to move on. 

Here is a video I shot of the parade. 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B6tEsowj178

Sometimes the monsters are anatomically correct.  They spared no detail on this particular sculpture. 

The Nyepi monsters are heads above the rest of the crowd.

The girls posing with a Balinese warrior.  

Just playing "Simon Says" with the monster.  

A battle between monsters is common at nightfall. 

The snake-charmer working his magic in order to steal the pearl.  Or at least that's how I interpreted it. 

The next day was spent very quietly on the porch of our homestay.  The family gave us access to the kitchen in order to boil water for tea and coffee and I was able to snap a few pictures of a real Balinese kitchen…yikes.    

Our random snacks the next day.  Sticky rice, lychees and something else mysterious.  Yum!

The girls trying to figure out what the contents of our little food packages.

A traditional homestay kitchen.

The doorway to the kitchen.  

We played music, Candida sang to herself – which she often does to entertain herself and sometimes others much to our delight.  We tried some of the local snacks we had unnecessarily bought the day before, I wrote, we talked and read and when it finally got dark Hannah and I did some circuit training on the porch in the pitch dark (no porch lights allowed!  Only room lights).  We ventured to the edge of the homestay compound just to see how quiet the city was and it was eerie.  The Balinese believe monsters visit their island on this day and if they see that Bali is uninhabited they will leave the island alone.  The streets are completely desolate; as if a mob of zombies has taken over and all human existence is gone.  On a side note, not all of Bali is like this; apparently at Suka Beach in Kuta, there was a full-on pool party full of drinking and swimming and music – no quiet reflections or fasting there.  The night of Nyepi was one of the most beautiful I’d ever seen.  Air pollution is considerably reduced due to no taxis, scooters or trucks on the streets so you’re able to see the stars of the southern hemisphere in a way that’s not standard in the choked cities of Bali.

Candida munching on her first bite of dragon fruit.

Passing around the dragon fruit while we sit on the porch on "silent day".

Snake fruit.  It tastes like an apple but better.  

While most westerners run from Nyepi like it’s leprosy, Hannah, Candida and I were so glad we stayed to celebrate another culture’s customs.  Happy New Year Bali!!