Nyepi - Bondage in Bali

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Back to Legian

After Ubud, we planned on heading back to the beach. We therefore stopped in Legian for a few days, on the surfers’ beach near Kuta. We stayed in Legian last time we were in Bali and chose a hotel up the road from the last place we stayed. After being in Sanur, Tanah Lot, and then Ubud, I forgot what Bali, and in particular what Legian and Kuta are all about - Aussies. Bali, with a focus on Legian and Kuta, is to Australians what Cancun is to Americans. It is only about a three hour flight from Perth, on the west coast of Australia, to Bali, and about six hours from Sydney. In Sanur, only a short ride from Legian, it was more Europeans - Germans, Dutch, and Russians. Ubud felt more European too. But, Legian belongs to the Aussies. We saw Australians at the buffet breakfast at our hotel with Vegemite in their pocket. And, everywhere we went on the street the sellers and touts talked to us calling us “mate” (pronounced like “mite”). We started to get a bit annoyed, particularly after our run in with the obnoxious Aussie in Kyoto. All of the shops specialize in Aussie flag gear and Australian rules football logos. So many of the restaurants have Aussie themes. Even our beer sellers on the beach, Sammy and Suzie, hang the flag and cater to the Aussies. We felt over run.

The other thing about Legian - overaggressive touts. It was much calmer in Sanur and Ubud, and even on the tourist strip at the temple at Pura Tanah Lot. Legian was a whole new thing, with everyone trying their best to make us buy the mass produced crap. The calls for transport were incessant. At least once I was grabbed - a man on the sidewalk who wanted me to buy something, grabbed my arm as I walked by to gain my attention. I had lost my patience at that point. I defended myself. I was told by the man’s friend, that it is okay, “everyone does it here.” But, considering that I know how women in general are treated in many countries in Southeast Asia, particularly with respect to domestic violence, I reminded the men that it is not appropriate for strange men to grab women on the street. In return, I was reminded how much Legian is not my favorite place on Bali. We scheduled the stop so that we could be at the beach during the largest holiday of the year - Nyepi - but I was of the mindset that I wished I stayed in Ubud with my yoga and massages. This was particularly true considering our room in Legian was nothing short of crappy, with a dark and dirty bathroom, no internet on property, and a crappy restaurant. I was missing Ubud terribly.

We were able to do a little shopping for mass market crap, and we were happy to frequent Warung Jogya, our favorite from our first trip. We were delighted to have Nasi Campur (described in English on the menu as rice and “goodies”), fried rice, fried noodles, and fried chicken, each for the equivalent of $1.50 plus fantastic sweet and cheap ice tea. We ate there as many meals as we could, which started to make up for the crappy hotel and the grabby touts.

Enforced Fun - Nyepi

Our driver from Sanur to Tanah Lot at the beginning of our stay informed us that we would be on the island for ogoh ogoh and Nyepi. News to us. We were told that there would be a big celebration on the night of March 15 and on the 16th no one can leave their home because it is a day of rest. Tourists have to stay in their hotel. The airport is closed and transportation is limited to emergencies. We started to inquire from other drivers, the security guard from the Le Meridien, our beer dude on the beach in Legian (Sammy) and a stranger from Oz. What exactly was the deal?

Ogoh ogoh are effigies. They are large multicolored statues created by local villages, temples, and schools. On the drive from Tanah Lot to Ubud we saw them in various states of completion on the side of the road. In Ubud, some were housed in or near temples as they finished them prior to the festivities. The night before Nyepi the ogoh ogoh are paraded through towns and villages in a traditional ceremony to rid the village of evil spirits. The effigies are symbols of negative forces and youth compete for the best effigies. In the past, the effigies would be burned to get rid of the spirits. Firecrackers are lit and youngsters drink vast quantities of alcohol. In Legian, we noticed that on the 15th the town started to thin out as people began to head back to their home villages before the holiday. Nyepi is the most important holiday of the year in Bali. Shops and restaurants closed and the crews at the beach who sell beer for sunset closed down early. For a town that is always so rowdy, loud, and obnoxious, it was strange to see.

We went out before sunset to see the ogoh ogoh. They were bright and colorful, with the larger ones bordering on obscene. We waited on the main road to see what happened; and we waited. After dark and after almost two hours sitting on a curb waiting for something to happen, anything to happen, the drum at the local temple began to beat, and increased in speed. “I could feel the anticipation.” Actually, I felt no anticipation. The beats slowed and then stopped. Nothing happened. Each of the ogoh ogoh needs a team of people to carry it. Two of the smaller evil spirits in front of us were manned by little youngsters, but no one showed up for the larger ones. When would they arrive? I also started to get hungry. Eric tried to buy some chips at the local Circle K with no luck. My butt started to get numb from sitting on the curb and sweating. Then, I noticed that almost all of the people lining the streets waiting were white people. For all I know, this thing could kick off three hours later. So, we decided to find something to eat and then we would return to the main street to check out the ogoh ogoh. We stopped at one of the only restaurants open and actually ate Mexican food for the first time in awhile. It was not half bad (it was simultaneously not half good either). When done we turned to walk up to the main road and the crowds were streaming in our direction. Whatever happened up there was now over. I was okay with that, though, with my belly filled with guacamole, salsa, and quesadillas. We made our way back to the hotel and settled in for a noisy bedtime with firecrackers as we head into Nyepi.

Nyepi is the Balinese Hindu Day of Silence celebrating their new year. Celebrants traditionally refrain from lighting fire or using lights, from working, from partaking in leisure activities, and from traveling outside their family compound. According to the Jakarta Post “Nyepi is time for Hindus to contemplate about what they have done in the previous year and aim to self-improve for the year ahead.” Once we heard about Nypei we started to make plans. How would we spend our quiet day, and more importantly, where would we spend it?

We planned on finding a hotel with a pool, internet, and an open restaurant. We found two of the three. The website we booked through promised internet, where there was none. But, minimally we had a restaurant and a pool. We woke fairly early to head for a subpar free breakfast, but our biggest goal was to secure two of the six lounge chairs near the pool. We secured the last one and figured we would share. We spent the greater part of the day trying to find shade and stay out of the burning heat, contemplating our situation. The hotel closed off one of the entrances to the street with plywood. We were thoroughly locked in. Rumor had it that if anyone (local or not) was caught outside on Nyepi they would suffer a $100 fine after some time in an Indonesian jail. Pecalang are traditional village guardsmen who are responsible for keeping the peace during Nyepi. It was enough to convince me to stay where we were. I had no interest in finishing our trip in an Indonesian prison.

Now, we were under a bright blue sky, sitting at a pool, listening to Bob Marley, and reading (we were really on our last leg of books to read too). One would think we would be excited to spend this time. After all, it was better than being at the office, in which we were soon to return. It just was something about the forced nature of the situation that bothered us. I like my freedom to move. It was reminiscent of the movie “Live From Baghdad” where the camera crew checks on some oil and gas workers in Baghdad, holed up in a compound, possibly the US embassy, grilling up hot dogs and trying to seem like they are having a good time. They may have been grilling up burgers and dogs, but they were not free to leave, and were, therefore, prisoners. We felt that way too. We ordered a burger and club sandwich for lunch. It was passable. We ordered up a foot reflexology massage and mani-pedi at the pool side “spa” which had a lot to be desired even for $13.

At night, it got even better. There was no normal restaurant menu for dinner, of course. What else do you do with about 35 to 40 captives but charge a ridiculous amount for a crappy buffet dinner. We were deciding what to do about it all day and after viewing what was on offer, we skipped it. I had buy one get one free pina coladas for dinner. Eric had a few beers. Lights off at the restaurant for curfew at 7pm. We were expected to head back to our rooms to watch TV “calmly” (with no English stations, there was no chance for TV) and to keep the lights low and the shades closed. This was also not a problem because the lighting in the room had a lot to be desired. We split a sleeve of Oreos for dinner, rinsed down with some water and a boxed guava juice and called it a night.

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Photos

Nasi Goreng
At our favorite Warung Jogya.

Ogoh Ogoh
On display in Legian

Like Looking in a Mirror
Ogoh Ogoh taking a picture of me taking a picture of him.

Closed In
The hotel boarded up one of the exits from the hotel. I hoped for no fire.

Nyepi Dinner
Happy Hour pina colada before my Oreos dinner.