Nov 9, 2011

Fallen Flora, Singapore

It is not that fallen leaves and flowers are any different in different parts of the world ...

... but these pictures come from our hawaii chappal trails in Singapore.

The weather is fine at this time of the year,

with occasional thunderstorms leaving the greens lush, ...

 ... walkways wet, and fallen flora glistening.



A hot cuppa seems just apt now, doesn't it?

Nov 6, 2011

Jimbaran Bay, Bali

Seafood and sea lovers don't miss this place on a visit to Bali! In fact, it cannot be missed since it is very much in the tourist circuit and everyone comes here for a fun evening by the sea, to bite into freshly grilled crab, oysters, prawns and other fish while listening to local bands or watching occasional Balinese dance performances on a makeshift stage.

As you approach Jimabaran Bay by road (just South of the airport), you are greeted by rows of seafood restaurants and a strong waft of grilled seafood. (So strict vegetarians who cannot stand the yumm fragrance of fish being cooked/grilled, could opt out of the fun!) You enter a restaurant after being greeted by a pretty Balinese girl with a headgear made of frangipani flowers, and she gracefully takes a flower from her basket and pins one in your hair above your ear. 

Walk in and the restaurant opens into the beach where a few hundred tables are laid out, and lit with candles (by evening). Reach by sunset, watch the sun and the sky mate with the sea. It's a "wow" sight to behold.

Settle down with a few drinks...

... as you are entertained by dancers swaying to local music.


An infectiously enthusiastic local band comes to every table, and sings you a cheerful song, and sometimes in your regional language. We for instance, were sung 'Tum paas aaye' with a Balinese accent, to our surprise and delight :-)

Then came the seafood, which is well done and worth a try. Needless to say, it will be better if one goes without any expectations of getting a masala fry or a tamarind gravy. Bland is the word, but that's the way it should be!

After this, a walk on the beach through the water makes a perfect ending to the night!

Balinese offerings

On a visit to Bali it is difficult not to step on atleast one of these compact offerings the Balinese make to the Gods several times a day. They are seen offered in front of all temples, buildings, stores, homes, inside vehicles - in small neatly woven palm-leaf baskets called canang-sari, and is always accompanied by a couple fragrant incense sticks.


Inside the basket would be a banana or sugarcane slice, grains of colored rice, bright flowers and leaves, and sometime biscuits as in the one above.




In a way, it symbolizes the eternal all-powerful relationship among people, spirits and the all-powerful nature ... and is offered to appease the benevolent spirits.

A Taste of Balinese Artistry

Back from a vacation in Bali, with fresh memories of the beaches, paddy fields, wood craft, seafood, wayside temples, rustic orange brick buildings, friendly people, frangipani trees and fallen flowers on the streets.

I read this somewhere "The soul of the Balinese is in his religion, so it finds its expression in the arts." Indeed!
What I found irresistibly attractive were the artist villages all along our route to the town of Ubud. It just seemed that every other person was an artist in some way - kite makers, painters, weavers, stone and wood carvers, mask makers ...

We visited a few homes/galleries where the artists live, work and sell their creations.
Dear readers, here's a glimpse of it -

The master artist adding his finishing touches 

It's all in the details

Plenty more to choose from
Art supplies in the backyard

Carved in stone - A streak of sunshine falls across his curls, and all-knowing smile

The hundreds of these sculptures didn't seem to compete for the buyers' attention - they just stood weathering rain and shine, at peace with their surroundings
After day one of our stay, I sighed in realization that our short trip was going to be just too short for this beautiful a place, and resolved to come back for longer, someday ... for a better taste of local Bali.

Balinese (art) villages - I am certainly coming back for more!

(Linking this to And then she snapped.)
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