Our group stopped for lunch at Homm Hotel in Saranam village - in the northern hills of Bali. It’s so green up here. And a little cooler than the rest of Bali. That’s some of my group taking a walk through the herb garden.
The cremation procession is complete. It was absolutely stunning. This is just 1 video of the last of the procession, but with the most important part - the cremation tower. It was hot and noisy with thousands of people but that just added to the excitement. I feel so fortunate to be in Ubud during this very important ceremony. I’ve had a few days off between groups and can’t believe my luck that I had planned to spend these extra days in Ubud. When I planned this there was no plans for a huge cremation like this. The magic of Bali is real 🌟🌟🌟
The Kecak Dance is about to start I always love this dance performance, especially listening to the men chant for an hour No musical instruments at the Kecak Dance
What a beautiful start to the day, listening to the melody of the birds 🐦 🎶 That day bed is calling my name - first free day of the current tour and it couldn’t happen in a more peaceful location 🌺🌺🌺
Manually plowing the fields in Bali
Balinese offerings are a very important part of the culture. Not everyone has time to make them now so luckily you can buy them already prepared at the Ubud market. We will learn how to make these later today at our offering class. 🌺🌺🌺
Babes Debbie, Deb and Lorna - October 2017 - discovering that a hand held fan really does come in handy in Bali.
Bali fan = Bali air conditioning 😜🌺🌴
And this is how they get the long tailed Balinese fishing boats in the water. This was close to 5pm so there were many boats getting hauled and pushed in to the sea. Just a simple wooden trailer and lots of man power. ✅
Bali has so many unique and interesting celebrations and this was one of my all time favorites. It took place at the Besakih Temple, also known as the Mother Temple, dating back to 1343. It’s a bit remote, built on the southern slopes of Mount Agung. There are over 70 celebrations that occur at this temple every year although you can visit anytime.
One of the favorite activities on a Babes in Bali tour is the day we spent travelling around the beautiful countryside in convertibles. It kind of feels like we’re in a parade as there’s 6-7 cars transporting our group and the locals all love to wave and say hello. Fun times!!
There’s just something so mystical about this Hindu temple built on the shores of Lake Beratan in northern Bali. It’s usually very cloudy here so I was happy to get this video. This 12 story pagoda was built in 1633 by the Balinese King of Mengwi. This is always a highlight for the Babes in Bali.
A time lapse video of the highly entertaining Kecak Dance performed at the Uluwatu Temple tonight - a one hour dance performance in 26 seconds. This is the only Balinese dance performance done without a live gamelan band. The 37 members of the male ‘chorus’ chanted for the entire one hour performance. There’s a bit of a blip around 16 seconds as a live monkey got into the amphitheatre. Sorry but that made me lose my focus 🙊. First time since 2004 when I first experienced this dance at this location that a monkey actually got in to the stands. He scurried along the back row but the local event people quickly retrieved their slingshots and thankfully the monkey exited stage right!
I never tire of this view in Bali. These rice terraces are about a 20 minute drive from Ubud. The Babes had a wonderful lunch overlooking this postcard perfect location. Some of the group enjoyed a short hike as well.
All that shopping requires a cold beer once we’re back in our van! 🍻
Bargaining in Bali is a real skill. Typically I suggest to
my clients that they offer 30% of the initial ‘suggested’ price. You should probably settle on about 40%. However never walk away from something you love for 75 cents! I’ve seen this happen, especially when you haven’t figured out the currency. I’ll post my bargaining tips soon - and remember bargaining in Bali should be fun. Don’t stress, be kind, smile and always know they’ll never accept an offer that’s below their cost. Most importantly, the sellers are real people who genuinely want you to be happy but have families to feed and support. If you over pay by a few bucks, that’s life. Look at your purchase as an exchange of energy. As long as you’re happy with your purchase that’s all that matters. Just don’t buy stuff you don’t want - easier said than done though.
I might have put too many bath bubbles in the bath tonight??? My room at the Westin Nusa Dua has a fabulous bathtub and I’ve enjoyed 2 baths so far. Tonight however I might have overdone the bubble thing 😜
🌺 The shopping in Bali never disappoints. 😊 This store is in Ubud where the Babes in Bali stay for the first 5 nights on our tour. In case you didn’t get everything you need they also have a store in Seminyak, very close to Legian Beach where we spend our last 3 nights. Did I mention just how fantastic the shopping in Bali is? Bring an empty suitcase! You’ll thank me later 🌺
