Day 21 - 22 (Mar 26-27 2013): Celebrating Galungan in Ubud

The Quick Facts:

* Came to Ubud because our school is closed due to the Balinese holiday of Galungan
* Stayed at the Beji Ubud hotel (got a super-discounted last minute rate to this otherwise expensive and really nice resort)
* Ate at Naughty Nuri’s (amazing barbecue, fried rice, fried noodles); supposed to eat at Melting Wok the second night but it was closed for the holiday, apparently it is not to be missed however
* Took in a traditional Legong Balinese Dance near the central palace in Ubud

The Good:

* Ubud is very much a city with a ton of wonderful shops, restaurants, cafes, and hotels
* We ate some very good food
* Got to see the city’s Galungan decorations
* The Legong dance was very well done

The Bad:

* The city was a little slow due to the holiday, but being here to see the holiday was a nice trade-off

 

With the school closed for the Balinese celebration of Galungan, most of the volunteers at the school decided to head to Ubud to see the city's celebration of the holiday. It must be the slow season, as Carrie and I found a severely discounted rate at a gorgeous resort in town. Here is the view from one of the five infinity pools they have on the grounds. We went from one extreme living situation to another.

 

Ubud itself is not as touristy as the southern part of Bali, but still has many tourists and hotels (it is not the "real" Bali that we are experiencing at the school). Ubud is considered one of the cultural centers of Bali, with many dance performances, art galleries, and shops displaying handmade wood carvings, dresses, and other things. Here are some pictures of a Legong dance performance we went to:

 

But the main attraction in the city this time around was the celebration of Galungan, which is a Balinese Hindu holiday that celebrates the victory of dharma over adharma (dharma being a concept of purity and moral transformation...I hope my Hindu/Buddhist/Sikh friends out there forgive me for however I'm misstating any of this!). Tradition teaches that the dead relatives of each family will come back to visit on Galungan, and it is the family's responsibility to leave offerings for their relatives. The offerings are held in boxes at the front of each house (think decorated mailbox) and are marked by penjurs, which are long decorated bamboo poles that tower above the street to 25-30 feet and then arc and hang down. Each penjur and offering box are decorated differently, much like the tradition of Christmas lights on houses in the US.

Here is a couple views of streets with all of the penjurs creating a canopy feel throughout the street.

 

 

 

 

 

And here is a before/after of the offering basket (before is empty, after is once the family has filled it with offerings).

And here is a particularly beautiful offering basket.

 

And here is a picture of one of the many temples that are present in Ubud--I couldn't go further than this because I was not dressed appropriately to enter the sacred area.

 

And that is our two days in Ubud. We will be back a few more times before our stay in Bali is over, but I am glad to have gotten to know the city during the holiday time. Next up: the Gili Islands and Lombok.

 

I leave you with this: one other thing Ubud is known for is their "monkey forest".  We did not go in, but that doesn't stop the monkeys from coming out to the street to show you their goods.

 

 

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