Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
FESTIVALS & EVENTS
Try to obtain a
Calendar of Events
booklet -
there are several versions published by the
government. It lists every temple ceremony
and village festival in Bali for the current
(Western) year. You can also inquire at tour-
ist offices or at your hotel.
BALI
The US, Australia and Japan (visitors from
these countries together make up nearly half
of all visitors) have formal consulates in Bali.
Unless noted, the following offices are open
from about 8.30am to noon, Monday to Fri-
day. All telephone area codes are
commemorates the legend of a beautiful princess who
went out to sea and drowned herself rather than choose
between her many admirers - her long hair was
transformed into the wormlike fish the Sasak call
nyale
.
Perang Topat
November or December - a harvest
festival featuring a mock battle with sticky rice held near
Mataram (see p291).
A GOOD DAY FOR…
Almost every Balinese home and business
has a copy of the
Kalendar Cetakan
hang-
ing on the wall. This annual publication
tracks the various local religious calendars
and overlays them upon your usual 365-
day Western calendar. Details are extensive
and most importantly, the calendar pro-
vides vital details on which days are most
fortuitous for a myriad of activities such as
bull castration, building a boat, laying a
foundation, drilling a well, starting a long
trip and having sex. Many Balinese would
not think of scheduling any activity without
checking the calendar first and this can lead
to many inconveniences since many activi-
ties are only condoned for a few days a year
(except sex which is called for at least 10
days a month - a real marketing tool!).
0361.
%
Australia
(Map pp166-7;
241118; www.dfat.gov
.au/bali; Jl Hayam Wuruk 88B, Renon, Denpasar;
%
Balinese Calendars, Holidays &
Festivals
Apart from the usual Western calendar, the
Balinese also use two local calendars, the
saka
calendar and the
wuku
calendar.
Temple Festivals
Temple festivals in Bali are quite amazing,
and you'll often come across them quite un-
expectedly, even in the most remote corners
of the island. The annual 'temple birthday' is
known as an
odalan
and is celebrated once
every Balinese year of 210 days. Since most
villages have at least three temples, you're
assured of at least five or six annual festi-
vals in every village. In addition, there can
be special festival days common throughout
Bali; festivals for certain important temples
and festivals for certain gods. The full moons
which fall around the end of September to the
beginning of October, or from early to mid-
April, are often times for important temple
festivals in Bali.
The most obvious sign of a temple festival
is a long line of women in traditional costume,
walking gracefully to the temple with beauti-
fully arranged offerings of food, fruit and
flowers piled in huge pyramids which they
carry on their heads.
Meanwhile, the various
pemangku
(temple
guardians and priests for temple rituals) sug-
gest to the gods that they should come down
for a visit. That's what those little thrones are
for in the temple shrines - they are symbolic
seats for the gods to occupy during festivals.
Women dance the stately Pendet, an offering
dance for the gods.
All night long on the island there's ac-
tivity, music and dancing - it's like a great
country fair, with food, amusements, games,
stalls, gambling, noise, colour and confusion.
Finally, as dawn approaches, the entertain-
ment fades away, the
pemangku
suggest to the
gods that it's time they made their way back
to heaven and the people wind their weary
way back home.
When you first arrive, it's well worth asking
at a tourist office or your hotel what festivals
will be held during your stay. Seeing one
8am-
noon, 12.30-4pm) The Australian consulate has a consular
sharing agreement with Canada, and may also be able
to help citizens of New Zealand, Ireland and Papua New
Guinea.
France
(Map p140;
h
285485; Jl Mertasari, Gang II 8,
%
Sanur)
Germany
(Map p140;
SAKA CALENDAR
The Hindu
saka
(or
caka
) calendar is a lunar
cycle that is similar to the Western calendar
in terms of the length of the year. Nyepi (see
the boxed text, p338) is the major festival of
the
saka
year - it's the last day of the year, ie
the day after the new moon of the ninth
month. Certain major temples celebrate their
festivals by the
saka
calendar.
288535; Jl Pantai Karang 17,
%
Batujimbar, Sanur)
Japan
(Map pp166-7;
227628; konipdps@indo.net
.id; Jl Raya Puputan 170, Renon, Denpasar)
Netherlands
(Map pp96-7;
%
752777; Jl Raya Kuta
%
127/Imam Bonjol, Kuta)
Switzerland
(Map pp96-7 ;
751735; Kuta Galleria,
%
Bali Events
Besides the myriad of religious festivals, Bali
has many organised events which have proven
popular with locals and visitors alike. Be sure
to confirm that the event will happen.
Bali Art Festival of Buleleng
May or June, Singaraja
( p259 ).
Bali Arts Festival
Mid-June to mid-July, Denpasar (p170).
Kuta Karnival
Late September and early October, Kuta
( p104 ).
Ubud Writers & Readers Festival
October, Ubud
( p186 ).
Blok Valet 2, 12, Kuta)
UK
(Map p140 ;
270601; Jl Tirtanadi 20, Sanur)
%
USA
(Map pp166-7 ;
233605; amcobali@indosat
.net.id; Jl Hayam Wuruk 188, Renon, Denpasar;
h
WUKU CALENDAR
The
wuku
calendar is used to determine fes-
tival dates. The calendar uses 10 different
types of weeks between one and 10 days long,
which all run simultaneously. The intersection
of the various weeks determines auspicious
days. The seven- and five-day weeks are of
particular importance. A full year is made up
of 30 individually named seven-day weeks
(210 days).
Galungan, which celebrates the death of
a legendary tyrant called Mayadenawa, is
one of Bali's major festivals. During this 10-
day period, held every 210 days, all the gods
come down to earth for the festivities. Barong
(mythical lion-dog creatures) prance from
temple to temple and village to village, and
locals rejoice with feasts and visits to families.
The celebrations culminate with the Kunin-
gan festival, when the Balinese say thanks and
goodbye to the gods.
Every village in Bali will celebrate Galungan
and Kuningan in grand style. Forthcoming
dates are the following:
%
8am-4.30pm)
JAKARTA
Most nations have an embassy in Jakarta
(telephone area code
021), including the
%
following:
Australia
(
2550 5555; www.indonesia.embassy.gov
.au; Jl Rasuna Said Kav 15-16)
Brunei
(
%
3190 6080; Jl Tanjung Karang 7)
%
Lombok Events
Many festivals take place at the start of the
rainy season (around October to December)
or at harvest time (around April to May).
Most of them do not fall on specific days in
the Western calendar, including Ramadan, so
planning for them is not really possible.
Ramadan, the month of fasting, is the ninth
month of the Muslim calendar. During this
period, many restaurants are closed, and for-
eigners eating, drinking (especially alcohol)
and smoking in public may attract a very
negative reaction.
Other occasions observed on Lombok in-
clude the following:
Desa Bersih
First Thursday in April - a harvest festival
Canada
(
2550 7800; www.international.gc.ca/asia
/jakarta; World Trade Centre, 6th fl, Jl Jend Sudirman Kav
29-31)
France
(
%
2355 7600; Jl MH Thamrin 20)
%
Germany
(
3985 5000; Jl MH Thamrin 1)
%
Japan
(
3192 4308; Jl MH Thamrin 24)
Netherlands
(
%
524 8200; Jl HR Rasuna Said Kav S-3)
%
New Zealand
(
570 9460; BRI II Bldg, 23rd fl, Jl Jend
%
Sudirman Kav 44-46)
Papua New Guinea
(
7251218; 6th fl, Panin Bank
%
Centre, Jl Jend Sudirman 1)
Philippines
(
310 0334; phjkt@indo.net.id; Jl Imam
%
Bonjol 6-8)
Singapore
(
520 1489; Jl Rasuna Said, Block X/4
%
Year
Galungan
Kuningan
Kav 2)
Thailand
(
390 4052; Jl Imam Bonjol 74)
