Indonesia: Life In The Islands

Tanah Lot

The second day was more of the same in terms of surfing and nasi goreng. A man I had met on the beach the night before, Agung, told me about a ceremony that night at Hindu Pura Tanah Lot, a Buddhist temple located right on the beach. To commemorate those who died in the two Bali bombings, five thousand Balinese dancers (men and women) from various villages were going to perform the traditional Kecek dance at the temple at sunset. Apparently there had never been a performance of this magnitude. On a whim, we decided to go, and one of the surfing dudes from the beach drove us through beautiful rice paddies and hills to the coast just in time for sunset. In the next few hours we watched one of the coolest things I’ve ever seen.

Since we were too cheap to actually pay for seats, the few first minutes at Tanah Lot were spent jockeying for good positions, running around the venue, climbing up poles, and going underneath the grandstands. I watched the beginning of the dance standing on the side of a cliff next to the water. Five thousand dancers in Balinese dress of checkered black and white sarongs, moved into position. Gamelan music was playing as the dance began with a small number of performers. When the sun started to set over the ocean the giant mass of dancers surged forward and the real show began. Here I’m going to lift a phrase from the CNN article about the event, since it explains the origins of the performance better than I can: “The Kecak is among the most dramatic of Balinese dances. Rooted in the so-called sanghiang trance dance and drawing on elements from the Hindu epic Ramayana, it is a mix of theatre, music and dance.”

For part of the tribute I moved away from the cliff and watched the dancers close up on a screen that was positioned behind the stands. The precision of the dance movements and the expressions of the dancers were very striking. It was incredibly dramatic to watch 5,000 people clap in unison and yell “Cak Cak Cak.” The music was very dark and rhythmic, and it stayed in your head. As full darkness came over the temple, all of the dancers lit torches for the finale, the triumph of Ramayana. At this point most of the security had abandoned their posts, so I ran down to the very front near the stage and watched as the event concluded and the thousands of dancers began to file out, throwing their torches into the ocean. Just as everyone was leaving and the tribute seemed complete, fireworks lit up the night sky, illuminating the ocean and the temple in an awesome finale. You can read more about the event here.

After our driver managed to pry us away from the temple, we drove back into town, ate dinner, and explored some of the shops and restaurants in the Kuta area. It’s always so cool in Bali to be walking down the street and see the offerings to the gods that are outside many businesses and restaurants. People place the offerings there several times a time, painstakingly constructing them from palms and filling them with flowers and other odds and ends (my favorites were the ones with Ritz crackers in them). Even in the middle of a huge tourist area, you can still see signs of the religion and beliefs of the Balinese.

A lot of Balinese men also wear their traditional dress around every day. This consists of a sarong, an (optional) shirt, and some sort of Balinese do-rag that I don’t know the name for. They sit around outside of stores and houses with their friends, just hanging out in their skirts. I really love it. Balinese people, like many Indonesians, are also very affectionate with their friends and family. It’s not unusual to see two dudes walking down the street holding hands or with their hands on each other’s waists. It’s just a way of chilling out and being comfortable with each other. In my school, the teachers always touch me when they talk to me. Some of the younger university students who teach there always hold my hands or arms when we’re talking. Since I’m not the most touchy-feely person it took some getting used to, but now I grab hands and waists with the best of them.

One more thing I noticed about Balinese men (besides how unbelievably attractive they are): in Jakarta, when men want your attention, they usually yelled, “mister, mister,” regardless of whether you’re a man or woman. In Malang, just “hey, hey you!” In Bali, the men have a greater variety to their greetings (maybe because of the giant tourist trade). It’s always nicer to hear, “hello darling,” or “come here, sweetie,” even if the speaker is only saying it to get you to turn around and buy some of his overpriced sarongs or take a ride on his motorcycle. I could get used to this.

posted by Caitlin @ 1:35 AM