The troupe performed rare and extinct semar pegulingan gamelan music accompanying gambuh and classical dances, with the performances extremely well-received by the international audience as well as the Indonesian Minister of Youth and Sport, Andi Mallarangeng, who was present with his wife and officials from the Consulate General of Indonesia in Guangzhou (see: article on in Indonesian Consulate General in China’s website).

“Indonesia gained a number of gold medals while I was present at the Asian Games…and I’m sure that if there had been a gamelan competition, Mekar Bhuana would have got gold too!” enthused the Minister, adding that even though he had been to Bali many times he had never seen this classical court style of Balinese gamelan and dance, especially using antique instruments.

It’s awesome to know that there are people who appreciate the efforts our musicians and dancers, who have learnt much of the material from vintage recordings, because there are no guru left in Bali who remember the art-forms. We are proud to support the preservation of traditional music and dance, and we hope that the Minister and others can help to gain further support to help Balinese document and preserve village performing art-forms.

When we were not managing the troupe, we had the opportunity to watch other groups from parts of Asia, including Burma, Iran, Mongolia and Tuva, who represented a mixture of the old and the new. The people of Guangzhou were lucky to catch such quality performances; of course, many of the shows were packed out.

We enjoyed our China experience and it was a pleasure to work with the Asian Games organising committee in Guangzhou. It was great to be able to help Bali be represented at this prestigious sporting event. We plan to organise more tours for Mekar Bhuana next year, including to other parts of Asia as well as Europe.

Check out the troupes photos, audio samples and video clips of the performances under the Multimedia tab on their website. Also, don’t forget to follow them on Facebook and Twitter: Mekar Bhuana Conservatory.

Events and festivals can get in touch with our team of event organisers by contacting us via email.

As soon as some naive foreigner buys a property at a price way above the market rate (let’s face it, people here are unashamed opportunists when it comes to selling just about anything here), all the properties in the same general vicinity go up in price over night. Big money is to be made in an instant by these middle men who hawk the housing divisions with their 100cc motorbikes, pidgin-English and bulging money belts. Tax is a dirty word for them, and their dirty profits don’t last long at the cockfights and karaoke bars.

What these investors, property agents and opportunists refuse to acknowledge is the negative impact this will have on the future of Bali, its traditions and its people. Reliable news sources such as the Bali Update suggest that future generations of Balinese could become marginalized and have to move to other islands (Bali Real Estate: Boom or Bust, 2/2/2010). After all, on an average wage of IDR1,000,000 – 1,500,000 per month, how could any local ever afford today’s property prices with the short-term mortgages that banks here offer? We are in for potentially huge social problems if things head in this direction.

There is only so much development, so many water- and power-hungry villas, a fragile island environment can take. We are already stretched to our limits now. What are we really offering and what does the future hold? Get some advice on real property prices, how to invest reponsibly in Bali, and how to assimilate with the local people from expert advisors at indOKiwi.

You may be planning to invest in or move to Bali—these are big decisions and it’s invaluable to get professional, local advice every step of the way. We can make investment and assimilation so much easier and hassle free for you. Consult us via Skype, with or without video, about Bali and our local-expatriate team of experts will provide you with important tips and recommendations.

The sort of questions you may wish to ask: What are the real (not the ones you find on property websites) land, house and building prices? If I live in the ____________ area, what amenities are nearby? Can you recommend a trustworthy lawyer or notary? What kind of visa will I need? Can you recommend accommodation in the _____________ area? I wish to source or buy __________ product—where can I do this? I’m planning to work with a local partner—what are the risks? And thousands more crucial questions that we have the answers for…

You may already have a local partner, wish to communicate something to your legal advisor, or simply chat with a local friend or third party. The problem is…there is a language barrier, and you are afraid of misunderstanding each other. We have a solution—engage a professional indOKiwi interpreter to help you communicate effectively and efficiently. We will coordinate a Skype session with the local person and you can chat in real-time.

Why wait until you arrive and waste precious time and effort in 30 degrees of heat trying to understand the local way of doing things? Contact us now for an obligation-free quote!

Shoppers I’ve talked to here also feel that it is their ‘right’ as a customer to get a plastic bag—as many as possible if the plastic is flimsy! (even though a cloth bag will last you for years and years…) Personally, if I’m only buying a few items and I forget my cloth bag, I just carry the things in my hands and then put them straight into the car under the seat of my motorbike. I’ve learnt, however, that for Balinese not using a bag can be risky business. They believe that any food you may be carrying may be poisoned by a “master of the dark arts” who may not like us or who may just be happening to pass us at the time. Learn more about Balinese culture by consulting indOKiwi experts and advisors.

Possibly another reason why people don’t like to use other alternatives for wrapping food or offering sari etc (banana leaf was the original way) could be that they feel that it is backward or village-like. The irony of this is that people are inadvertently impacting negatively the beautiful environment of Bali every time they buy canang sari offerings in little plastic bags, when the canang sari is actually an offering of thanks to God and to nature for all the Earth provides for us. Perhaps this unnecessary use of plastic needs a bit of a rethink…

© 2010 Vaughan Hatch

Let’s start with the difference between ‘ngayah’ and ‘ngo’opin’. Both of these words loosely mean ‘to help out with a religious or community activity’. Often focussed on a religious-based activity in a temple, Brahmin household (griya) or palace (puri), ngayah is a more commonly heard term. The word ‘ngayah’ has a different connotation depending which part of Bali you’re from. From my experience, in South Bali the word means to ‘devote oneself to a particular cause or ceremonial activity without any expectation of payment or reciprocity’. So, if you dance or play gamelan at a ceremony, for example, that is called ngayah if you are not paid to do so.

Ngo’opin is a more general word for helping out at the banjar or friends and family when they have a particular ceremony; for example, in preparation for a wedding, tooth-filing or cremation.

Acts of both ngayah or ngo’opin can last for many days, weeks or even months if the ceremony is large enough. These demands placed can bring to a halt other activities in a Balinese person’s life, including work. This is why employers have to be both aware yet realistic about how much time off they can grant to their Balinese employees. I’ve known of employees who have been forced to quit their jobs in lieu of a large ceremony!

© Vaughan Hatch 2010

I’ve read in the guidebooks that it’s not an invitation to eat, just courtesy; however this is not always the case. It depends really whether you know the person well or not. If you’re at their house and they say “makan!” it often means help yourself (not from the same bowl though) to whatever’s left over in the kitchen.

On occasion I’ve seen the first person to receive food in a warung (food kiosk) to say “makan” or “saya duluan” (I’m eating before you” to complete strangers. This is why you’ll often see people hidden away eating, particular if they are servants. They’ll squat on the floor and look up guiltily at others if they walk in.

Most people here eat with their hands and many say that the food tastes better like that, rather than using metal utensils as many other cultures do. The right is the eating hand and there is quite a technique to holding up your food bowl while rolling your rice into little balls to pop into your mouth. It  always surprises me that even though Chinese food made it here, the chopsticks didn’t come with it!

© Vaughan Hatch 2010

Shoppers I’ve talked to here also feel that it is their ‘right’ as a customer to get a plastic bag—as many as possible if the plastic is flimsy! (even though a cloth bag will last you for years and years…) Personally, if I’m only buying a few items and I forget my cloth bag, I just carry the things in my hands and then put them straight into the car under the seat of my motorbike. I’ve learnt, however, that for Balinese not using a bag can be risky business. They believe that any food you may be carrying may be poisoned by a “master of the dark arts” who may not like us or who may just be happening to pass us at the time.

Possibly another reason why people don’t like to use other alternatives for wrapping food or offering sari etc (banana leaf was the original way) could be that they feel that it is backward or village-like. The irony of this is that people are inadvertently impacting negatively the beautiful environment of Bali every time they buy canang sari offerings in little plastic bags, when the canang sari is actually an offering of thanks to God and to nature for all the Earth provides for us. Perhaps this unnecessary use of plastic needs a bit of a rethink…

© Vaughan Hatch 2010

The laid-back attitude of the Balinese could be summed up in one simple word: ‘kanggoang’, which can be very loosely translated as something like “accept it as it is” or “this is all I can offer”. For example, you’ve been working on something but it’s late or you’ve run out of patience, kanggoang will mean “let’s just accept that this is about as much as we can do for now”. Or say you have a guest at your place but everything’s in a mess, kanggoang (in this case, use the refined form ‘kanggiang’) would mean “I’m ashamed of what I have, but this is it”. Sometimes it has overtones from other Asian cultures. If you have done something for someone, you could use kanggoang to insist that “it is not worthy but it is all you are capable of doing”.

A Balinese’s frequent use of kanggoang is not to say that Balinese are not achievers or don’t strive for something, but there accepting of ‘how good something is going to ever get’. There are tons of examples of artistic brilliance in Bali, there are few things that are ‘machine perfect’.

Kanggoang can be bewildering for visitors but it is part of the Balinese pscyhe that, while fading due to the outside influences, is still very much alive and is what makes Bali the relaxed and tolerant society that it is today.

© Vaughan Hatch 2010

How many of us actually enjoying receiving candy instead of money? How many of us actually realize this is daylight robbery? How many of us actually end up chucking these icky sweeties in the bin, out the car window, in the empty lot next-door, in the river? How many people have considered that it is actually not good to encourage people, especially children, to eat sweets?

Sly local retailers like to make out that they are victims of the banks – banks that don’t stock coins. My answer is: “Get real” or “Round down if you don’t have the change”. It is our legal right as consumers to get our change in legal currency and we should not stand for being short-changed or ripped off.

Unfortunately, society seems to willingly accept this scam. I suppose this is why that the government has eventually decided to crack down: now it is officially illegal to give change in candy.

Bear this in mind when someone tries to ‘slip you the sweet’: that retailer is actually profiteering out of this fiasco; the negative impact of the disposal of millions of plastic sweet wrappers every day; that these retailers are actively encouraging junk food consumption; if you were in your own country, you would never put up with it.

I encourage you as the consumer to:

1. Say “no” to candy change.
2. Insist any retailer or service provider give you the correct change.
3. If they don’t have change, insist they round down rather than up because it is their responsibility not yours.
4. Return another day and attempt to buy something with a mountain of candy – they’re using it as currency, why shouldn’t you?

© Vaughan Hatch 2010