cak cak cak cak!

I remember i told myself i would watch the barong dance one day.

Bali's history revolves closely around mythical creatures and this particular dance tells the story of a fight between good and evil. typical? not when the hero and villain are both big and shaggy.

Throughout the show i was confused as to which is which, the heavy accented balinese dialogues allows me to pick up only certain words, "bisa, tolong, nyariin" simple stuff singing in and out of the script.

then there was the beautiful...

tanah lot.

almost everything is related to religion. the dances, the places, the food. twice a day offering is presented to 'bribe' the evil spirits from doing harm and in turn bring in the good. in front of every shoplot and in every cab, these offerings can be seen in its small green pandan leaves box.

inside are flowers, sweets, and sometimes even cigarettes as offerings. try not to step on it. after all, nobody likes it when you accidentally step on their daily religion activity taken seriously by over 80% of the majority believers.. thats just me assuming.

special offerings on special occasions

kechak dance.

the kechak dance was intense, vivid and intriguing. while the barong dance uses gamelan extensively, this one uses the sounds made by people. as usual, there was confusion trying to understand the heavy accent, so thank God for the simplified, summarized, tourist-friendly sypnosis presented to us on a paper so thin you cant even use it as a d.i.y fan (hooray!). you wonder where these people get their energy, with an hour long performance the voices, "cak! cak cak cak cak!" doesnt show any sign of exhaustion throughout the whole show.

i'd go again someday. there is a chaotic mess that actually makes sense, life is simple. its a galore for beautiful places, exotic cultures and not to mention faces. maybe next time around i'll be able to snap them more closely, revalidate the Bali i saw and miss ever so greatly now.