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From Nusa Dua, Bali, Indonesia with
Cuisine &
Culture
amidst the 11th
special session of UNEP Governing Council and Global Ministerial Environment
Forum at which thousands of participants converge for a grand post-Copenhagen gathering on
environment issues.
Of the many delights
Bali has to offer, the one that often leaves an indelible
mark on most visitors is its food. The island province offers tourists and
visitors a plethora of dining options ranging from fancy fusion restaurants run
by world renowned chefs to humble road side stalls selling local delicacies.
Populated mainly by ethnic Balinese people, Bali, which has been called “The
Island of the Gods” or “The Island of a thousand
Temples”, has always stood apart
in terms of religion, cuisine and culture from the Javanese majority who are
predominant in
Indonesia.
Religion and food go hand in hand in
Bali - religious ceremonies
taking place in any of the island's 20,000 temples are often enveloped in the
sweet smell of pork being grilled nearby. Bali, as a mainly Hindu community in
an overwhelmingly Muslim country, enjoys a cuisine unique to what is served in
the rest of
Indonesia. Pork reigns supreme here
as the main ingredient in two of the island's most famous native dishes, lawar
and babi guling. Balinese cuisine also tends to be spicier and less sweet than
Javanese cuisine and is typically cooked with a wider selection of sauces.
Visitors are encouraged to venture forth from the confines of their hotel
dining rooms to sample what the locals eat at one of the many food stalls, or
warungs, found all over Bali. Over the years through a constant influx of
tourists many warungs in
Bali have adapted to cater to foreign tastes while remaining
true to their local roots. A typical meal at a neighborhood warung may consist
of grilled pork or chicken sate combined with fried vegetables and served with
your choice of rice, fried tofu, tempeh (fermented soybean cake) or noodles. This
type of meal is served rather inexpensively, typically for a few dollars.
Night markets are another great place for low-cost meals and usually are
very popular with locals. While the variety is somewhat limited the food is
often very fresh and well priced. Eating at markets will certainly endear you
to the local population who are used to seeing foreigners eating in relatively
expensive restaurants. This is often your best opportunity to speak to the
Balinese people (other than in commercial transactions in stores) and may
provide you with greater exposure to their ways of life and culture than any of
the “cultural events” you may attend.
With that, colleagues and friends,
Cuisine &
Culture is
delighted to share with you more on cuisine and other aspects of Bali, in
particular, and Indonesia, in general, inclusive of their art, culture,
religion and history.
 Culture
of Indonesia
 Statue of Dewi Sri in
Ubud, Bali
Indonesian
culture
has been shaped by long interaction between original indigenous customs and
multiple foreign influences. Indonesia is central along ancient trading
routes between the Far East and the Middle East,
resulting in many cultural practices being strongly influenced by a multitude
of religions, including Hinduism, Buddhism, Confucianism
and Islam, all
strong in the major trading cities. The result is a complex cultural mixture
very different from the original indigenous cultures.
Examples of
cultural fusion include the fusion of Islam with Hindu in Javanese Abangan belief,
the fusion of Hinduism, Buddhism and animism in Bodha, and the fusion
of Hinduism and animism in Kaharingan; others could be cited.
Indonesian
art-forms express this cultural mix. Wayang,
traditional theater-performed puppet shows, were a medium in the spread of
Hinduism and Islam amongst Javan villagers. Both Javanese and Balinese dances
have stories about ancient Buddhist and Hindu kingdoms, while
Islamic
art forms and architecture are present in Sumatra, especially in the Minangkabau
and Aceh regions.
Traditional art, music and sport are combined in a martial art form called Pencak
Silat.
Western
culture has greatly influenced
Indonesia in modern entertainment
such as television shows, film and music, as well as political system and
issues.
India has notably influenced
Indonesian songs and movies. A popular type of song is the Indian-rhythmical dangdut, which is
often mixed with Arab
and Malay folk music.
Despite the
influences of foreign culture, some remote Indonesian regions still preserve
uniquely indigenous culture. Indigenous ethnic
groups Mentawai, Asmat,
Dani,
Dayak, Toraja and many
others are still practicing their ethnic rituals, customs and wearing
traditional clothes.
An island rich
in culture, religion and its influences... 
According to the legend, a one time King of
Java, angry with his disobedient son, banished him into exile. The legend continues
that the King waited until his son had disappeared over the horizon, and then
drew a line in the soil with his finger. The seas to the north and south joined
at this place, and the island of
Bali was born.
It is said that the Great God, Sang Hyang Widi created the first true
Balinese couple from whom descended the nearly three million people of Bali
today. Bali enjoys a rich culture, its history recorded in
legends and preserved in its religion and people’s adherence to the traditions of
their ancestors. Temples are everywhere, especially in the mountains, where
the Hindu Gods sought refuge from the Islamic invaders of Java. The most
revered temple is on Gunung Agung,
the tallest mountain, and as legend goes, "the navel" of the world.
Hindu Bali is a religion which owes its
origins to India, but has developed independently from its forebear.
Hindu Bali celebrates its rituals in a highly dramatized form visible to
visitors in the form of dance and performance at traditional festivals, and at
secular performances.
Dynamic and agile, Balinese dance is exciting
theatre, filled with sharp corner-turnings, intricate coordination of eyeball,
finger, neck and shoulder movements. Entertaining, elegant and captivating, the
dances are performed according to strict tradition; the players are forbidden
to improvise the movements learned and perfected since early childhood.
The crisply percussive gamelan music which accompanies
the dancers shares their dynamism and agility. Each village that can afford it
owns its own gamelan orchestra. The ambience of a balmy evening, strolling or
sitting on your balcony with the sound of the gamelan orchestra emanating from
the village "banjar" (meeting place) in the
background is near perfect.
 Art
The traditional style of paintings depict aspects of religious life or
mystical characters, painted in somber hues of yellow, red and black, or
sometimes in plain charcoal. Contemporary adaptation and external influences
have resulted in new themes: often in vibrant colors, featuring people, animals
and abstract imagery that are different yet uniquely Balinese.
The Balinese consider art to be a natural activity. Peasants by day, artists
by night, they are masters in expressing their religious beliefs and rituals
into items of great artistic value; from simple masks, statues and jewelry, to
wall sized panels using materials such as wood, stone, coral, bone, silver and
gold. Painting and performance complete the picture. It is no exaggeration to
say that there are as many artists in Bali as there are
people
 The Caste System
Balinese society is founded on the Hindu caste system, albeit in a somewhat
simpler form than that practiced in India.
In Bali, there are four castes; Sundras, the peasants
who comprise over 90% of the population, Wesias, the
warrior caste, which also includes traders and some nobility, Satrias, the caste of kings, and Pedanas,
the holy men and priests (brahman).
The caste of a person is indicated by his/her title; Ida Bagus
for brahman, Anak Agung or Dewa
for Satrias, and I Gusti
for Wesias.
Each caste has its own language, and a separate dialect exists to enable
someone to address one of unknown caste to avoid disrespect. The national
language of Indonesia
(Bahasia Indonesia)
which is taught in schools simplifies communication somewhat, at the expense of
cultural diversity, though.
 Stages of
Life of Balinese
Life on Earth is one stage in the
continuity of existence. The cycle begins at birth, an event cherished because
the child is considered to be the reincarnation of an ancestor destined to live
again in an earthly form. The birth of a child is attended by the entire
family, and a holy man who invokes spiritual powers and aids the delivery. The
umbilical chord is preserved and kept for life, and the placenta is placed into
a coconut shell and buried near the entrance to the family house--to the right
if the baby is a boy, to the left if she is a girl.
The different stages of childhood are marked by numerous ceremonies, the most
significant of which is carried out when the child reaches 212 days old. Until
that moment, the baby was a sacred creature owing to its divine origin, and was
not allowed to touch the ground. The baby’s hair is cut, and it is given an
official name according to its order in the family; Wayan
for the first born, Made for the second, Nyoman for
the third and Ketut for the fourth. The names are
repeated for more than four children. The baby may now explore its world and
play with other children.
Puberty for a girl is marked by ceremonial purification, followed by a period
of quarantine, then prior to marriage, her teeth may be filed to remove the
points, marking her arrival into the adult world, and removing signs of rough
behavior. The filing itself is carried out using primitive implements, and
without anesthetic.
Marriage is an act which must take place in order to honor one’s ancestors,
and to perpetuate the race. To fail to marry and have children would be a
willful decision to exclude one’s self from normal society, and will condemn
the offender to feed swine in the next world!
Death is a rite of passage with the soul freed from Earth, and may commence its
great journey before being reborn into a future generation. The celebration of
death reaches a climax, generally about 42 days after death, when the body may
be cremated.
Often, to enable collection of sufficient funds, the cremation may take place
much later (although too long a wait may condemn the soul to wander the
Earth--bringing ill omens). Collective cremations, where the bodies of several
deceased may be incinerated at one time, allow for those with small funds to
free the soul of their ancestors at shared cost.
The body of the deceased is unearthed, washed and placed onto a tower or “wada” to be carried in a procession to the funeral pyre.
The bearers of the wada, who may number a hundred or
more, march the body, whirling and tilting it to confuse the soul, lest it try
to return to its earthly home.
At the pyre, the body is put into a
sarcophagus,
which has been shaped appropriately for the person’s caste; a bull for brahman, a lion for Satrias, and an elephant-fish Sundras,
along with offerings and money. It is blessed and then incinerated. Once
consumed by the fire, the ashes are collected into coconut shells to be thrown
into the sea or a stream.
Forty days after the funeral, another ceremony, the mukur,
is held to mark the entry of the person into heaven.
  Fruits
Bali has a great range of fruits, some of which you
could not have imagined, and some you wish that you only had imagined! The
fabled durian is the king of Asian fruit, although most westerners dislike the
smell of this football sized monster.
Other fruits such as mangoes, mangosteen, bananas,
jackfruit, rambutan, makiza,
pineapple, papaya, logan, melon, orange,
custard-apple and a remarkable variety of others serve as fantastic refreshers
at any time of the day, and will get you by if you cannot find an agreeable
place to eat. Markets are always the best place to shop for fruits.
 Geographic Highlights
Bali has been called
"The
Island of the Gods" or the "Island of a thousand
Temples." Only those
who have visited this unique island can appreciate the enchantment which cannot
be described with words alone.
Bali has to be
experienced to be believed.
A purposely-built
gated tourist development in
Southern Bali, it
offers some exclusive luxury hotels with fantastic beaches.
Developed
from a hippie community Kuta has now turned into
Bali's most
popular resort. It is the heart of
Bali's
surfing culture and home to some of the best
Bali
nightlife.
A family
oriented destination on the east coast of southern
Bali with
calm waters and fantastic coastline. The area is very in touch with the local
community with temples on every corner.
The
northernmost town in
Bali, Singaraja is an ex-Dutch colonial town. The area's black
sand beaches are quite unique in
Bali.
Ubud maintains its position as the cultural center of
Bali. Its
amazing network of winding streets will never lead you far from the nearest art
gallery.
Finally, colleagues and
friends, Cuisine
& Culture wishes you all a Happy Chinese New Year, the Year of
the Tiger!
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A Special Acknowledgement of Thanks from Cuisine
& Culture
Cuisine & Culture wishes to express its heartfelt thanks to
Kevin Wambura of the ITS team here at UNON in Nairobi
and Yawtsong Lee, a veteran interpreter at UN
headquarters, now retired, for their technical advice and assistance and is
hereby extremely pleased to retain them
as Technical Advisors to
Cuisine & Culture.
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