Mar. 2 Bali, Indonesia

Julie & I had separate tours today. I visited various crafters, specializing in the art of batik, wood carving & jewelry making.
The Balinese economy is dominated by tourism, crafts and fishing. This a poor country but better off than Greater Indonesia due to Bali's high level of tourism and natural beauty.

My favorite part of the tour was visiting a Balinese family house compound, consisting of 4 generations. Balinese are very family oriented. When sons marry, they live in the family compound, with grandparents, parents, other brothers and their families, etc. Several generations will reside together. When daughters marry, they move in with the husband and his extended family. If the extended families grow to be too large, another building will be added to the compound. If space is limited, the family will build up on top of existing buildings. The buildings have thatched roofs and are open veranda style. There's a separate small building for cooking, one building for washing and the toilet, and a separate building for each ” bedroom”. Our guide told us that most families don't have indoor toilets, rather, they use a hole in the ground. It was a fantastic educational & cultural experience for me!

Julie's tour included a visit to Ubud, a cultural center famous for its handicrafts, market places & the Puri Lukisan Museum. The tour took her to Tegallalang Rice Terraces, built over 2,000 years ago and whose lush, iconic rice terraces are maintained through a unique system of cooperative water management called “subak.” Subak involves elaborate engineering and shared labor, and because it is so integral not only to agriculture and community life, but also spiritual traditions, it has been added to UNESCO’s Lists of Intangible Cultural Heritage.

The day ended with a Balinese dance & music troupe who came on to the ship to perform for us.Read more