Statues added at Villa

The landscaping near the Spa has grown in nicely, thanks to the rainy season.
A recent shopping trip brought a new statue.
Placed in the niche by a villa's front door (yes, double-doors secured by a padlock – very common in Bali).
Genesha is regarded by the Balinese as the god of knowledge and justice. The Indian Hindu also know him as the “remover of obstacles.”
Just inside the front door, Saraswati now resides in a larger niche in the living room.
Saraswati is the goddess of knowledge and the arts.
Her escorts are swans. On her special day in Bali, books are offered for blessing by her.

Family Rice Field Trekking

Bhanuswari Resort & Spa has offered walking / trekking through the surrounding rice fields since its inception.
You get to meet farmers and see how the irrigation system works. The Balinese “subak” have operated for hundreds of years.
Crossing from one property to another is where some of the Trekking part of the excursion comes into play.
Good balance helps when crossing a bridge of 2 bamboo poles!
A rest break at a balé.
Looks like they’re having fun!

Tired of walking? Climb a coconut tree
Even big sister takes a turn. (Climbing a regular vertical tree takes an entirely different technique!)
Back to the beginning – the driveway into Bhanuswari Resort & Spa, with adjoining rice paddies.

Rock Painting

One of the newer activities available at Bhanuswari Resort & Spa is Rock Painting.
The staff instructors explain and demonstrate how it is done.
Students begin painting.
The work can be quite delicate and requires concentration.
The proud artists with their finished projects!

Ogoh-Ogoh - Bali's Answer to Mardi Gras?

Bali’s Nyepi Day - March 19, 2007, marked the Balinese New Year. The exact date of Nyepi varies slightly each year, as it is based on a Lunar calendar.

On the day before, each village displayed Ogoh-Ogoh. These are papier-mache "statues" created by the young men in the village. They are mounted on bamboo platforms. In the late afternoon, you’ll hear firecrackers and small cannons made from bamboo. And around sunset, there is an island wide parade of Ogoh-Ogoh to transform negative energy and drive off the evil spirits.

Nyepi Day itself is a Day of Silence. Having driven off the evil spirits, everyone must now stay quiet for 24 hours (sunrise 19th to sunrise 20th), so that the spirits will think everyone has gone, and there is no one left in Bali for them to bother for the next year.
Businesses are closed, except for hotels. No cars, buses, or motorcycles will be on the roads. And Bali is supposedly the only place in the world where the government shuts down the international airport for meditation & introspection! Balinese stay in their family compounds, dedicating an entire day to introspection and spiritual cleansing. The entire island becomes quiet. There are no cars, no tv's or loud radios, no lamps or fires and no airplanes overhead.

Women walking down the village street to make offerings in the early afternoon.



Here are some Ogoh-Ogoh.



The amount of creativity is amazing!


As is the detailed work.


Youngsters ready to lift their Ogoh-Ogoh on a bamboo platform.

Twilight, Sunset, Night

More Rainy Day Photos

If you look closely, you can see a spider web on this orchid plant.

















Very wet leaves.








Puddles plus one leaf...






And tropical landscaping, with a nice misty background across the rice fields on the other side of the stream.

Beautiful Rainy Day in Bali

We're in the "rainy season" here. This does not mean constant downpours. Instead it means that everything grows even faster than usual.

Here's the salt-water swimming pool with fountain, and raindrops striking the water. The temple is in the background on the right, the villa on the left.

Here's a wider view of the pool, sun deck, and the temple. And a small pot with a floating flower in the lower right corner of the photo.

And here's a close-up of the plant, with water drops about to fall from the tip of the leaf that's almost in the middle of the photo.

Anniversary at Bhanuswari Resort & Spa - The Party Day 3 - Part C

One of the guests took photos when I could not, and garciously shared them.

Getting ready to cut the Anniversary cake.

Me dancing the Joged!!

And a better photo of a Balinese dancer.

New Lobby at Panorama Hotel in Bali

There have been several changes at Panorama (www.panoramabali.com ) as the new management continues renovations.


New signs in the Restaurant


New layout - to handle 100-200 tourists at lunch some days!


And, most recently, the owner added a new lobby.


Beautiful, isn't it?