WHERE IS BALI?

Located only two kilometers east of Jawa, Bali's climate, flora and fauna are quite similar to its much larger neighbour. The island is famous for its beautiful landscape. A chain of six volcanoes, between 1,350 meters and 3,014 meters high, stretches from west to east. There are lush tropical forests, pristine crater lakes, fast flowing rivers and deep ravines, picturesque rice terraces, and fertile vegetable and fruit gardens. The beaches in the South consist of white sand, beaches in other parts of the island are covered with gray or black volcanic sand.

People & Culture

A person in Bali cannot exist in solitude. Balinese society is very community oriented. The first invitation to attend the next village meeting is delivered to you practically as a wedding present. If ignored, it will result in a warning; if three invitations are ignored, then the village may take actions against you. Since land is usually owned by the community, the village may revoke your privilege to till the land. Much of the rituals require massive effort, which usually the village shoulder in cooperatively. You will have to shoulder it yourself, should you decide to be an outcast. Along with other families in the village, you participate in meetings. You may play an instrument in the orchestra, or dance in the ceremonies. The women prepare the offerings, for their little shrines or for the village's offering to the Mother Temple of Besakih. If a child in a family is having his tooth filed, the rest of the village's women will help cook and prepare, and the men help erect a stage and decorate the house. In short, life in Bali is never alone.

The Balinese also has a built in population control mechanism through their naming structure. In Bali, all first child is named Wayan, second child is Made, the third child is Nyoman, and the fourth, or the last, is Ketut. If you have more than four? Well, the Balinese seem to have understood modulo arithmetic, so it's back to Wayan, Made, Nyoman, and Ketut, repeat. But implicitly, the culture discourages having more than four children.

Weather Forecast

Just 8° south of the equator, Bali has a tropical climate which is hot all year.

The average temparature hovers around 30°C (mid-80s°F) year-round, but the humidity can make the heat feel very oppressive. Direct sun feels incredibly hot, especially in the middle of the day when you'd be crazy if you didn't stay in the shade. There are dry and wet seasons - dry from April to October and Wet from October to March - but it can rain at any time of year and even during the wet season rain is likely to pass quickly. In general, the best months are April to September, when humidity is lower and the rain is light and infrequent.

Overall, the climate is gently tropical, but there are marked variations across the island: around the coast, sea breezes temper the heat, and as you move inland you also move up, so the altitude works to keep things cool. In fact, at times it can get very chilly up in the highlands, and a warm sweter or light jacket can be a good idea inmountain villages like Kintamani and Candi Kuning - Bedugul, The nothern slopes of Gunung Batur always seem to be wet and misty, while a few kilometres away, the east coast is nearly always dry and sunny.

Air-conditioning is not really needed on Bali. A cool breeze always seems to spring up in the evening, and the open bamboo windows, so common in Balinese architecture, make the most of the lightest breeze.