Bali

Bali on this site is a set of detailed guides to three places in the south and centre of the island, each written after my own visit and illustrated with my photos. They cover what to see, how the visit works on the ground and the practical side: ticket prices, show times and tips.

In the village of Batubulan, between Ubud and Denpasar, I wrote about Bali Bird Park: two hectares of tropical gardens with over 1,000 birds of 250 species from Papua, Borneo, Sumatra and Java, lorikeets you can feed by hand, cassowaries and a couple of Komodo dragons. The guide covers the shows, the feeding areas and the adult ticket of 385,000 IDR.

On the southern tip of the Bukit Peninsula is GWK Cultural Park with the 121-metre Garuda Wisnu Kencana statue by the Balinese sculptor Nyoman Nuarta, showing Vishnu riding the giant bird Garuda. My guide goes through the Balinese dance performances at the foot of the statue, the corridors cut into the limestone, the gardens and the viewpoints over the airport and the ocean.

The third guide is about the Ogoh-Ogoh parade, held on the night before Nyepi, the Balinese New Year. I spent that day on the road between Ubud and Denpasar, and the article covers the giant demon figures of bamboo and papier-mâché, the night procession in Denpasar, the village processions near Ubud, dates up to 2029, viewing spots and the silent day of Nyepi that follows, when even the airport closes.