Prisoners of Nyepi

The whole island closes down. No traffic, no flights, no work, no lights and no entertainment. The Hindus are supposed to spend the day contemplating God.

Thursday 26th March 2009 – Nyepi

I can%26#39;t believe it. Not only can%26#39;t we leave the hotel but they have cordoned off the beach too. Apparently it is OK to swim in the pool, but disrespectful to swim in the sea.

I don%26#39;t mind being trapped in a hotel by storms or floods, but it is extremely galling to be confined by superstition. The Lonely Planet guide mentions on page 856 that businesses shut for the day, but had we realised the extent of the disruption, I think we would have brought forward our travel to Hong Kong to miss it.

It is an insidious entrapment, we don%26#39;t want to cause offence to these very nice people, but we are effectively being held prisoner by their quaint beliefs.

Prisoners of Nyepi

%26#39;quaint beliefs%26#39; would be probably be regarded as offensive to the balinese.

Prisoners of Nyepi

........ Okay lets swap places ;)

Why not embrace the culture of the island you are visiting and use this time for reflection? This is an important day in the Balinese calendar and you should respect that. This is not a %26#39;quaint belief%26#39;! Surely you could have done a little more homework before you came to Bali to find out more about Nyepi?

Read the article that I posted earlier from the Jakarta Post and you might just think a little differently.

I can%26#39;t believe what I have just read.

Hello Orthoceras

I am sorry your holiday has been disrupted by a very important day on the Hindu Calendar. If you took the time to research the meaning behind today, then perhaps you would be a little more tolerant.

Everywhere one travels in the world, one is confronted with customs and traditions of the locals. One must follow ';when in rome, etc';.

As an Australian who has visited Bali more than 20 times, I did find your remarks offensive to the Balinese.

Perhaps, before your next holiday to wherever in the universe, you should research the country more than just relying on ';The Lonely Planet Guide';.

The restrictions end at 6 am on Friday, so not long to go now.

cheers

wendy

It%26#39;s all in your perception I think! - I am personally loving the silence - all I can hear is the Birds singing and the sun is shining!

Had a lovely swim in my pool with my husband and daughter while we had a brief 3 hour power cut (the power cut wasn%26#39;t so enjoyable to be honest as we were worried it was going to last the 24 hour duration!)

It is one day out of your life for goodness sake - take a step back, rest, contemplate (and have a little more respect for others ways and beliefs!)

Obviously you don%26#39;t go to Bali to take in the culture or the traditions. It%26#39;s a pity you had not done some travel forum research BEFORE you visited as all the forums have mentioned Nyepi in the last few weeks and what to expect. Sorry but personally, I think your words ';superstion'; and ';quaint belief'; show just how ignorant you are.

This is these peoples Religion, it is not supersticion or a ';quaint belief';, and one of the reasons that the Balinese are such a wonderful race is because of their religion.

Your attitude is insulting, not just to the Balinese or other Hindu%26#39;s but to everyone who practices (or even just believes) in any other religion. If you are a Christian then you must view Christmas or Easter as a supersticion. If you are Muslim, than Ramadan must be a ';quaint belief';.

What about having some compassion for the staff at your resort who have to work on this very special for them. They are giving up one of the most important days of their Balinese Calander to look after you.

How condescending do you really want to be???????

We must have completely different Lonely Planet guides as mine says that Nyepi is the %26#39;major festival for the Hindi Balinese%26#39;. Page 338. It also goes on to say that it is a %26#39;day of complete inactivity. All human activity stops - all shops. bars and restaurants close, no one is allowed to leave their home and foreigners must stay in their hotels, and even Bali%26#39;s International airport is closed down......

Nyepi is a day for catching up on sleep, writing letters and remaining on their hotel%26#39;s grounds or at some family - run place in their rooms.%26#39;

Pity you didn%26#39;t read your guide properly and also a pity that you didn%26#39;t leave yesterday for Hong Kong!

Beware too that most shops will be closed tomorrow and that Saturday is yet another Hindu holiday - Kuningan - you might just find your holiday even more disrupted.

Typo - Hindu Balinese not Hindi!

It is just a fact of life just as closed shops on Xmas day and Good Friday in Christian countries must be irritating to non Christian holiday makers. I would love to be there today for Nyepi, unfortunately I have to wait until tomorrow :-)

Cheers,

David