Unlike other Australians, Bali has not been on the top of my travel list. Rather I’ve been avoiding it like the plague. Its the long history of debauchery, sex, alcohol and drug tourism for which Australians have been famous for in Bali.

The common question “Where are you from?” is always answered with “Australia. And I am sorry for what Australians have done to Bali.”

But outside of the common tourist spots, the real Bali exists and thrives.

The real Bali is adorned with landscapes of volcanic peaks, dense tropical forests, agricultural fields and coasts of harbours and fishermen. Littered with hindu temples and with offerings to the gods, spirits and ancestors. It is colourful and culturally rich in arts and music.

The Balinese people are kind, friendly, open-minded and extremely hospitable. The Balinese greet you with a warm smile that extends from ear to ear. A walk in the village opens invitations to join planting rice in the fields and rewarded with a fresh young coconut. And if you open your heart to the Balinese, they will invite you to their homes and their family.

We were lucky to meet Papa Jero from Wanagiri (wana translates to forest; giri meaning mountains) just a few kilometres north from Bedugul. He invited us to stay in his family’s home for 5 days and participate in the preparations and celebrations of Galungan & Kuningan.

Papa Jero and his family in three generations

Galungan & Kuningan are important Balinese holidays. They occur approximately every 210 days and mark the victory of dharma over adharma, good over evil. It is also the time when the ancestral spirits visit the Earth. Processions occur in every village. We ran into a procession in the village of Duyuk, a few kilometres south of Tegallalang.

We spent the days preparing meals, offerings and feasts for the gods, ancestral spirits and family.

We also passed time playing with the kids, and as always, my hula-hoops are a success

We spent the evenings learning the basics of gamelan and balinese dance.

The day of Kuningan (20 February 2016) is marked with joy and sorrow as families pay their final respects to their ancestors and bid them farewell. Temples which house the spirits are covered in a mountain of offerings such as fruit, sacrificial pigs, decorations, flowers, incense and money. Traditional Balinese gamelan is played as prayers and processions follow. Breaks are made to eat, drink coffee, tea and local rice wine, and who could forget the special mention for cigarettes. After all is said and done, the family shared the fruit and food offerings.

On a side note, coffee culture is big in Bali. Especially for one of the most expensive coffee in the world, civet coffee (Bahasa Indonesian = Kopi Luwak). It is brewed from the partially digested coffee beans eaten by the Asian Palm Civet (Paradoxurus hermaphroditus). Papa Jero also housed a luwak, and offered us an endless supply of it during our stay.

After only a week, I can say that I simply adore Bali. I can’t wait to come back.

Flores is more than double the size of Bali with only half the inhabitants. Its population density sits at 135 per square kilometre – compared to almost 10 times the amount in Java (1,121 per square kilometre). On Flores, Indonesia seems rural and wild.

We land at the airport of Maumere, the largest town in the eastern part of Flores – with a population of approximately 70,000. Our propeller plane lands roughly with the added challenge of the monsoon season.

We don’t rest long. We are headed 30 kilometres east to the villages of Wodong and Waiterang. Here, we rested in bamboo cottages overlooking the black volcanic sand along north-eastern coast of Flores.

Egon volcano (Bahasa Indonesian = Gunung Egon) is a popular day hike from here, however its most recent eruption only a week ago means its off-bounds. We decide to hire out a fishing canoe for the afternoon to explore the ocean instead. We spent approximately 40% of our time enjoying the scenery and 60% nervously balancing the canoe to avoid certain capsize. Obviously, 0% was spent taking photographs.

We had to meet friends in Labuan Bajo (on the west coast of Flores), so we headed west the next day. We had initially planned to visit the town of Sikka – famous for its ikan weaving, however we couldn’t fit this into our schedule. The local bus headed to Moni from Wodong (along the Larantuka-Ende line) took approximately 5 hours. The winding roads provide breathtaking scenery as it meanders from coastal town to villages littered along the valleys between the volcanoes which sit along the “Ring of Fire”. Moni is base camp for those looking to view the three lakes of Kelimutu (Bahasa Indonesian = Gunung Kelimutu). Despite the monsoon rains and the fog, we still manage to catch a glimpse of all three lakes.

From Moni, we took the local bus 2.5 hours to Ende. In a predominantly Roman Catholic Flores, Ende (and Labuan Bajo) host the largest concentration of Muslims on the island. Like any coastal town, life bustles at the marketplace along the harbour.

The volcanic black sand coastline is a special sight for those who grew up along the white sand coastline of Australia.

Next stop, Bajawa. One of my favourite places on Flores. The town itself is nothing special, but its base camp for exploring many traditional villages, natural geysers, waterfalls and hot springs. The people here are (almost) untouched by globalisation and capitalisation – except for the widespread use of satellite dishes. The jungle remains wildly overgrown with native plants, and untouched by palm plantations which have largely plagued many larger islands of the Malay Peninsula. We were hosted by Marselino, a native to the Bajawa district, at his homestay. We hired mopeds to explore the surrounding area, guided by Marselino’s own hand-drawn map.

Westbound again. Ruteng is home to hills upon hills of rice terraces. For the archeology enthusiastics, Liang Bua (meaning cave in the local Mangarrai language) is located just north of Ruteng. Here, in 2003, a new species Homo floresiensis was discovered.

The last leg, bound for Labuan Bajo. Labuan Bajo is a harbourtown, and draws tourists from around the world as its base camp to visit the Komodo dragons. We rented a fishing boat for the day to visit the island of Rinca. Rinca is home to over 2,800 Komodo dragons, as well as crocodiles, macaques, birdlife, wild water buffaloes and mangrove crabs.

Komodo dragons live on three islands: Komodo, Rinca and Flores. In Flores, around 15-20 can be found in the central north coast. Komodo dragons are largely solitary, however they have learned some social skills from “hanging out” under the park ranger’s kitchen. Komodo dragons mate in June-July, besides that feisty period, they prefer to live a rather chilled life. The gestation period is like ours – 9 months. Mothers dig several nests to camouflage the true nest. This provides better odds for survival for the eggs, not only from other predators but also from the cannibal mother – if she chooses to come back hunting to eat some eggs. The baby Komodo, once hatched, spend most of its first three years living in the trees. After this period, it loses its ability to climb.

Flores overland possible in a week. Next time, we’ll definitely be back for a month.

NOISE ON EARTH Vol​.​4 龠 SINGAPORE

by Les Cartes Postales Sonores

Noise on Earth is a collection of field recordings classified by countries.

Recorded by Julien Hairon
September 2015.

Listen here.

Record digging (v.) – to pass hours of time, commonly in flea-markets and secondhand stores, in search for great vinyl records that have slipped under the radar. 

PetPetsTapes is a cassette tape digging project sharing these great music finds from across the globe. For the moment, it showcases digs from India, Indonesia, Myanmar, Thailand, Cambodia, Vietnam, Taiwan, China, Turkey & Tunisia.

This project has brought us many memories of stopping speeding tuk-tuks at passing secondhand bric-a-brac shops, wandering through cities, town and labyrinths in search of the elusive and seemingly ‘word-of-mouth’ flea-markets, haggling prices in foreign languages with gypsies, and often being blistered by the sun and drenched by the humidity. All so that the world (via the world wide web) can hear the sounds of these places before globalisation kills culture.

Listen on BandCamp here. Follow on FaceBook here.

NOISE ON EARTH Vol​.​3 ๘ THAILAND

by Les Cartes Postales Sonores

Noise on Earth is a collection of field recordings classified by countries.

Recorded by Julien Hairon
September – November 2015.

Listen here.

NOISE ON EARTH Vol​.​2 ট BANGLADESH

by Les Cartes Postales Sonores

Noise on Earth is a collection of field recordings classified by countries.

Recorded by Julien Hairon
March – October 2015.

Listen here.

NOISE ON EARTH Vol​.​1 ៚ CAMBODIA
by Les Cartes Postales Sonores

Noise on Earth is a collection of field recordings classified by countries.

Recorded by Julien Hairon
August 2013, June & November 2015.

Listen here.

Les Cartes Postales Sonores

A field recording project by Julien Hairon capturing the soundscapes and traditional music of local and indigenous populations around the world.

Follow on Facebook here.

Follow on BandCamp here.

Follow on Tumblr here.

Follow on Vimeo here.

Her Yerde Sanat is a non-profit association which uses art and circus as a tool for social justice and good. For Afghan, Iraqi, Syrian and Kurdish children who have witnessed atrocities which would give them no reason to smile or laugh ever again, Her Yerde Sanat brings joy and healing from trauma. Children are taught circus arts and in return they become teachers and mentors for other children.

Volunteer teachers and trainers come from all corners of the world for classes, workshops and festivals – all living and playing together in a 40-bed dormitory sharing just one bathroom and kitchen. September is one of the busiest time, hosting the International Circus Festival. Julien spent his days improving his juggling skills, whilst I played with the hula hoop. It will be a little while yet before we are ready for Cirque du Soleil.