March 18, 2026

Just say the word Bali and your imagination immediately conjures up an oasis of mystical beauty and spiritual beliefs. From its undulating hillsides to its serene temples and revered artisan culture, it should come as no surprise that readers of Travel & Leisure magazine consistently rank Bali as one of the most beautiful islands in the world. I would have to agree.

Known as the “Land of a Thousand Temples,” there’s no mistaking Bali’s spirituality. Just 90 miles wide and 60 miles long, Bali boasts 20,000 temples of varying sizes and religious meanings. Here are just a few we passed on our local bus ride.

While Islam spread throughout the archipelago during the 16th century, Bali remained dedicated to its own unique religion, Agama Hindu. Combining animism, ancestor worship with Hindu and Buddhist beliefs, Bali remains steadfast in the middle of the world’s most populous Islamic country of Indonesia. Ninety percent of Balinese are Hindu, and religious training starts early at home. Every house has an altar for daily worship, and every community has multiple temples. When we arrived at our destination, the town of Penglipuran, we saw a young boy preparing to wash his hands to worship at the community temple. Simple offerings were placed in the craves of the temple wall.

What Chongae and I did not realize is that we had arrived on the eve of Nyepi, the Balinese Hindu New Year, where for the next 24 hours, the entire island of Bali goes into complete silence. Nyepi is meant for spiritual cleansing, self-refection and meditation. And when I say silence, I mean silence. No speaking, no working (streets are empty), no lights or entertainment, the airport is closed and tourists must stay inside hotel rooms. I was told the stars at night during Nyepi are outstanding!

But what happens the day before Nyepi is the opposite of silence. Parades with statues, music and celebrations. This is meant to represent driving away negative energy before the quiet day. And when we got off the bus in Penglipuran we found ourselves in the midst of such a celebration. White is worn to symbolize purity of character.

Our reason in visiting Penglipuran was to see a typical Balinese village, but as you can see the village was empty because of the festivities. There were a few residents available who kindly allowed us to take some photos of their beautiful homes. These homes have been in the family for generations and multiple generations live together.

One young girl stood outside her home in traditional Balinese clothing I assume in preparation for the festive activities. The entry ways to the homes are beautiful.

Rice is usually the star of any meal and is accompanied by vegetables and meat or fish and spices like ginger, turmeric, chili, lime and lemongrass flavor most dishes. We went to visit the town’s rice fields.

Chongae did get to visit with some of the town’s girls who had stayed behind. On the bus ride back, we passed a truck load of men from another village getting ready to celebrate. And also, a motorcyclist delicately bringing some balloons home to celebrate.

Thanks for traveling with us.