Photo of the Day ~ Mt. Agung from Amed Beach ~ Balifornian Tours and Travel Blog

Here is our photo of the day...

This is the view from our hotel in Amed called three Brothers.  There are several 3 Brothers so you need to choose the right one (see our blog post on Amed) as the others are not quite as good.  Formerly know as a sleepy fishing village, Amed has blossomed into a great beach town with an actual nightlife, amazing scuba diving and snorkling and retains a great authentic Bali feel.  There are some wonderful restaurants and lots to do but just chilling on the beach or by the hotel pool is a great way to pass the time.

Mt Agung as seen from Amed beach. Bali, Indonesia. Balifornian Villas and Tours.

Gunung Agung volcano rises dramatically in the background as the sun sets on another perfect day in paradise.

Do you have some photos from Bali that you would like to share?  Enter them in the Balifornian Villa and Tour photo of the day.  Just send them in to photo@balifornina.com along with a description and we will post the winners for you to see.

Happy travels!

Balinese Ceremony Creates Balance amid Disaster

Nangluk Merana – Balance The World, Prevent The Bad Things
by admin from blog.baliwww.com
Lately, Indonesia seems so tragic. This country is suffering from the challenge of natural disasters: flood in Wasior, tsunami in Mentawai, and the latest is Merapi eruption. All people in other islands of Indonesia feel worried, Balinese also. Even more, considering this month is Sasih Kanem based on Balinese calendar which means a month full of disasters and something bad, Balinese held Bumi Sudha.



Bumi Sudha is a ceremony to make the world balance. This ceremony aiming to prevent any other disaster was held in every area of Bali since 3 up to 5 December. And the same ceremony will be held annually on Sasih Kanem, this is based on the result of the meeting of Hindu priests.


For Gianyar and Bangli community, Bumi Sudha in this year coincided with Nangluk Merana ceremony. Even Nangluk Merana has been held for hundreds of years to prevent their area from disasters and create peace at heart. In Gianyar, Nangluk Merana which was held on yesterday (5/12) took place in Lebih village. This ceremony was followed by Geblogan and Topeng Sidakarya dance.

In Bangli, Nangluk Merana ceremony was held in Catus Pata and Bukit Jati Temple. Basically, this ceremony has the same purpose that is to prevent something bad come to life. But Nangluk Merana held in Bukit Jati Temple is a special one since this ceremony aims to prevent all of agricultural plants from any kind of diseases.

Apart from that as human being we can not only blame on the nature of that great disasters. We need to evaluate what we have done to the nature and try to behave better in this world, don’t we?

Bali Agung at Bali Theatre stunningly recreates Bali’s historic past

I love great theatrical and musical performances and the new Bali Theatre presentation Bali Agung is awesome, rivalling those amazing theme park presentations and performances the US has become so good at. When I was privileged to be taken to Bali Theatre, I was told that the spectacular Bali Theatre performance of Bali Agung was inspired by the historic and legendary account of Sri Jaya Pangus, King of what was the unassailable Balingkang Kingdom of 12th century Bali, which romantically takes its name from marriage between a Balinese king and princess of Kang family of China.   Today, many of us will have seen effigies of the King paraded through the streets of Bali as an ogre-like Barong Landung, warding off bad luck and evil spirit. Bali Theatre recreates this epic and brings the legend to life in a rare display of Bali’s diverse cultural heritage, in an entirely new concept for Bali, with Bali Agung described as a massive collaboration of 150 performers mirroring every aspect of the Bali’s historic past retelling an epic Balinese tale with scenes of the island’s paradise, its royal atmosphere and the magical forests that are the settings for the romantic and heroic scenes, which helps any visitor really understand and appreciate Bali’s cultural heritage. Bali Agung takes place in a massive 1,200 seat indoor theatrical complex built to international standards in stage settings, state-of-art lighting and sound systems, offering luxurious seating, located in the heart of Bali Safari Marine Park along the newly developed seaside highway, Jalan Ida Bagus Mantra, on Bali south-eastern coastline of Gianyar. Bali Theatre is a mega-stage theatrical complex, fully equipped with advanced multi-media technology and state-of-art sound and lighting systems, the entrance featuring the island’s tallest 8-metre high Ganesha statue, the God of science and knowledge, who appears to be persuading visitors to enter the lobby and discover the many aspects of theatre. The statue even suggests to people that the theatre was built with highly sophisticated technology, and performers that will guide their audiences to a better knowledge of Bali and its charming people, unique tradition, history, and culture. A walk through the tunnel behind the statue leads visitors to the luxurious pre-function area, decorated with warm lighting, a wooden floor and a beautifully landscaped garden filled with exotic flowers, shrubs and extensive ponds. The lobby can be considered as a perfect pre-function venue for cocktails as well as an ideal location for a private party or theme function. The Bali Theatre brings a whole new experience to theatrical art performances, especially in Bali, by combining stunning and very colourful traditional and contemporary dance, modern puppetry and live animal parades and all highlighted with a combination of three different awesome musical and melodic influences. The music was especially written and was performed and recorded by a western orchestra accompanied by a live Balinese pentatonic gamelan ensemble and loud Chinese cymbals and drum.  The setting is just amazing and something you have to see if you go to Bali, with the huge main stage separated from the audience by a river pond, with boat skippers voyaging on it and the mega-stage setting transporting the audience into a timeless journey and through a magical performance that shows the true colours of the island as it was several hundred years ago. To see a sample of this amazing performance and hear what the visionaries behind this superb performance and also its Balinese and Australian directors have to say, please  click on the video below: - For more information on the amazing Bali Agung performance at the Bali Theatre, please visit:- www.balitheatre.com John Alwyn-Jones reporting for e-Travel Blackboard and e-Travel Blackboard TV on location from Indonesia and Bali brought to you by Garuda Indonesia and Garuda Orient Holidays.