As a result of fertile volcanic soil and a warm tropical climate, Bali had some beautiful flowering plants.
Shown here are the lobster claw heliconia flower, the golden torch heliconia flower, the white spider lily plant, and a variegated heliconia.
A Red Grasshawk Dragonfly and an Asian Groundling Dragonfly were hanging out near the koi pond at breakfast one morning and kindly posed for photos.
Dragonflies are amazing insects. They can operate each of their four wings independently which allows them to fly with great precision, forwards, sideways, and backwards. They are fast and can sometimes reach speeds of up to 18 mph.
These insects have large compound eyes with about 30,000 facets and almost 360 degree vision.
With these abilities, dragonflies are wonderful hunters and can accurately snatch their prey out of the air and eat them while still in flight.
Canang sari, which are daily offerings made in woven baskets of palm leaves, are a common sight in Bali. The offerings usually contain flowers, incense, and small amounts of money and can also include food items and other small gifts for the gods.
These offerings are made daily as a way to give thanks and the time and effort put into making the offering is symbolic of self-sacrifice.
Religious shrines were everywhere in Bali: homes, businesses, temples, even random street corners. The shrines were well cared for which is a symbolic way of showing the gods that they are also well cared for. Part of that care involves dressing the statues in a sarong and making offerings of food items.
The black and white checkered fabric is symbolic of the good (white) and bad (black) spirits that are working within each individual.
There were many small shops that all seemed to specialize in one type of merchandise, such as baskets, bird cages, or clothing.
Some entrepreneurs operated food carts or had tables piled with fresh produce.
Indonesia is ranked third in the world in terms of rice production, so it was no surprise to us to see terraced rice fields all over the island of Bali.
Silver crafting was the focus of one of the villages we saw in Bali. We stopped at one shop and were able to watch the different artisans at work and learn about how they make various items, such as jewelry or small statues, out of silver.
Another interesting stop was in the woodcarving village. We saw the carvers at work and were impressed with their abilities to carve without any sort of model or pattern.
The Sacred Monkey Forest Sanctuary is a 27 acre thickly forested park which provides a protected habitat to roughly 700 Balinese long-tailed monkeys. The park has numerous trails as well as a couple of bridges that cross over a deep ravine and a rocky stream.
