Please contact the owner direct within Australia on 0432 408156

www.activeinmotion.com.au

“Are you sick and tired of your comfort zone and ready to step outside the square?  All too often we find ourselves suddenly pounding the same old treadmill and before you know it’s Christmas and where have you been this year?  I know I always start out with a good plan to have a holiday and then it’s gone and I’ve been nowhere!

I am pleased to provide a solution, not only value for money you also get to meet new friends, expand your social circle, keep up your exercise regime AND have a relaxing holiday with a difference!

Awaken In Bali Health & Fitness Retreat is in the lush mountains and tropical paradise of Ubud, Bali.  My program consists of 6 x Group Training Sessions, a Yoga Session, Cooking Class, Massage & Day Spa, Jungle Trek and a beautiful sunrise atop one of the most active Volcano’s on the island.

Visit www.activeinmotion.com.au and click on Bali Retreat for all program information and current retreat dates and check out my You Tube video here: www.youtube.com/activeinmotion

For as little as $1495* you could Join me to discover a whole new meaning to “adventure holiday” on a 6 Day / 5 Night experience you’ll never forget.

All accommodation and meals are included .

*Terms & Conditions Apply

If you require more information please let me know.

Marni Alexander

Director / Master Trainer

Active In Motion Personal Training

M   +61 402 068 982

E     marni@activeinmotion.com.au

W   www.activeinmotion.com.au

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Occurring once in every 210 days in the pawukon (Balinese cycle of days), Galungan marks the beginning of the most important recurring religious ceremony that is celebrated by all Balinese. During the Galungan period the deified ancestors of the family descend to their former homes. They must be suitably entertained and welcomed, and prayers and offerings must be made for them. Those families who have ancestors that have not yet been cremated, but are still buried in the village cemetery, must make offerings at the graves.

 

Although Galungan falls on a Wednesday, most Balinese will begin their Galungan ‘holiday’ the day before, where the family is seen to be busily preparing offerings and cooking for the next day. While the women of the household have been busy for days before creating beautifully woven ‘banten’ (offerings made from young coconut fronds), the men of our village usually wake up well before dawn to join with their neighbours to slaughter a pig unlucky enough to be chosen to help celebrate this occasion. Then the finely diced pork is mashed to a pulp with a grinding stone, and moulded onto sate sticks that have been already prepared by whittling small sticks of bamboo. Chickens may also be chosen from the collection of free-range chickens that roam around the house compound. Delicate combinations of various vegetables, herbs and spices are also prepared by the men to make up a selection of ‘lawar’ dishes. While much of this cooking is for use in the offerings to be made at the family temple, by mid-morning, once all the cooking is done, it is time for the first of a series of satisfying feasts from what has been prepared. While the women continue to be kept busy with the preparations of the many offerings to be made at the family temple on the day of Galungan, the men also have another job to do this day, once the cooking is finished. A long bamboo pole, or ‘penjor’, is made to decorate the entrance to the family compound. By late Tuesday afternoon all over Bali the visitor can see these decorative poles creating a very festive atmosphere in the street.

On Wednesday, the day of Galungan, one will find that most Balinese will try to return to their own ancestral home at some stage during the day, even if they work in another part of the island. This is a very special day for families, where offerings are made to God and to the family ancestors who have come back to rest at this time in their family temple. As well as the family temple, visits are made to the village temple with offerings as well, and to the homes of other families who may have helped the family in some way over the past six months.

The day after Galungan is a time for a holiday, visiting friends, maybe taking the opportunity to head for the mountains for a picnic. Everyone is still seen to be in their ‘Sunday best’ as they take to the streets to enjoy the festive spirit that Galungan brings to Bali.

The date for Galungan and other special Balinese days is shown on the Balinese Calendar.

The same thing also occurs in Bali, however the Balinese use many different calendar systems. They have adopted the Gregorian calendar for business and government purposes. But for the endless procession of holy days, temple anniversaries, celebrations, sacred dances, building houses, wedding ceremonies, death and cremation processes and other activities that define Balinese life, they have two calendar systems. The first is the Pawukon (from the word Wuku which means week) and Sasih (which is means month). Wuku consists of 30 items starting from Sinta, the first Wuku and end up with the Watugunung the last one. The Pawukon, a 210-day ritual calendar brought over from Java in the 14th century, is a complex cycle of numerological conjunctions that provides the basic schedule for ritual activities on Bali. Sasih, a parallel system of Indian origin, is a twelve month lunar calendar that starts with the vernal equinox and is equally important in determining when to pay respect to the Gods.

Westerners open the New Year in revelry, however, in contrast, the Balinese open their New Year in silence. This is called Nyepi Day, the Balinese day of Silence, which falls on the day following the dark moon of the spring equinox, and opens a new year of the Saka Hindu era which began in 78 A.D.

Nyepi is a day to make and keep the balance of nature. It is based on the story of when King Kaniska I of India was chosen in 78 A.D. The King was famous for his wisdom and tolerance for the Hinduism and Buddhism societies. In that age, Aji Saka did Dharma Yatra (the missionary tour to promote and spread Hinduism) to Indonesia and introduce the Saka year.

The lead upto Nyepi day is as follows:

• Melasti or Mekiyis or Melis (three days before Nyepi)
  Melasti is meant to clean the pratima or arca or pralingga (statue), with symbols that help to concentrate the mind in order to become closer to God. The ceremony is aimed to clean all nature and its content, and also to take the Amerta (the source for eternal life) from the ocean or other water resources (ie lake, river, etc). Three days before Nyepi, all the effigies of the Gods from all the village temples are taken to the river in long and colourful ceremonies. There, they have are bathed by the Neptune of the Balinese Lord, the God Baruna, before being taken back home to their shrines.
• Tawur Kesanga (the day before Nyepi)
  Exactly one day before Nyepi, all villages in Bali hold a large exorcism ceremony at the main village cross road, the meeting place of demons. They usually make Ogoh-ogoh (the fantastic monsters or evil spirits or the Butha Kala made of bamboo) for carnival purposes. The Ogoh-ogoh monsters symbolize the evil spirits surrounding our environment which have to be got rid of from our lives . The carnivals themselves are held all over Bali following sunset. Bleganjur, a Balinese gamelan music accompanies the procession. Some are giants taken from classical Balinese lore. All have fangs, bulging eyes and scary hair and are illuminated by torches.The procession is usually organised by the Seka Teruna, the youth organisation of Banjar. When Ogoh-ogoh is being played by the Seka Teruna, everyone enjoys the carnival. In order to make a harmonic relation between human being and God, human and human, and human and their environments, Tawur Kesanga is performed in every level of society, from the people’s house. In the evening, the Hindus celebrating Ngerupuk, start making noises and light burning torches and set fire to the Ogoh-ogoh in order to get the Bhuta Kala, evil spirits, out of our lives.
• Nyepi
  On Nyepi day itself, every street is quiet – there are nobody doing their normal daily activities. There is usually Pecalangs (traditional Balinese security man) who controls and checks for street security. Pecalang wear a black uniform and a Udeng or Destar (a Balinese traditional “hat” that is usually used in ceremony). The Pecalangs main task is not only to control the security of the street but also to stop any activities that disturb Nyepi. No traffic is allowed, not only cars but also people, who have to stay in their own houses. Light is kept to a minimum or not at all, the radio or TV is turned down and, of course, no one works. Even love making, this ultimate activity of all leisure times, is not supposed to take place, nor even attempted. The whole day is simply filled with the barking of a few dogs, the shrill of insect and is a simple long quiet day in the calendar of this otherwise hectic island. On Nyepi the world expected to be clean and everything starts anew, with Man showing his symbolic control over himself and the “force” of the World, hence the mandatory religious control.
• Ngembak Geni (the day after Nyepi)
  Ngembak is the day when Catur Berata Penyepian is over and Hindus societies usually visit to forgive each other and doing the Dharma Canthi. Dharma Canthi are activities of reading Sloka, Kekidung, Kekawin, etc.(ancient scripts containing songs and lyrics).

From the religious and philosophy point of view, Nyepi is meant to be a day of self introspection to decide on values, eg humanity, love, patience, kindness, etc., that should kept forever. Balinese Hindus have many kind of celebrations (some sacred days) but Nyepi is, perhaps the most important of the island’s religious days and the prohibitions are taken seriously, particularly in villages outside of Bali’s southern tourist belt. Hotels are exempt from Nyepi’s rigorous practices but streets outside will be closed to both pedestrians and vehicles (except for airport shuttles or emergency vehicles) and village wardens (Pecalang) will be posted to keep people off the beach. So wherever you happen to be staying on Nyepi Day in Bali, this will be a good day to spend indoors. Indeed Nyepi day has made Bali a unique island.

all information courtesy of indo.com

For up to date restaurant reviews in all area’s of Bali log on to www.balieats.com Gerry reviews restaurants every month and his online guide is excellent and a very useful in helping to select dining experiences that suit both your palate and budget.

• Skywest
• Virgin Blue
• AirAsia
• Garuda
• Jetstar
• Strategic
• Qantas

China

• Garuda
• China Airlines
• China Eastern Airlines
• Shanghai Airlines
• Shenzhen Airlines

Hong Kong

• Cathay Pacific
• Garuda
• Hong Kong Express Airways

Indonesia

• AirAsia
• Batavia Air
• Garuda
• Lion Air
• Mandala Airlines
• Merpati Nusantara Airlines
• Sriwijaya Air
• Travira Air
• Wings Air

Japan

• Garuda
• Japan Airlines
• Jalways

Malaysia

• AirAsia
• Malaysia Airlines

Netherlands

• KLM

Russia

• Transaero

South Korea

• Garuda
• Korean Air

Singapore

• KLM
• Singapore Airlines
• AirAsia
• Garuda
• Valuair
• Qatar Airways

Taiwan

• EVA Air
• Uni Air

Thailand

• AirAsia
• Thai Airways
• Garuda

sourced from wikipedia