Skift Take
Ten years after a devastating bombing aimed largely at Australian tourists, Bali is still thriving. Here are ways to find escape, no matter what kind of diversion you are looking for.
Bali's natural riches and robust, timeless culture have given it the strength to rebuild a thriving tourist scene since a bomb struck Kuta in 2002.
The morning light was blurred by the smoke of wood fires. Out of the haze an old woman came along the road carrying upon her head a shallow woven basket, the kind filled with marigolds, fragrant shredded palm leaves and a few grubby rupiah notes. She made her way to a roadside temple and passed through the carved stone gateway. I watched her vanish behind the grey wall to make her offering of the day. Behind her, a trail of other women followed, also carrying out the dawn ritual.
It is to witness timeless scenes like this which is Bali’s greatest draw. Spirituality here runs deep, as well as the age-old customs that attend the syncretism of Hinduism, Buddhism and animism. The rich culture – of exuberant art, of the power of healing and intimate coming-of-age ceremonies – is abundant and visceral, not the sort to be encased in museums.
That is why, when there are so many other beautiful islands in the world – not to mention 17,000 other islands in Indonesia – tourists continue to come here in their millions. That is also in spite of a tough decade which began in 2002 with the devastating terrorist attack in Kuta, as well as subsequent strikes there in 2005 and in Indonesia’s capital, Jakarta, in 2009.
Bali bounces back again and again, and that is because it is unique in its compact cultural and physical landscape. In the north are two big volcanoes, Agung and Batur, which enrich the land with fertile soil and irrigate crops with run-off; unsurprisingly, locals
