{"id":49851,"date":"2023-04-05T17:33:33","date_gmt":"2023-04-05T09:33:33","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.you.co\/sg\/?p=49851"},"modified":"2023-04-06T09:24:22","modified_gmt":"2023-04-06T01:24:22","slug":"how-i-experienced-nyepi-bali-day-of-silence","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.you.co\/sg\/blog\/how-i-experienced-nyepi-bali-day-of-silence\/","title":{"rendered":"Here’s How I Experienced Nyepi \u2014 Bali’s Day Of Silence"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Shh… \ud83e\udd2b<\/strong> From giant terrifying statues of demons roaming the streets to 24 hours of silence and darkness, and even a kissing festival held the day after, here’s how I experienced Bali’s Nyepi Festival. <\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n
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Imagine this: You’re prepared for your trip to Bali, ready for a week of sun-soaked beaches, exotic cocktails, and a bit of wild partying. You\u2019ve got your swimsuit, sunscreen, and your adventurous spirit all at the ready. But just as you\u2019re getting settled in, you realize you\u2019re timing couldn\u2019t be worse as you find yourself stuck in your Airbnb for the next two days<\/em>! On top of that, all lights have to be switched off, roads and shops are closed, and<\/em> you\u2019re not allowed to make loud noises. That\u2019s exactly what happened to me. Here\u2019s how I <\/em>\u2014 the unsuspecting tourist \u2014 experienced Bali\u2019s Nyepi Festival, also known as the \u201cDay of Silence\u201d.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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The Days Leading Up To Nyepi<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n
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Image Credits: The Jakarta Post<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

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In the days leading up to the Nyepi festival, here\u2019s what I noticed: People dressed in white, carrying brightly coloured umbrellas and offerings \u2014 all making their way towards beaches, lakes, and holy springs to begin their cleansing ritual.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Giant, terrifying statues of demons started popping up everywhere. And I mean everywhere<\/em>. We ended up stuck in a lot of traffic jams but found ourselves in awe of the Balinese as they worked together to lift these heavy statues out on the streets.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Image Credits: Seahawk Journal<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

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We mostly spent the day before Nyepi staying indoors and grocery shopping due to road closures and the absence of our trusty hero \u2014 Grab Delivery. But at night? Festivities kicked off with a bang \u2014 quite literally! The streets bustled to life with loud music, banging drums, crackling firecrackers, and an endless swarm of people honking their motorcycles relentlessly. Amongst them? The all-too-familiar Ogoh Ogoh<\/em> demonic statues we noticed beforehand, parading the streets before it was ceremoniously burned. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

We learned that this was the Balinese way of warding off evil spirits before the Day of Silence. Not so different from our Chinese New Year tradition of setting off firecrackers to scare off bad spirits.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

And on the next day? Complete silence.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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The Day Of Silence<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n
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Image Credits: Villa Kinaree Estate<\/em><\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Ironically, silence was the loudest sound we heard that day. And I mean complete silence. No cars, no music, no chatter. It felt like I was in the Twilight Zone. This went on from 6 AM and continued for the next 24 hours.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Image Credits: Balipedia<\/em><\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

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We weren\u2019t allowed to leave our Airbnb, turn on the lights (the exception being low lighting with the curtains closed), or use noisy appliances. That\u2019s right, we were stuck inside with nothing to do but contemplate existence, like being grounded, but on a much bigger scale. And forget about going for a swim or hitting up the local bar \u2014 when we say everything\u2019s closed, we mean it! Each village even has a local law enforcement officer (Pecalang) <\/em>who will patrol the streets to ensure you abide by the festival\u2019s rules. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

So what to do when you\u2019re trapped inside on Nyepi? We were bored out of our minds, sure. But we ended up binge-watched Big Bang Theory on the lowest volume<\/strong> possible<\/strong> and had ourselves a movie marathon. And luckily for us, we stocked up on snacks and drinks. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

However, those staying in hotels probably got a better deal than us, Airbnb stayers, as they\u2019re allowed to order room service and indulge in delicious Indonesian cuisine even when trapped indoors. But as the sun goes down, even room service shuts down for the night. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

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But I have to admit, it\u2019s not all doom and gloom. One thing that made my night was the stars. As the sun set and darkness engulfed the entire island, the sky transformed into a mesmerizing display of twinkling lights \u2014 with a shine and intensity so brilliant it\u2019s difficult to describe, leaving us awestruck and settled in for a quiet night of stargazing.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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The Next Day<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n
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The following day, the island burst back to life, as if someone hit the play button. And as we resumed our itinerary with white water rafting on our minds, the locals celebrated the end of their Day in Silence with firecrackers, music, and dancing.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Image Credits: Conde Nast Traveler<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

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But, if you\u2019re interested in immersing yourself in the full celebrations of the Nyepi festival, head to the Sesetan Village in South Denpasar. There, you can observe the unique Omed-Omedan ceremony, a.k.a The Kissing Ritual, where local youths will kiss and hug while the crowd throws buckets of water over them. Wild<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Happy Nyepi!<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n
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Image Credits: The Honeycombers<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

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And there you have it, folks, the Nyepi experience in a nutshell. It\u2019s strange, it\u2019s surreal, and definitely not your typical Bali vacation. But hey, at least I had an interesting story to share back home and a once-in-a-lifetime experience to look back on. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

So, if you ever find yourself in Bali during Nyepi (typically held in March), be prepared to embrace the unexpected and go with the flow! Let the magic of this spiritual festival sweep you off your feet \u2014 even if you\u2019re stuck in your hotel room with only a Balinese dictionary and no Wi-Fi to keep you company. After all, isn\u2019t that what travel\u2019s all about? Stepping out of our comfort zones and experiencing both<\/em> the delightful and unpredictable. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

And who knows? Maybe you\u2019ll come away feeling just as refreshed and rejuvenated after a day of forced relaxation. Just be prepared for a day of silence that will leave you speechless \u2014 literally. And of course, don\u2019t forget to do your research!<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Surviving 24 hours of silence and darkness in Bali<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":75,"featured_media":49869,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[8118,8119,624],"tags":[39198,39678,39676,39677,39129],"class_list":["post-49851","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-experiences","category-guides-tips","category-travel","tag-bali","tag-bali-guide","tag-nyepi","tag-nyepi-festival","tag-travel"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.you.co\/sg\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/49851","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.you.co\/sg\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.you.co\/sg\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.you.co\/sg\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/75"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.you.co\/sg\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=49851"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.you.co\/sg\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/49851\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.you.co\/sg\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/49869"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.you.co\/sg\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=49851"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.you.co\/sg\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=49851"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.you.co\/sg\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=49851"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}