Today was my last full day in Bali. Tomorrow I'm off to Bangkok, Thailand. I am excited to see Thailand but feel I'm leaving Bali as I'm just getting comfortable and settled in. I've learned a little more of the language and can read some signs and understand the pronunciation now. I've mastered a few tricks to avoid the street venders so I can just enjoy Bali (although I have to admire the sense of humor of the vendor selling the T-shirt that said "No, I don't want any f***ing bemo, transport, t-shirt, massage, etc". =) ) I've uploaded a few random pictures from Bali and below are a few of my lessons learned for enjoying Bali (I wouldn't proclaim to know enough to give advice to anyone else but these were key to me enjoying Bali). 1. Enjoy the beach. The beaches are beautiful here so I figured I might as well stay at a beachside resort and get as much of it as I possibly could. 2. Hire a driver and see the rest of the island. I got lucky and had a great driver. If I had more time and money I would have done this a couple days and seen more of the island. A couple of locals I talked to recommended seeing the western part of Bali for the most natural, unspoiled scenery. 3. Walk opposite of traffic. This prevents the drivers from pulling up and driving alongside you while you walk and they try to convince you that you need a ride from them 4. Enjoy the local food. The fruit here is great. My favorite Indonesian food is tempe which is a vegetarian item but I think you would all enjoy it. And the black rice pudding is very good with a little coconut cream on top. It's a little sweeter and crunchier than rice pudding I've had at home but excellent. (Oh, and avoid the Italian food). 5. Get out of the touristy areas. This can be done by driving out to the country or just walking around on the side streets or my favorite way was running along the beach beyond the tourist hotels and past the local villages. I got to witness what I am pretty sure was a Melasti Festival yesterday and today by running along the beach past the village outside of town. The locals seem to mostly live in the villages and the towns are for tourists and shops. So any chance to see the true village life without disturbing traditions is a treat. It was so interesting to see the villagers out in their beautiful white garments on the black sand beach and the kids excited to be participating in the ceremony. Everyone was happy and relaxed. I felt lucky to witness this and tried to stay out of the way and be unobtrusive. And since I was running I didn't have my camera but a good guidebook or the internet should have good pictures of the Melasti ceremony. 6. Learn as much about the religion and the stories to better understand the arts. Once I learned more about the concepts of good and evil, reincarnation, etc the art and dances made a lot more sense. For instance, I learned that the flags flown outside the temples (penjor) are usually one of four colors: red (for lava or the earth), white (for light and spirits), black (for water) and yellow (for compassion) then I started to notice that all the drapes on all the little shrines around town are in these colors too. And the umbrellas shading the shrines are often yellow. And pretty soon the art started to take on more significance. 7. Respect the local religion. There are offerings in front of every store and it required a lot of attention to take care not to step on them. And carrying a sarong everywhere in my bag allowed me to enter some temples (just tying it around your waist over your clothes is fine) I would not have otherwise seen. 8. Avoid the police. Just easier that way. OK. That's enough of my blabbing on and on. I'm definitely no expert on Bali or the local religion or art but I learned a lot in my week here and really enjoyed the experience. I have some great pictures and memories and a start of a decent tan to take home with me. See you all soon!