Bali on the Web: Expatriates
There are a number of expatriate sites on the web. Bali Pod is one of them. A forum for Bali expatriates from all over the world it is home to some fascinating exchanges and comments such as the following from Py:
“… To live here is to ‘be’, that is to ‘be’ who you are as a living, breathing creature between birth and death, and always in response to your immediate environment. To visit here is to live a delicious but fleeting moment as a joyous construction of ones own fantasy. It is also a compressed absolution of a pent-up back-log of incrementally built up frustrations. The expatriot inevitably sees the ‘groping’, ‘ignorant’ and ‘gormless’ tourist as ‘lightweight’. In turn, the visiting tourist sees the ‘holier than thou’ expat as willfully standing between them and the ‘real Bali’ they strive for, all the while reminding them, school bully style, of their reduced status. Not pleasant or desired. They are both, in mutually distinct ways, threatened by one another. Certain things on this forum will appear absurdly inappropriate to the more casual Bali visitor. Those that partake regularly on this forum right now, are for the most part somewhat isolated in odd and far flung corners of the province. Zontius, for example, lives on the Island of Nusa Lembongan and god only knows how remote that must feel in the off season. Gloria and Bert both live in the north, not exactly a hot bed of international exchange. I, in turn, live in my studio and often kick around the www. waiting for paint to dry. We are all to some degree displaced twice and though we have chosen this diasporas life, there is ‘always’ a need to create a society and a culture of sorts. Some need to write, some to kvetch, some just be heard in a familiar cultural language.”
This quote is just a glimpse at the fascinating material on this site. I would recommend to anyone truly curious about the experience of living in Bali.
Another comment from the Bali Pod forum about the ’smells of Bali’, this time from Roy:
“I agree, the most predominant and consistent smell on Bali is of burning incense.
I don’t know why, but even the incense I bring back from Thailand, or Singapore smells different when it is burned here in Bali. Maybe it’s the mix with the air, or maybe something else, but incense on Bali, regardless of where its from is distinctive in its aroma when burned.”
Another site, informative on Bali in a different way, belongs to Misty Tosh. Here is her comment re The Green School:
“One of the coolest places on the face of the planet has got to be the new Green School on the Indonesian island of Bali. In short, it’s a brand new school for local kiddies and expat children who live on the island…and has the most amazing campus you’ve ever been on (this coming from a girl who was at OW’s Leadership Academy in South Africa when it opened). It’s all green–with a huge water vortex from the Ayung River that creates energy; all organic fruits and vegetables grown on-site; and every single thing on the campus made from bamboo. Truly a beautiful spot.”
The expatriate sites offer intriguing glimpses into the real Bali.