49. A Greenery Photo Tour of an Authentic Balinese Neighbourhood
and how to spend a quick layover in Hong Kong!
Hello everyone! As promised, the start of my Bali garden adventures! As I’m writing this, I am currently staying at Villa Bebek in Sanur. Some real geeks here might recognize it as the former home of Michael White/Made Wijaya - famed Australian Landscape Architect. This trip has been crazy packed with lots of things to share with you all so let’s get into it, starting with an insight into the real Bali, Indonesia - away from what you may have already seen in the vlogisphere.
The long flight time over from Europe meant a stopover in Hong Kong - where I peered outside, longing to go into the city. Unfortunately at the time of booking our tickets, stricter covid protocols were still in place and Nico and I decided to not extend our layover a few days just in case we wouldn’t even be able to enjoy it, since everything is so constantly unpredictable. Luckily, due to the discovery of an outdoor garden within the airport, we were able to be outside at least a little bit and take in the beautiful sunny day after having a few days of absolute rain in Amsterdam.
From the point of that discovery, our time during the Hong Kong layover in which we were not stuffing our faces with congee, was spent relaxing in the sun at the Sky Garden. It is technically smoke-free, which is great compared to the tobacco polluted Barcelona airport garden (at least the last time I visited Barcelona pre-covid). However, we did see a slew of cigarette butts hiding underneath a few bushes so I think all rules go out the window when you have an overnight layover.
Ahhh Northern Bali….you might have seen Youtubers floating around videos about the waterfalls here or rightfully deterring viewers from dolphin tours at Lovina (guys stop feeding the wildlife!). But outside those touristy activities lies Singaraja - the second biggest city in Bali and where Nico’s family is from. The city extends from a busy main road running along the coast that could easily be a highway with the amount of car traffic it fuels throughout the day and night. But if you turn a few streets inland you will be met with traditional Balinese houses adorned with their tropical gardens, makeshift potagers, or layers of rice paddies. Or you can just walk a few steps in the other direction and end up at the black sand beaches where locals casually fish at sunset or practice tai chi at sunrise. You won’t find any tourists along the beaches here and if you do they are normally lost and looking for Lovina.
**Sidenote, for those unsure of Bali geography, here’s the gist:
The South (think Canggu) is where expats/surfers live and it’s a bit of a hot mess that most tourists find fun, the East is where Conde Nast Traveller is now telling tourists to go for a sheltered version of an ‘authentic untouched Bali’, the West is still somewhat of a secret that I hesitate to share outside of this newsletter, and most of the North is the closest to real Balinese people and way of life. That is a very very brief rundown, there are so many other areas I didn’t cover, but that gives you a little glimpse into it.
Keep in mind that walking around the neighbourhood should be done so with caution since sidewalks crumble (or are nonexistent) and most are filled with canang sari or bali strays, so you find yourself at the behest of scooters that dominate most roads. To escape the chaos one morning we took a neighbourhood walk in search of rice paddies and found fantastic garden inspiration that I will share with you…
Since a lot of homes don’t have the space for an official garden, plants will bleed out into the street and a lot of locals also let their laundry hang out in the street - similar to a Napoli vibe in a way.
I noticed a lot of these plant walls set up throughout Singaraja. It is an easy way to create a privacy screen and have a home for a lot of plant babies without taking up too much ground space.
Kaffir lime <3
A neighbourhood plant nursery, where I wanted to buy every potted tropical I saw </3
A wall of coconut palms:
A lot of homes here have a shrine in the garden and/or an altar in front, where they can leave offerings and spend time in prayer. The size or amount of shrines vary depending on the property. Otherwise there are neighbourhood shrines shared by multiple families, and of course more official temples (Pura). If you visit Bali, know there are specific protocols to follow before entering either so make sure to brief yourself.
Taman means garden, so this is a Temple Garden <3
A place to pause during a walk.
Drying frangipani flowers for perfume/oils.
Green balcony decorations.
The Tukad Buleleng - a river that flows through the area. Even though it isn’t the cleanest, there has been a massive decrease in the amount of garbage in the river, and surrounding area in general, since we visited pre-covid.
Some harvested grass to feed the Bali Cows.
Canang Sari and other offerings.
Rice paddies and their sweet canine guard…
Abandoned lots are overgrown with tropical weeds, adding to the lushness of the landscape.
Frangipani trees are a mainstay in so many Balinese homes and are used for making fragrance, offerings, religious ceremonies, and as decoration (especially tucked behind the ear). The smell is intoxicating. Nico’s family has a large tree that awns over the front of the property, the fallen flowers are gathered and placed in large bowls as offerings every day.
Absolutely love papaya trees.
Limo (Musk Lime) I believe, it’s a Balinese citrus.
Protecting starfruit from pests.
More roadside greenery…
look at that aloe vera below just thriving
Couldn’t not include a photo of this pup <3
Some things nourishing me this week:
Chic tropical fruit stand in Ubud
Our view in Ubud
Full moon altar
The rescue kitten is doing even better, she is renamed Bonny and look how adorable she is in this basket <3
Bathtime (couldn’t resist the cliché)
almost periwinkle water lily
Ubudian canang sari complete with rolls of kretek
Thank you so much for being here! <3 See you next week for more Bali garden travel coverage!
Know anyone obsessed with the magical island of Bali?
Still not subscribed?
the sunset yesterday at a quiet beach nearby in the North
