At the turn of the 20th Century Europeans started to write books aboutl ife in Bali creating an almost fantasy image. Photographs taken by the German photographer, Gregor Krause, gave the Dutch their first sight of images they had only imagined from the novels of Louis Couperus or Multatuli, but had never before actually seen. This perpetuated the myth of Bali as a paradisiacal island of bare breasts. The latest set of newcomers, the westerners started arriving in force in the 60's, partly because of surfing. Once again Bali's unique geography, with a limestone plateau called the Bukit peninsula, has made it a perfect place for surfers to catch perfect waves.
The 21st Century is going to be a big challenge for the Balinese. Modern kids want modern stuff, and giving one's money for a ceremony is hard when one wants a new motorbike or DVD player. Will the younger generation be as good at observing the traditions as their parents and will mass tourism and pollution take away the essence of Bali? We'll have to wait and see.
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{ 3 comments }
G’Day Nick,
The book by George Krause is caled ‘Bali 1912′ and is an excellent collection of fotos of Balinese life.
You know my feelings about mass tourism and pollution in Bali. Basically, it already has marred Bali. And, as far as the younger generation observing the traditions of their parents, well, their traditional values are strong and will remain so. After saying that, it’s amazing what the lure of the dollar will do to the values.
http://www.planetmole.org
Tony,
A simple ‘Yes’ or ‘No’ – Have you ever been to Bali????????
its not hard to separate the traveller from the tourist, or the man from the boy!
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