Denpasar Bali, Indonesia

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On Friday, May 13, 1983 after rising very early at the Mandarin hotel, we flew at 6:15 from Jakarta to Denpasar Bali

This photo is taken at the mansion of our 'would be boss'...

We got picked up and dropped off at the Bali Beach hotel and did tour the Bali Raya tuna cannery.

We NEVER knew that from such a huge fish as tuna, they only use the inner part about 30%, a kind of a 'tenderloin' and all the rest is being removed. Guess that goes into cat food or whatever...

We also went up high into the mountains for studying grounds for growing vegetables.

It was a drive of 1.5 hour and it was rainy and cold.

Good soil for growing sweet potatoes!

Lunch at the Golfclub BALI HANDARA, a pity that the weather was so bad...

We lunched with a Balinese Prince who's father used to have some 45 wives, but he instead was very modest and only had 4.

They arranged a personal driver for both of us because Pieter had motion sickness, from the bus winding through the mountains.

With our driver we also did visit the artist villages of Mas and Ubud for buying some Balinese woodcarvings. 

While on the road, we also got to see a Balinese corpse burning...

By 19:00 we had to be ready for a big party in Bapak Soetantyo's mansion, with a huge tropical garden but it rained cats and dogs! There were several international business guests from the UK and the US and both of us.

We got assured though that Bapak Soetantyo would most certainly call in a Dukun to expel the dark clouds! If necessary, even two... The Dukuns are the Shamans there. Yes, we had arrived at the magical BALI!

Bapak Soetantyo's mansion as well as the garden, were a dream... and mysteriously it was clear and no rain.

Bapak Soetantyo persuaded me to go to the Balinese statue and touch it... Working magic through it, via the Dukuns, to influence me that I should opt for living in Indonesia instead of living in the USA... It didn't work though. 

Seven years later however, we went to work and live there.

A huge Balinese wood carving panel on the wall of Bapak Soetantyo's mansion.

We bought some, but not quite that size!

Unbelievable craftsmanship in meticulous woodcarving...

A Gamelan orchestra got arranged for playing music...

Balinese dansers performed...

The western men got summoned to partake in this Balinese dancing...

Pieter trying his very best version here above!

Quite serious...

Pieter did look good in his McGregor suit...

Enough dancing!

Pieter is standing next to one of the Balinese figures, exactly the same as we have in our Balinese chess set.

The evening was like a dream with an open-air buffet and we got seated at tables.

Very impressed, we went back to our hotel by 21:30.

On Saturday, May 14, we woke up early with sunshine and had the day off so we did spend it under the palm trees at the beech. Breakfast outdoors and we met with some Belgian and German tourists...

Traditional Prahu boats lined up...

A beautiful day ending...

We enjoyed a great dinner at the fish restaurant of Bali Beach together with four other men from the Indonesian company.

On Sunday, May 15, at 9:00 we have our flight back to Jakarta. Goodbye Bali!

Would be back there in December 1986.

Daring to Alter 7/8 Pants into Knickerbockers | showing the above pants being altered...