Fun Ways To Celebrate Galungan And Kuningan In Bal

Large bamboo poles decorated with palm leaves, flowers and coconuts - penjor - are erected outside every home and business, which makes for a stunning sight. Each village has its own style of penjor and some are impressively tall and elaborate.

The day before Galungan, pigs are slaughtered to make ceremonial foods including lawar, a kind of spicy salad and sate. As with many ceremonies in Bali, the events tend to revolve around food! Then on Galungan day itself, families visit the village temples in their best clothes, bringing towering offerings carried in beautiful baskets. This can make for some amazing photo opportunities, so make sure to be up early to see the full spectacle!

The festivities continue in the form of the Barong – a mythical protective creature that looks like a lion. It’s common to see groups of children walking the streets and performing Barong dances in exchange for a small monetary donation. Galungan lasts for 10 days, culminating in Kuningan - a final day of prayer when the ancestral spirits leave the family temple and return to the spiritual plane.