Smells of Bali

B

BaliLife

Active Member
in furtherence to liz's topic of tea, i thought i might start a thread about some distinct smells that we associate with bali..

i had the experience back in early september on the disney cruise we took our kids on from florida through the carribean.. i woke up early one morning and went up on the 9th deck (the second highest) and a very distinct smell of bali hit me.. it was powerful and surreal.. it had been raining and the deck on the 9th floor was covered with an oiled wood - i believe it was ulin but i may be wrong.. but whatever it was, it was a wood that must very frequently be used in bali for decks, etc because the smell was distinctly bali..

smells that i miss outside of bali include the smell of simmering offerings to the gods..
Bali%20Offerings%20to%20the%20Gods.JPG


and the smell of charring sate babi..
SateBabi.jpg


and babi guling of course..
babi.jpg


i'd say i also miss the smell of kretek, but i bought a good supply of gudang garam with me..

we're flying back on oct 27..

ct
 
Great post, and great photos too! Selamat!

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.
 
We arrived in Bali on Monday and as soon as I stepped off the plane I knew we were at the right airport. I don't know if it is the humidity in the air, the ever-present smokey smell, or incence...but to me it is a welcoming scent and I immediately relaxed.

Have been relaxed ever since...but who's surprised at that?

8)
 
Today ... i have time to prepare "Bumbu Bali" -Base Gede for daily use... is very practice... and good as basic spicy for some receipt. As well i mixed all of ingredients ... i think about this thread: Smell of Bali. It´s really smell of Bali.... in my kitchen... and today my husband can use this spicy-mix for his menu... this evening, when i come home ... ´´ll find "lamb bumbu bali" for my dinner ;-)
-Dyah
 
Dyah,

Thank you for the inspiration. After reading your post this morning, I decided to get off my arse and do something today. So, I made some Base be Pasih for the fish at to night's dinner. It came out OK, but not exactly like the picture :( , but it's good enough for government work...(I made enough for an army of hungry Balinese :lol: ), and certainly, I am sure, not as what you can make.
 
One of my favourite 'smells' is from a lemon grass or cempaka oil burner. I instantly want a massage and a body scrub. :D
 
Daniel ...yessss. smell of Bali make me hungry too.
But Boli have good idea too: Bali-Wellness is very positive now... in autumm "depressive-seasons-of the year"... cold and dark :(
-Dyah
 
Although I have not smoked for many years the smell of kretek cigarettes always reminds me of home. The food smells I am lucky to get all the time I am with my family. :D
 
Dyah,

i remember the dark afternoons and cold nights of Germany.

Try to imagine the frangipani smells to warm you up. :)
 
The smells of Bali is what gets me trough the winter with no sun and could weather. we eat Balinese food almost every day, we burns dupa everyday when we pray. and this morning when I came home from night shift I could smell kretek. my husband had smoked a kretek cigarett before he had gone to bed. this is the smells that make me go on until our next trip to Bali.
 
you guys and girls describes the best smells and i love them all......
what about bad smells..like this one....Durian, hahaha.
For me personally it smells like an open sewage :lol: .
anyways till now thats the worst smell i have smelled overhere.
a good second place of worst smells, is the burning corpses from time to time :( .
again,,as tastes and smells are personal and differ from one person to the other...this was only my humble contribution to this post..
friendly greetings...Gilbert.
 
yeah, sewage, more like dead bodies rotting in the sun, if there is something I would try not to address, it is Smells of Bali, come on guys, you must be kidding!!!
For one nice smell, there are 10 unbelievably stinky smells, the streets, the rivers, the pollution, come on, get real, the place is beautiful but it stinks like there is no tomorrow!!!! :)
 
Let me be clear although those smells i described are not very nice smells....But I do think they should be there...in other words, Take the badd smells with the good...no problem smelling durian while eating some delicious sate kambing :)
 
Let me be clear although those smells i described are not very nice smells....But I do think they should be there...in other words, Take the badd smells with the good...no problem smelling durian while eating some delicious sate kambing :)
 
For me the smell of Bali is one of the deciding factors for me being here. I've been in many Asian countries and they all stink - sewerage, rot, mildew, etc.

Not a whiff of any of those here, really not a whiff. The only thing I smell occasionally is that of vomit, but I'm told this is from some plant or other - for obvious reasons haven't ventured into the undergrowth to find it :lol:

One of my favourites is the promanade in Sanur at night - that lovely sea breeze mixed with the low warm air and soft mixed smells of excellent cooking. After a busy, hot day even sex takes a back seat - but that may be a sign of age - if so, thank God for it!
 
mmm i love the smell of dupa. i've just ran out of my massive supply from last year so am now on the jasmine, sandalwood and nag champa. i cant seem to be able to find dupa anywhere in perth. i love the smell of the morning in the wet season, when you walk out on the streets the sun is coming out after the morning rain and you can smell the dew and dupa
 
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