An ‘official’ past time for a Balinese is ‘melali’, which basically means ‘going out somewhere’. This could be by yourself or with a friend; visiting someone or simply going nowhere in particular.
These often spontaneous adventures invariably involve a coffee and a snack somewhere on the way. Balinese are famous for being ‘grazers’ and a break at a tiny warung is a mandatory pit-stop. A stop like this also serves to break up the trip a bit—reviving the energy levels with a Krating Daeng, a Gudang Garam and a thick, sugar-fuelled kopi Bali ….
The word ‘melali’ has a pretty carefree feel to it, something typical of the Balinese nature. And the attitude is scarily contagious. Often I’m inspired to ‘melali’ spontaneously with someone or just jump on my motorbike and visit a friend in a village—the more remote the better.
The longer you live in Bali the more you will notice that people don’t normally phone first before they visit; they just drop in on the off-chance that you’re at home. I picked up on this habit too, and have tried it out on occasion during a visit to my ‘down under’ homeland. Sadly, I’ve learnt that spontaneous drop-ins don’t quite work so well outside of the sprawling archipelago. People seem be somewhere toiling or being busy—and I get the odd sort of feeling that maybe I should have called first or made an official diary appointment, because they are invariably not home.
‘Melali’ may be a bit of a lost art in the hectic, time-driven societies of the West where life is pretty much about making a buck to fuel our insatiable affluent wants. For me, it’s little wonder that some of the bule tribe have retreated to a place like Bali where for most of us time is not money, but something to be treasured for the ‘here and now’, for a moment of spontaneity—if, for nothing else, to keep a grasp on an inkling of sanity.
