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Hari Nyepi

On Saturday the 20th of March Hari Nyepi celebrations were held at the Paradise Point Community Center in Southport, presented by the Gold Coast Balinese Community. These celebrations were enjoyed by some of the AIAA members from Byron Bay – Judy, Ishta, Lin and Robert.

The event began with a performance of kendang by Jaemmy from Byron Bay, with Ryan on guitar. The gathering then joined in a traditional Balinese procession to the beach, where a Barong and Rangda dance was performed, by Bapak Nyoman and the Balinese community. Prayers and a ceremony were then conducted by the Balinese people. The procession returned to the community center accompanied by the music of Gamelan Giri Jaya orchestra from Toowoomba.

Awaiting the gathering at the community center was a sumptuous feast of Balinese traditional cuisine, which was enjoyed by all. This was followed with entertainment by beautiful dancers, who were captivating in their energy, joy and glowing costumes. One dancer who stood out was a young 12year old girl from the Balinese community, who was very impressive in her dancing and confidence. Greg Vickery, Honorary Consulate for Queensland also gave an important speech on the coming election in Indonesia, visa changes and important trade links between Australia and Indonesia.

In addition to the gorgeous celebrations and food the day also gave AIAA members from Byron Bay a chance to catch up with members and friends from Queensland. All in all a fantastic day was had by all.

Terima Kasih to the Gold Coast Balinese Community for organizing this wonderful event.
See you next year at the Hari Nyepi celebrations,
Judy and Ishta.