Why is the color of Bali black? — The color of the country ① (Bali Diary ④)

Four days spent completely wrapped in the smiles of Bali and its people. This time, our lodging was what you might call a "secluded" villa. With no restaurant and a design that keeps a little distance from the outside world, even the convenience store and café were a bit too far to walk to. This year we decided not to rent a motorbike either, and to deliberately enjoy a stay where we didn't move around much. Even so, we figured we should at least take a little walk, and stepped outside. Indonesian-style "jalan" (jalan = to walk) — a leisurely stroll for the two of us as a couple.

⚫️There are household Shinto altars all over the place. They're wrapped in cloth. That's when it hit me — there sure is a lot of black around. The restaurant staff's uniforms. The cloth on the Shinto altars. The outfits of people passing by on the street. Even the motorcycles have a striking amount of black. At first, I thought it might just be a coincidence.

Ho Chi Minh City, where I usually live, is a city of colors, patterns, and neon — flashy above all! There's a lot of sound, too. Car horns, music from storefronts, people's voices. Brightness, energy, and strength are pushed ever forward. Standing in Bali while still carrying that sensation, the reserved atmosphere of the people and their chic attire stand out remarkably. Voices are low, and the tone is soft. The colors of the clothing are subdued as well. Black, unbleached fabric, deep brown. In Bali, black is present in everyday life. The black-and-white checkered cloth wrapped around statues and trees on street corners — it is called "Poleng," and it is said to symbolize the philosophy of Balinese Hinduism. Good and evil, light and shadow, the sacred and the profane. Rather than excluding one or the other, it's the idea that the world is made whole by the coexistence of the two. Black is not evil. Alongside white, it is a color for maintaining balance. Looking into it further, black also carries the meaning of protection, and it is sometimes believed to hold the power to ward off evil spirits. Black for protection.

⚫️ Dressing in black! When I think about it that way, the black so common in the city starts to look less like an aggressive color and more like a quiet color of defense. It's not a black that flaunts strength. A subtractive black. A black that doesn't assert itself too much, yet has a core. I used to think travel was something that changes the scenery, but it felt like it quietly shifted the standard of color within myself.

⚫️ There were a lot of black motorbikes too, huh~ Whenever I think back on Bali and Ubud, a strangely calming black comes to mind.

⚫️There were lots of dogs too... it just happened, but a black dog took a liking to me and we walked together the whole time. While I was writing about the black of Bali, I also remembered the damp shadows I felt in Ubud. The continuation is written in "Why I'm Drawn to Ubud's Design — Within Moss-Covered Time: A Country's Color ②." Why I'm Drawn to the Design of Bali & Ubud — Within Moss-Covered Time: A Country's Color ② (Bali Diary ⑥) Relocation Life Ranking