Our Chinese New Year

Remember that we are one day ahead of you, so today, February 3rd, is a holilday in Bali.I asked our resident scholar if there were a lot of Chinese in Bali and did not think there were. However, the town is festooned with red lanterns (I have been wanting one of those red lanterns since my China trip). Here the signs say Gung Xi Fa Chi or something like that. I guess it is Mandarin whereas our SF signs must be in Cantonese (Gung Hay Fa Choi).
Before breakfast Puji gave me a "snack" of rice porridge with a sweet syrup. It came in the usual banana leaf container in which it had been steamed. The only nod to modernity were the staples holding it together. I didn't get a picture of one of those yet. Then breakfast was served. I offered to say a Christian grace before the snack and Gede (Hundu) and Lia (Muslim) were happy to listen in. Everyone here is very  dutiful about praying before eating. Since this is an interreligious center, I thought I could expose them to some Christian prayer the way they are exposing me to theirs.
After breakfast I taught an English class. I used Visual Thinking Strategies which means i found a few pieces of art and asked the students the following three questions: What is going on in this picture? What do you see that makes you say that? What more can we find? It went fast and I discovered the pronunciation difficulties for Indonesians: it is hard for them to distinguish between a P and an F AND  making the TH sound... well, it is "under construction." May be done by the time I leave.
The clouds were threatening all day but at 3:30 pm we headed to the river on a lovely narrow beaten path through the ferns, bamboo, banana, cows,  and the occasional garbage dump. Sad to see garbage strewn amongst such beauty. The river was down a long moss covered stairway (= slippery). It was a rushing, gray river and there were LOTS of people washing clothes and themselves. The women we went with did their wash (yes, soap in the water). The youngest member of the Ashram, Wayan, who is 14 but looks about 10 went upstream and took a bath, vigorously scrubbing arm and let. Many people were naked - an old woman, boys and young men. But, everyone was starring at US. I don't feel as self conscious as Philip does, but everyone NOTICES us, at every moment. They are very friendly about it, so that is just the way it goes when you go WAY out of your way to go to a really different place.
I can't load pictures right now because I am not on my own computer, but have many to share, like of Gede (the dancer in previous pictures)  making offerings and decorations all day while having a verbal "fast." In other words he was having a day with no speech.
Will upload pics next time, when I hope to be in a nice hotel with good internet in the town of UBUD. Hope my family conference on skype actually works!! Love to all!
And remember: Senyum!! (SMILE).