Feb 20 - Mitra Bali, Silver Jewelry, Besakih Hindu Temple

On Wednesday we headed north from Sanur and made our first stop on a hilltop where we had a panoramic view of rice fields in all directions. Fields were being prepared and flooded for transplanting, rice seedlings were almost ready to be transplanted and the gravity fed irrigation system was working to bring water from the upper levels to lower level rice paddies. 

Rice seedlings in the foreground, ready to be transplanted into the flooded fields just behind.

 

A farmer breaking up the earth to prepare it for flooding and then transplanting of rice.

 

We drove on to the village of Kubu in Bangli district where we visited the home and workshop of Mrs. Wayan Sugiani and her husband Selamet. Wayan learned silversmithing a few years ago from her brother and quickly became the master silversmith of the family. Her husband, Selamet was a woodcarver but he quit his occupation to join his wife in her business since she was a successful silversmith and was generating a lot more income through her work. Wayan is now the boss of the family business. They have 2 daughters, the oldest is 12 and studying at the 6th level in the local government school, the youngest is 4. Three related families live on the same property and they all help each other out when they are busy. While we were visiting, artisans were working on wood carvings for export customers and on bird cages and food covers for local customers. In addition, they have land for farming. Mitra Bali helps them with orders for their handcrafted products and provides them with loans and programs like their 'cow advocacy' program. 

 

Wayan thought that some of our questions were pretty funny.

 

Wayan is a confident and accomplished silversmith.
 

We asked her what part of her work she enjoys the most and she said it is 'welding' or soldering the silver components together. Here she is working on an 'infinity' pendant for a Villages order.
 

Silver wire, an acetylene torch, tweezers, some pliers and a block of terracotta is all she needs to produce high quality silver jewelry for Villages stores in Canada and the USA.
 

Wayan's design and order book that shows various designs and the quantity/wieght of silver needed for each piece.
 

Emily was pleased with her purchase of Wayan's silver jewelry.
 

 

Amy, Charlotte and Betty are trying to decide which of Wayan's silver pieces to buy.


Dave is exchanging money with Wayan's sister as payment for his purchase of silver jewelry.

 

 

Selamet, their 12 year old daughter, Wayan, and their 4 year old.


Wayan Sugiani is a talented silversmith who is building a solid future for her family.
 

 

Flowers in Wayan's garden.


Other extended family members make handmade products for the local market. These are food covers used to keep insects off of food in the kitchen.
 

Still other family members are wood carvers who produce carving for the local tourist market and for export.
 

 

Wayan's niece quickly made friends with Adi of Mitra Bali and Alicia from our tour group while we waited out a big rainstorm at Wayan's workshop.

 

We enjoyed another great lunch with a spectacular view at the Mahagiri Restaurant in Rendang.

 

The view of rice terraces from the open air Mahagiri Restaurant at Rendang on Bali.

 

 

Dave posing with his son's globe-trotting sock monkey beside the statue of Ganesh at the Mahagiri Restaurant.

 

After lunch we drove up to Besakih Hindu temple. It is known as the Mother Temple of Hindus on Bali because it may be the first temple built - back in the 7th century. 

 

Besakih temple is a complex of temples and structures that was started in the 7th century but is still being added to today. In order to be dressed properly for the temple visit we all donned our Mitra Bali fair trade sarongs.

A large ornate wood carved plaque ornamented with gold leaf  and set into a stone alcove at the Besakih temple.

Our learning tour group along with Ari (Mitra Bali), left front, Adi (Mitra Bali), right front, and Pak Imam Pituduh (former director of Pekerti), far left, back row.

We left the temple and drove up the mountain to view the Mt. Batur volcano and lake. But clouds had moved in and we could not see the lake nor the mountain due to the thick fog and cloud. So, we drove back to our hotel in Sanur and had dinner at the hotel or at a nearby restaurant. A few of us found a nice little restaurant on Sanur beach and enjoyed our pork sate and rice at a table set right on the sand.

 

Tomorrow we jump on a plane to the next island east of Bali, Lombok. We are looking forward to our visit with Lombok Pottery Centre for the next two days.