DENPASAR, INDONESIA, March 10, 2008: The normally vibrant Indonesian tourist destination of Bali came to a standstill last Friday as the island’s Hindu majority celebrated the Hindu New Year. The Day of Silence, known as Nyepi, saw Balinese staying home, not working or playing, and for the most devout not even talking or eating. The island’s international Ngurah Rai airport was closed while shops were shuttered and streets deserted, apart from the presence of traditional guards tasked with enforcing the silence. Tourists who had on Thursday been hitting beaches and shopping streets were also made to spend the day inside their hotels out of deference to the holiday.
The strictly enforced silence is intended as a time of spiritual contemplation for Balinese Hindus, whose sometimes unique observances incorporate practices found only on the island. Despite the fact that Balinese Hindus make up a small minority of the general population, Nyepi is observed as a national holiday in Indonesia, the world’s largest Muslim-majority country.