Nyepi Holiday

Indonesia has so many cultural and religious holidays throughout the year. These celebrations are always a national holiday. That would mean, any government offices and schools are closed. However, stores and public facilities are open, and this is the peak where people often flock these places.

Today, is the Balinese day of silence, or known as "nyepi" which is celebrated by Balinese. As far as I know, even if they don't live in Bali, they still celebrate it too, like one of my colleagues at uni. Though I don't celebrate it, I can only imagine some great spots to experience this holiday which is around Bali and some Hindu temples in Yogyakarta. Unfortunately, I was not there, in Yogyakarta otherwise, I would have gone.

But today, my mom, Ray, and I got to enjoy the holiday by swimming. I can tell you as much that these days, swimming takes our time and is a fun hobby for the three of us. We started swimming as early as 8:30 AM and finished by 11PM. The place was not as packed as when we left the place. Hopefully, by tomorrow the pool will be cleaned and I can swim again comfortably.

Right after swimming, we got our lunch at a cafe called. " Dogel", one of my favorite places in town to get my caffeine and matcha fix. The places serves coffee, steak, rice bowls, and platters. Our favorite after swimming is a filling carbs with protein. I didn't have any breakfast but just a fried egg yolk because we were in a hurry, so the meal was really a satisfying one. I never get disappointed with the taste in this place. The coffee and the meals were up to par and very reasonable for the price.

One secret that powers me through the day without messing up my sleep cycle is the matcha espresso. If you have never had matcha espresso, I suggest you try that. It's caffeinated but mild. There's some sort of calmness when I drink that compared to the anxious, jittery, coffee feeling. It's also great to keep me awake for more before I hit the hay.

It's actually quite rare for me and my mom to spend the time during a national holiday. So, it was really fun time to talk and just a once in a blue moon thing for us.