Culture and history info

Balinese culture was strongly influenced by Chinese, Indian, and especially Hindu culture. When the empire of Hindu Majapahit declined, there was an exodus of intellectuals, artists, priests, and musicians from Java to the Balinese colony. A Portuguese ship foundered off the Bukit Peninsula and left a few Portuguese in the service of Dewa Agung, this is thought to be The first European contact for Bali. In 1597 the Dutch arrived at Bali and established The Dutch East India Company. The Dutch government expanded during the second half of the 19th century.

Alfred Russel Wallace traveled to Bali to devise his Wallace Line theory. The Wallace Line is a faunal boundary that runs through the strait between Bali and Lombok. It has been found to be a boundary between species of Asiatic origin in the east and a mixture of Australian and Asian species to the west. In his travel memoir The Malay Archipelago, Wallace wrote of his experience in Bali.

During World War II, Imperial Japan occupied Bali.

Culture
Bali is famous for its diverse and sophisticated art forms, such as sculpture, woodcarving, painting, handcrafts, and performing arts.
Balinese cuisine is also distinctive.

Gamelan, Balinese percussion orchestra music, is highly developed and varied.

Balinese dances.
Temple festivals, private ceremonies, or public shows. The Hindu New Year, Nyepi, is celebrated in the spring by a day of silence. On this day everyone stays at home and tourists are encouraged to remain in their hotels. On the day before New Year, large and colorful sculptures of ogoh-ogoh monsters are paraded and finally burned in the evening to drive away evil spirits.