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BALI, Indonesia – The backdrop in the movie trailer looked vaguely familiar: Somebody pedaling a cruiser bike down a narrow alley; the magnificently contoured terraces of the rice field.
Wait, that’s Bali – and it hit me that I was leaving for the Indonesian paradise the next day.
One of three travel areas in “Eat Pray Love” – the newly released Julia Roberts movie – the island is probably about to be overrun. It’s likely that the flick will do for Bali what “The DaVinci Code” did for Paris: cram it with more tourists.
A movie trailer – and I suspect the film – is unlikely to capture Bali’s unique essence. A trace of incense permeates the equatorial humidity, part of the ceremonial offerings that line every nook and cranny on every street. At night (and far away from the capital city of Denpasar), the chirping wildlife takes on a surround-sound quality. By day, the traditional gamelan music ensembles of percussion and xylophone-type chimes fill the air.