How Hinduism Made Us Prisoners.

New lesson in 'Do something stupid': Let yourself be persuaded to stay overnight in another hostel when the next day is the most important Hindu holiday on the island you are currently on.

At first, that doesn't sound so bad. Therefore, for a better understanding of my situation, here is a short excerpt from the Wikipedia entry about the holiday:

>> Nyepi is the Balinese "Day of Silence", of fasting and meditation. It is the highest Hindu holiday in Bali [...] Nyepi starts at 6 am and lasts until 6 am the following day. During these 24 hours, the following rules must be strictly observed:

• Amati lelanguan (no festivities): absolute silence, fasting, no indulgences of any kind
• Amati lelungan (travel ban): houses must not be left
• Amati karya (work ban): no work is allowed
• Amati geni (fire ban): no fire, no light

These rules are strictly adhered to in Bali. Radio and television stations do not broadcast on Nyepi. The airport is closed to all air traffic, there is no vehicle on the streets (except for emergency vehicles). There are no pedestrians on the streets or on the beaches. A great silence lies over the entire island, in the evening and at night it is almost completely dark. So-called Pecalang, religious police officers dressed in black-and-white checked sarongs, patrol the streets to enforce the rules. Tourists are also expected to follow the rules (at least the curfew). <<

Consequence for me: If I don't want to be arrested by the Pecalangs, I will be stuck in a hostel for the next 24 hours, which is not mine, with mostly people I just met the night before, without fresh clothes, without a good book, without the possibility to shower or brush my teeth, and above all without Lisa, Felix, and Moritz. And of course, I don't need to mention that it is also the first time in our entire time in Indonesia that it is pouring rain all day long. Just perfect for my hangover.

We should have just followed the others. Because the majority of our friends and acquaintances did it right and escaped before the holiday. To do this, it is actually only necessary to leave Bali, including the two associated Nusa islands, as only on these islands the proportion of residents with Hindu beliefs is higher. On all other islands, the proportion of Muslims is greater - in most cases it is even around 90% - so the holiday is not celebrated to this extent there.

Patrick (Norway), Jackson (California, USA), and Tina (Czech Republic), who were all still in Canggu after my return from Borneo, for example, spontaneously decided to flee to Lombok - the island east of Bali - one day before the holiday. Not an easy undertaking at such short notice, as the 15% Muslim island residents of Bali also like to escape to the neighboring islands of Lombok and Java for the holiday. Accordingly, traffic conditions are also affected. Traffic jams, chaos, and crowded ferries. But in the end, they manage to escape.

Another old acquaintance that I meet again after my return is Anders from Malmö, Sweden. But even he leaves in time after a few more party nights with us at Old Man's to avoid the holiday. For him, it's directly off to Australia.

Back in Canggu, I also meet Pat and Sean, whom Lisa spent the last few days with in my absence, and whom I immediately take into my heart. Both are from America but met in Vietnam, where they teach English in schools. And now the two of them are traveling together temporarily. So the two of them also escape together to Java to avoid the holiday. However, God willing, both of them will meet us again in Chiang Mai (Northern Thailand) in just over two weeks, where we will celebrate the Songkran Water Festival - Thai New Year - together.

But back to me. Here I sit now. Still in the clothes from the last day, in which I also slept. Without being able to brush my teeth. Totally tired and slightly hungover. 'It's already so late,' they said. 'It's only raining,' they said. 'There's a free bed here,' they said. They are Oliver and Jonathan from Stockholm, Sweden, to be precise. You might still remember Oliver from previous posts from Canggu. I spent my last days before Borneo with him, among other things, when Lisa was already in Java.

Now some of you might wonder how I ended up in this unfortunate situation. It's easy to explain. You know that feeling when you think the evening is so great, funny, and just perfect, and you wish it would never end, so you miss the moment when the evening is over and you should have just gone home? I'm sure you do! That's exactly what happened to me. But without the possibility to go home later, after I realized that the evening was over. Thanks Hinduism!

But let's start from the beginning. After spending a few relaxed days in Canggu with Lisa after my return from Malaysia, our group was finally getting an addition. Felix (Lisa's boyfriend) and Moritz (Felix's brother) joined us after a few nights in Bangkok - just in time one day before the holiday.

Together with all the other comrades-in-arms in the hostel who will be locked up with us during the holiday - including Manuel from Germany and Lasse from Denmark - we decide to make the most of our last evening of freedom. Since all bars and restaurants have been closed in preparation for the holiday for days, it means self-supply. Besides, Craig, the manager of Mojo Surf Hostel, assures us that there are enough drinks (beer) and food for our plans, so we won't go thirsty during our captivity.

Before we really get started, we don't want to miss the pre-evening holiday ritual. On the day before Nyepi, an exorcism ceremony is performed. Carnival-like processions are held on the main street of the respective villages. The highlight of this is the so-called Ogoh-Ogohs - huge, elaborately built puppets that represent evil spirits. The procession ends with the burning of the Ogoh-Ogohs on the beach, accompanied by loud noise. The purpose of the ceremony is to banish all evil spirits from the villages and the lives of the faithful Balinese people in order to restore a balance between the gods, the people, and nature.

Of course, we are not the only ones who have come up with the idea to attend the ceremony. There are masses of tourists on the streets, all eagerly waiting for something to happen. No one really knows if they are at the right place. Even the locals give very different information about where and when exactly the spectacle takes place. But when it finally starts, it is impossible to overlook. Huge monsters suddenly roll over the street - snake people with glowing eyes, hairy wolf-like figures growling at you, demons with six arms reaching out to grab you. It is overwhelming. And as it always is when a mass of tourists comes across something so impressive - everyone wants the best spot to get the coolest photo for Instagram and Co. No consideration for others. It was only a matter of time before our group got separated. In the end, I find myself only with Manuel by my side on a slightly elevated spot on the street, from where we can watch the procession - if you don't mind the view being obscured by smartphones held up to film.

Although Felix and Moritz are tall enough to stand out from the crowd, I can't find them. Instead, I come across Oliver, who is also there with Jonathan - a friend from home - and his friends. Hoping to find the rest of the group there, we make our way back to the hostel after the end of the ceremony. And there we are eagerly awaited - the cold beer already opened, the playing cards dealt. We spend the evening teaching each other drinking games - including '11½' by Lasse from Denmark, which is basically a simplified version of Blackjack, but with sips being distributed to the dealer. Also a completely unknown and much more complicated version of 'Higher or Lower', which the Swedes teach us. ***I will add a overview including a short description of all games at the bottom of the post***

We could have definitely spent the rest of the evening like this. However, even today in our hostel, the rule 'From 10 pm it's lights out' applies. Still marked by the previous evening, Lisa, Felix, and Moritz have already retired to their room. But I'm not tired yet, so I join Manuel and Lasse, who accompany Oliver and Jonathan to their hostel. [Mistake #1 from the lesson 'Do something stupid'] There seems to be no curfew there. And indeed. When we arrive at the hostel, we immediately come across other residents who ask us to participate in the drinking game 'Big Kings Cup' - also known as 'Ring of Fire' or 'Circle of Death'. A No is not accepted. If you know the game, you know that you may have to drink quite a lot in a short amount of time. Therefore, after a few rounds, I discreetly excuse myself by appointing myself as the drink refiller. However, Manuel and Lasse even switch from beer to spirits, so especially Manuel is quite drunk in a short time. This means that he also loses control of his volume, and after several outbursts, the initially very relaxed security guy is no longer relaxed at all. 'No more party. Party over!' he says, very belatedly. But we are not interested in that at all because it's just so much fun. So we convince Manuel that the party is over to get him to leave, which actually works. With Lasse as support, he starts his way home. But I still don't feel like going to bed and decide to stay. [Mistake #2 from the lesson 'Do something stupid'] As soon as the cause of the noise - Manuel - is removed, the security guy is relaxed again, and we are allowed to continue our 'party'. When suddenly it starts pouring rain. That brings us to my third and final mistake of the evening. I let myself be persuaded to stay.

Next day: Hangover. Mainly for the others, because I stopped drinking in time. Besides, the bed I managed to get was surprisingly comfortable. Nevertheless, the shock is great when I realize that I am now stuck here for 24 hours. And that with an overwhelming majority of Swedes around me. And those who have done a trip like this will surely know that feeling. When you are the only person in a group of people from the same nation but don't speak their language, it is extremely difficult for the people present to stick to English. And Swedish, seriously. Who can understand that? So, my activity for the day is limited to learning card games. Including, of course, drinking games, which I also include in the list below. Because what helps against a hangover better than continuing to drink?

After another night in a foreign bed - I keep thinking about whether the person who owns the bed has suffered the same fate as me - it is time to say goodbye the next morning. For me, it's off to my hostel as early as possible, where I'm welcomed like the lost sheep. And let me tell you one thing - taking a shower and brushing my teeth has never felt so good!

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DRINKING GAMES - GUIDE

Fuck the Dealer

The 'chosen' dealer takes the deck of cards in hand and looks at the top card. Now the player to the left of the dealer must guess the value of this top card. If he guesses wrong, the dealer says whether the value of the card is 'higher' or 'lower' (he must not lie, of course). Now the player has a second chance. If he is wrong again, he has to drink the difference between the correct card and his last guessed card. For example, if he guessed a '3' the second time but it was actually a '5', he has to drink two sips.

If the player guesses correctly on the first try, the dealer has to drink 4 sips, if he is right on the second guess, the dealer has to drink 2 sips. The dealer is only changed when three players in a row have guessed wrong. The game continues until all cards are gone.

Note: The played cards can be placed openly on the table as desired, especially towards the end of the game, to increase the likelihood of guessing correctly.

Card order: A,2,3,4,5,6,7,8,9,10,J,Q,K

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Pyramid

Setup: Place a 5-4-3-2-1 pyramid on the table with the cards facing down. Each player gets three cards face down.

The players have 5-10 seconds to memorize the cards without showing them to the others. Then each player puts his cards face down in front of him. It is important to remember the cards and the order in which they lie because it is not allowed to look at the cards again until you are asked to do so. More on that later.

Now the cards of the pyramid are turned over one by one. During this, sips can be distributed. In the first row, it is one sip per card, in the second row, it is two sips, in the third row, three can be assigned, and so on. You can assign a sip either if you have the revealed card or based on a bluff. If you are assigned a sip, you have two options: 1. you believe the other player and drink the assigned sips, or 2. you claim that the other player is bluffing and refuse the sips. In the second case, the other player must now reveal the correct card on the first try to prove that he is not bluffing. If he can present the card, you have to drink twice as many sips as initially assigned. If the other player is bluffing, he drinks twice as many sips. The game continues until all cards of the pyramid are turned over.

****

11½

One player is the dealer. All other players receive a face-down card that only they are allowed to view. The goal is to get as close as possible to 11½ in the sum of the cards. All cards count according to their printed value. Jack, Queen, and King each count as ½, and an Ace stands for either a 1 or an 11.

Now it's the dealer's turn. Each player tells the dealer the number of sips they want to bet on the game and then indicates whether they want to receive another card from the dealer to get closer to 11½. They can ask the dealer for as many cards as they want. However, if they exceed 11½ in the process, they have to drink the sips they bet.

If the player stays below 11½ and also doesn't want another card, it's the dealer's turn to lay down cards for himself. He tries to get closer to 11½ than the player without knowing the player's original card. If the dealer exceeds 11½, he has to drink the sips bet. However, if he stays below 11½ but further away from it than the player, the player has to drink the sips bet.

This continues until all cards in the deck are used up. The next player clockwise becomes the dealer.

****

Big Kings Cup, Ring of Fire, Circle of Death

Setup: Place an empty glass in the middle of the table and distribute a complete deck of cards face down around it like a ring.

Now each player turns over a card in turn. However, the ring must not be broken, otherwise the player causing it has to chug his drink. Each card has its own rule that must be followed.

Rules:

A - Waterfall: The player who turned over the card starts drinking. All other players do the same. You keep drinking until the player in front of you (clockwise) stops drinking. But of course, you can continue drinking to influence the drinking duration of the following players.

2 - You: The player who turned over the card can assign a sip to any other player.

3 - Me: The player who turned over the card has to drink one sip himself.

4 - Whores: All girls have to drink one sip.

5 - Thumb master: The player who turned over the card can put his two thumbs on the table at any time during the game. All other players have to do the same. The person who is last has to drink one sip.

6 - Dicks: All boys have to drink one sip.

7 - Heaven: The player who turned over the card can raise his hands in the air at any time during the game. All other players have to do the same. The person who is last has to drink one sip.

8 - Mate: The player who turned over the card selects a mate. This person has to drink whenever you have to drink during the rest of the game.

9 - Rhyme: The player who turned over the card says a word. Going clockwise, all players now have to say a word that rhymes with the initial word. If a player takes too long or gets completely stuck, they have to drink. Words that have no rhyme are forbidden.

10 - Categories: The player who turned over the card names a category. Going clockwise, all players have to name a word that fits in this category. If a player takes too long or gets completely stuck, they have to drink. A category could be car brands, sports, federal states, for example.

Jack - Rule: The player who turned over the card can come up with a rule that all players have to follow for the rest of the game. A rule could be that everyone can only drink with their left hand.

Queen - Question master: The player who turned over the card is the Question Master. If you, as the Question Master, ask someone in the group a question and they answer, they have to drink. But if they say 'Fuck you Question Master', you have to drink. You remain the Question Master until the next Queen is turned over.

King: The player who turned over the card has to pour some of his drink into the empty glass in the middle. The person who turns over the last King in the deck has to drink the glass in the middle.

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Never have i ever

Known in Germany as 'Ich habe/war noch nie' (I have/never). The game is simple. Each player takes turns stating something they have never done before. All players who have done that thing have to take a sip.

Example: 'I have never been arrested by the police.' Every player who has been arrested has to drink.