So I glanced in the mirror this morning (I assure you, it was an accident) and I didn’t like what I saw. I mean, I’ve never been one of those narcissistic types that just melt with adoration at the sight of my reflection – but this was b-a-d. Maybe once I had a body that [...]

How did you get started in the wine business? Hatten Wines is a family business. We started making rice wine, Brem, around the 1960s and then we decided to create Hatten Wines in 1994. Since 1990, the government has prohibited the opening of new alcohol- producing business. Considering Hatten established in 1994, how did you [...]

A full-sized pool table appeared in the compound during the night one day last week. No one seemed to notice except me, and when I pointed it out, there was quite a bit of shrugging of shoulders and wonderment at my surprised reaction to it. It’s not that new things don’t appear in the compound [...]

Jilly Cooper’s Class, written in 1979, was a hysterically funny book that took a massive swipe at the pretentiousness of the class system in Britain. It caused a huge uproar that even had the Duke of Edinburgh irritated enough to accost her at a function to deny such a thing still existed in Britain. Cooper [...]

By Virginie Montet Agence France-Presse With the holiday season in full swing, Americans hit by the recession and unemployment are remembering “it’s the thought that counts” and finding budget-friendly ways to give their loved ones gifts. “People want to know how to manage the holiday on a budget without offending anyone. This is a huge [...]

…. because of its lovely daily sunsets. Meike Gaeda, 22, Passau, Germany

David Booth, 62, is a civil engineer from England who moved to Bali in 1993 and founded the East Bali Poverty Project. He shared his day with Carla Albertí de la Rosa. I can say, when I die, I can take my wealth in my heart, not in my pocket. My most enjoyable part of [...]

From the perspective of Klaas Stunnenberg, 25, a mechanical engineering student visiting Bali from Enschede, Netherlands. What are we here for? For no specific reason. Do you believe in the Big Bang theory that the circa-13.7-billion-year-old universe and all that’s in it was created by a massive explosion of enormously dense matter at what may [...]

Hannah Wassenburg, 70, from the Netherlands, is a retired special aid teacher who visits Bali frequently. She has two children and four grandchildren. What’s the greatest lesson life has taught you? Just enjoy life. What’s most important? Health comes first. What advice would you give the younger generations? Find a way to live your life [...]

By Richard Laidlaw Australian opposition leaders are not generally newsworthy beyond their own fatal shore, unless there is a risk that they might become prime minister. There are exceptions to this generally sensible rule: the last opposition leader but one, Brendan Nelson, had absolutely no hope of seeing the inside of The Lodge in Canberra [...]

By Ariel Kastner With almost 58 percent of Swiss voters recently delivering an electoral surprise by casting ballots in favour of a referendum to ban construction of minarets in their country, it remains to be seen whether the result of the referendum will be good for Switzerland, or even for Europe as a whole. This [...]

Efforts in recent years to promote Bali abroad under a branding package have failed, due in large part to a lack of vision, creativity and hard cash. Even Bali-based companies operating overseas are hard-pressed to come up with their own catchy slogans. One particularly poor attempt was that of failed airline Air Paradise and its [...]