Balinese man holding turtle catch for display on beach
An Balinese man standing on the beach beside a wooden fishing boat holds up a turtle he has just caught. The smiling man wears a green cap, blue jacket, shorts, and a black and white shoulder bag. Like fish, turtles are highly appreciated as protein-rich food in Indonesia.
Although coastal villages such as Kuta were lightly populated with fisherman before Bali’s tourist boom, most Balinese prefer to live and grow rice in the interior where fresh water is more abundant. Balinese tradition holds that the island’s interior mountains are home to the gods, while the coast is home to sea demons.




