My wife and I were lucky enough to be invited to a local village to see preparations under way for a funeral to be held in Karangasem Regency in late august.
We were invited by a long time friend who was good enough to drive us both to the village and his own house in the hills behind Padang Bai.
To start with, the by-pass road, which also goes to the Safari Park and other attractions, is much improved and largely completed in the area as far as the park and beyond.
A huge improvement on the rough, swap to the other side arrangements that existed before.
The highway is partly funded by the Australian Government, and makes travel to Candi Dasa and the east coast a much nicer and quicker proposition.
The funeral arrangements have gone on now since April, and the whole exercise will cover about an eight month timeframe, with all significant dates carefully selected by priests and holy men.
There is a cemetery close to the village where some 22 people are buried, and these will be joined by some others to total around 40 to be dug from the ground, cleaned and burned.
Work at the moment involves the building of the ornate carriages and other equipment required for the occasion.
A temporary village has already been constructed comprising several rough buildings each with a specific function.
On the outskirts, cock fighting was under way and other gambling games probably just as it has been for hundreds of years.
If you have the chance to be involved in any of these sorts of celebrations, you should not let the chance go by.
Although we may understand just a small part of the process and associated beliefs it is still a fascinating experience.