Journey to Bali

One of my dream vacation would be visiting Bali and I heard a lot of nice stories about this little island. The island of Bali is part of the Republic of Indonesia, the largest archipelago in the world with over 18,000 islands. A popular tourist destination known for its natural attractions, perfect climate and relaxed atmosphere, this island of flowers, temples and friendly people is considered a real gem by travelers worldwide. This tropical island is one of the most stunning, and yet, now dangerous destinations on the planet. Recent terrorism attacks here and in other areas of Indonesia have stifled western tourism rather dramatically.



Name: Bali
Population: Approximately 3 million
Capital City: Denpasar
Languages: Bahasa Indonesia (official), English, Dutch and many local dialects.
Flag:


Official Currency: Indonesian Rupee (IDR or Rp)
Religions: Hindus (about 90%), Protestant, Muslim, Buddisht and others
Geographic Coordinates: 08° 39S, 115° 13E
Relative Location: Bali is located in the eastern and southern hemispheres. It's positioned in Southeast Asia, in central Indonesia, and sits just to the east of the island of Java, and just west of the island of Lombok. It's bordered by the Bali Sea and the Indian Ocean.
Land Area: 5,632 sq km (2,174 sq miles)
Terrain: Dormant volcanoes (some exceeding 3,000 meters) stretch across the island. Tropical rain forests, crater lakes and rivers dot the landscape. White sand beaches are on the southern coastline.

Out of the rubble of the Majapahit Emmpire which fell in 1515, rose the new Javanese Empire of Mataram built out of small kingdoms newly reinspire and reinvigorated by the advent of powerful Islamic influences. At the beginning of the 19th Century, Bali remained relatively unaffected by the Western influences which were already transforming much of the Indonesian archipelago. Bali's 16th Century Hindu civilization was still inviolate to any serious...



The Balinese has already owned their belief and culture when Hinduism was brought into Indonesia about 2000 year ago. Around 400 AD, the Hindu Kingdoms in Central and East Java had their great influence over Bali, but when a new religion, Islam came in, the Hindu Kingdom in Java became less and less powerful, at that time a large number of priests, noblemen. Artists and their followers refused the new religion and escaped to Bali. They blended their belief and traditions with those of the local people, a blend of which is inherited by the present Balinese people, the rich culture which is instead of the scenic beauty of the island, has attracted noir and more visitors from time to time. Now, what is Bali famous for besides their proclaimed nice beaches which recognized by people all over the world? (I heard that 20% of Australian population had visited Bali.) Besides the beaches, Bali is famous for it's authentic wood craftmanship, art painting and temples.

Some of interesting arts and statues that I encountered during my 4D3N visit.





Above: Welcoming offerings are placed in the family shrines and graceful "Penjor", tall arching bamboo decorated with palm leaves and flowers

In Bali, you can rent a car for as low as Rp200,000 per day (International Driving License is required and our Malaysian driving license cannot be accepted here. To obtain the license, just go to JPJ, fill up a form and pay RM30) or if you are scared to get lost, you can hire a chaffeur (like I did) to bring you all around Bali. Prices range from Rp350,000 to Rp600,000 a day depending of type of car. This payment should includes a driver, petrol, toll and parking fee for the entire day. (Tell them this when bargaining to avoid misunderstanding later)

(Note: RM1 = Rp2,500 as of Dec 17th, 2006)

I was fortunate to able to locate Lanus Tour (lanus_tour@yahoo.com) which offer nothing less than a good and friendly service. The owner of Lanus Tour, Bapak (address as Mr in Indonesia) Lanus (obviously) together with his assistant Bapak Hadi had been my tour guide for this trip. Lanus is a Hindu while Hadi is a Muslim.

(A special note for Muslims who wanted to travel to Bali. You are highly advised to get a tour guide in order to identify hotels and also whereabouts to get Halal food)

I stayed in Club Bali Mirage, Tanjung Benoa, south most of Bali which is about 15mins away from the Ngurah Rai (Bali) International airport and also 20mins away from Kuta, the happening city in Bali.

I chose to stay in Tanjung Benoa because I was told that it is much more quiet and serene and the beach is awesome.



Above: Here am I slurping Bakso noodles just outside the hotel. Men pushing carts (or some on bikes) selling Bakso are a common scene in Bali.

My very first visit in Bali, brought by Lanus and Hadi was Celuk (approximately 30mins drive north-east from my hotel), a place where it is famous for production of silverwares. Arnadi Shop located at the heart of Celuk, sits in a huge area consisting 4 main buildings, 2 being as living quarters for the owner's family, 1 building specially for making silverwares ranging from rings, bangles, necklace etc and another larger building would be the showroom. I was impressed by the detailness, artistic design and craftmanship offered by Arnadi Shop. I could not resist buying 1 Yin-Yang silver ring and another stone ring.

Tip: Please equip yourself with the art of bargaining and one can go as far as getting 50-60% off the retailed prices



Above: The surroundings of Arnadi Shop

Next stop, Lanus and Hadi drove up north to Ubud town. Ubud is a well known place for their artistic wood carvings and we went to Toko Rai, located in an area called Mas inside Ubud.

Tips: Toko means shop in Indonesian

P/S: Sorry but I left my camera in the car, so no pictures. Darn!!

After spending about an hour in Rai (and bought 2 very nice wood carvings), I told Lanus and Hadi that I need to recharge my body and asked them to bring me to a very nice but affordable place to have my lunch and they suggested Puncak Sari Restaurant located near Kintamani town but the journey will took approximately 45 minutes drive to the Eastern side of Bali. They assured me that I will not regret or they will pay for my lunch. How can one resist such an offer??

I could not agreed more. During the 45 mins drive, the surrounding temperature had dropped a few Celcius and the air was just majestic. Upon reaching Puncak Sari Restaurant, we were required to pay an entry fee and when Lanus somehow convinced them that I am not a foreigner but a local from Surabaya and also some convincing words from me speaking Indonesian language, we just need to pay Rp6,000 per car or else Rp20,000!!

The moment I stepped out of the car, I felt like I was in Genting Highlands. Cold and the air is clean minus the theme park of course. Puncak Sari Restaurant offers buffet style of meal and it is just cost Rp75,000 per person. I was taken by a beautiful local waitress to a table with the most magnificent view of Mount Batur, Lake Batur and Mount Agung. I was dumb-founded with the view.


Above: Mount Batur on the left and Mount Agong on the right. Lake Batur is just on the right hand side of Mount Batur.


Above: Volcano soil at the foot of Mount Batur

Mount Batur is an active volcano, standing tall at 1,717 metre and the first historically documented eruption of Batur was in 1804, and it has been frequently active since then. The last was being at the year 2000. Mount Agong is also an active volcano but it had it's last eruption in 1964. Mount Agung is a popular site for mountain climbers and it stood mightily at 3,031 metre.


Above: The restaurant layout (outdoor) on the left and mua having my lunch on the right.


Above: The sate you see is called Sate Lilit. The meat is made of fish. Just imagine Otak-Otak in a stick.

"Ok... the day is still young, so where are you taking me, Lanus?", I said. Although I try and speak Indonesian language with Lanus but he would reply me in English. Is either my Indonesian language surks or Lanus is just being professional in his job.

"Do you like coffee?", Lanus asked.

Of course!! How would one not like coffee and so off we go head back south to a coffee farm called Buana Amertha Sari (BAS) Agrowisata located at Tampak Siring. BAS was famous for it's traditional processing Bali coffee (see below).



One thing special about this agrowisata is that it offers free taste of their products before buying them.


Above: Sitting beside me was Pak Lanus and also Pak Hadi (back most)
Below: Coffee tasting is a serious business. Don't play-play...



On the table from the left was Java ginseng tea, hot cocoa, another cup Bali coffee (purposely ask for more!) and Ginger tea. Besides beverages, BAS sold wide range of aromatheraphy products for massage, essential oils and incense sticks as well. As a avid coffee lover, I almost bought the entire shop's coffee products.

Alright, the next interesting place that I had visited is the Tetra Empul which is not far from BAS. The journey only took about 15 minutes. The small town of Tampak Siring is actually well known for its vast temple offering public baths that were restored in 1959. The legend says that Indra, the giant drilled the Earth and made the amrita or immortality elixir gush out. These sacred springs of Tetra Empul come from the Sungai Pakerisan waters, running from about 1km above and filling a reservoir inside the temple. The people from Bali worship the same Gods as the Hindu Indians: Brahma, Shiva, Vishnu, but they also worship a supreme divinity called Sanhyang Widi.







Above: Late Sukarno's formal residence which is just up a hill beside Tetra Empul

Time flies when you are having so much fun as they said. The sun sets about 6pm in Bali. Final stop for the day is definitely Kuta town. The journey took about an hour from BAS. On route to Kuta, there was a procession going on with many local Balinese, old and young parading on the street. I was fortunate that day because according to Lanus, the Balinese is celebrating Odalan, an annual ceremony whereby every temple and shrine has a special date which occurs every 210 days, including the smaller ancestral shrines of which each family possesses. Because of this, practically every few days, a ceremony of festival of the same kind takes place in some villages in Bali. There are also times when the entire island celebrates the same holiday, such as Galungan, Kuningan, Nyepi and Saraswati.

Upon reaching Kuta, I was quite surprised that the enitre street is fulled with Western foreigners and I am somewhat so alien in the town. Lanus left me off somewhere near Kuta beach and I continued my journey by foot.


Above: It's the flash alright! Anyway, this is one of the Kuta street just outside Matahari shopping complex. Kuta beach is just right at the end of this street.

Out of a sudden, I felt home and I was fortunate that I saw something that make me feel at home.... McDonalds. I had my simple dinner there.


Above: I am darn hungry and my meal will not be satisfying without rice too. (Typical Malaysian!!)

Nusa Dua, another tourist attraction for it's beach and also shopping was just located 15mins away. Residence of hotels in Tanjung Benoa will enjoy a free shuttle ride from their hotels to Nusa Dua, thanks to Bali Collection.



Bali's reputation as a shopping and entertainment destination will make another giant stride forward with the formal grand opening on February 15, 2006 of The Bali Collection - a multi-faceted retail department store, shopping, dining and entertainment center located within the Nusa Dua Complex on the southernmost tip of the Island.

Including some 20,000 square meters of rentable space, The Bali Collection is targeted to be home to over one hundred leading brand shops and restaurants. Interspersed with theatres and sports centers, nightly entertainment programs and rotating art installations dotting the generous open plazas and walkways. The location of the Complex situated within a fenced and tightly controlled area within the security-safety perimeter of the Nusa Dua Complex offers the very highest standards of security for shoppers and diners available anywhere on the Island.



Following its soft-opening on December 15, 2005, visitors are already experiencing Bali’s most up-market shopping atmosphere presented by the Sogo Department Store. Also open and ready for business are several excellent restaurants and an assortment of Bali’s leading retail outlets.


Above: Lunch time at Tepi Laut

Not far from Bali Collection, it's the Nusa Dua beach. The beach is slightly whiter than the beaches in Kuta and Tanjung Benoa.


Above: Mua overlooking the Bandung Strait at one of the mini island at Nusa Dua



Above: One of the small temple on Nusa Dua beach, the Pura Nusa Dharma. Here is a structure where the local worships. There were 5 symbols on the sides of the structure; 3 on the left while 2 on the right. Each symbol represents a religion.
Below: This is Mangku Badra. He is one of the keeper for this temple. He is explaning about the history of this temple.



I was pretty amazed by the symbols engraved on the stone and Mangku Badra explained what symbols are those represents in detail and more history of this temple.



After walking under the hot scorching sun for more than an hour, what I want is a cool place with cold drinks. Thank god Sogo is there and guessed what; even my favourite Starbucks was there as well. Here I am (below) accessing my Nokia E61 to look out for WiFi connection but alas, the Starbucks here do not have WiFi facility (yet?).



On my final day in Bali, what I am looking forward is to rest under the coconut tree, reading a book and listening to MP3s on my Sony Ericsson W850 Walkman phone.





Above: My favourite companions.... a bag of chip and cool icy Carlsberg. Never leave home without them!

Below: Switch place... now tanning by the beach.



Ok, when it comes to food, I must admit that pork is a very popular ingredient in Bali.



My balance diet for the morning would be (above) fish fingers (12 o'clock) and moving clockwise would be 2 pork sausages, 2 slices of pancakes with Mapel syrup top with choolate rice, fried potatoes, steamed rolled cabbages and below, a must have, is an omelette (2 eggs) top with yummy bacons. Not forgetting a mug of coffee!



There was a Muslim restaurant just outside the hotel. Well, there is a lot of restaurants along the road but mostly catering Western food and the price is slightly.... pricey. What I want is to taste their local dishes! So I stopped by Warung Pekalongan.



Below: My dinner consisting of (starting from right) Serunding Ikan, a boiled egg, 3 pieces of tauhu, 2 pieces of fried Tempe (soybean), a small piece of fried chicken and last but not least, a cold glass of Es Jeruk (mixture of asam boi with lime). It costs me only Rp15,000 (RM6.oo)



Anyway, one last friendly advise that should you guys want to change your currency, always look for Central Kuta Money Changer which one can find it abundant in Bali. They give a very reasonable exchange rate plus they don't take any commissions which most other money changer does!!