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Archive for the ‘Bali’ Category

Denpasar, capital of the Indonesian Province of Bali

By Traveller On July 2, 2008 No Comments

The capital of the Indonesian Province of Bali has around 400,000 inhabitants and is therefore congested, loud and hectic. However, the museum, art center and market are worth a visit.

The buildings in the Bali Museum in traditional palace and temple architecture are well worth seeing. The collections inside provide a good overview of Bali’s history; the dance masks and shadow play figures are particularly worth visiting. The Werdhi Budaya Art center on the eastern side of the beach combines Balinese architecture in opulent gardens with exhibitions of art and wooden crafts. Furthermore, dances are also performed here and the Bali Cultural Festival takes place every year in June/July. Genuine Balinese life can be experienced in Pasar Badung, the multi-story market hall where the Balinese buy everything they need. A prolific choice of arts and crafts can be found at Pasar Kumbasari, the basement of which has a night market from late afternoon.


Candi Dasa – over-exploitation of nature in Bali

By Traveller On July 2, 2008 No Comments

Candi Dasa could be used as a textbook example of over-exploitation of nature, which is still taking revenge. The beautiful beach in front of the bungalow complex was once protected by a coral reef, which fell prey to dynamite fishing and pillage for building materials.

Nature retaliated and flooded the beach. Now, only when the tide goes, out a narrow strip of sand can be seen. Swimming is only feasible at high tide, and even then not safely. Long concrete wave breakers have been erected to protect the hotels, which all built pools long ago, from the force of the sea. In spite of this, Candi Dasa promises a pleasant, peaceful holiday: beautiful bungalow complexes boast good restaurants with no hustle and bustle, and the surrounding area offers alluring excursions. Those really looking to bask on the beach head to Balina Beach, Mendira Beach or Sengkidu Beach a few miles west.


Ubud – Bali’s second most important tourist center

By Traveller On June 29, 2008 No Comments

Bali’s second most important tourist center offers a fantastic symbiosis of nature and culture. In the midst of rice fields, surrounded by small villages such as Campuan, Peliatan and Pengosekan, it is alluring for walks, short walking tours or cycling. Ubud is the artistic center of the island, where the most painters, woodcarvers, dancers and Gamelan musicians live. The best dancing on the island is performed here every evening.

In the 1930s, the German painter Walter Spies and the Dutchman Rudolf Bonnet founded the Pita Maha art school here which has strongly influenced Balinese painting. The works of European and local painters of various styles are exhibited in the Ubud museum. Puri Lukisan in the center of town, Museum Neka north of Campuhan and the Agung Rai Museum of Art in Pengosekan. Monkey Forest Road lies at the center of the shops and restaurants and is often the only road that visitors see on short visits to Ubud.


Sanur

By Traveller On June 28, 2008 No Comments

It was here, starting with the Bali Beach Hotel constructed by the Japanese as a reparation measure, that tourism first emerged in Bali in 1966. This ugly concrete block remains the only monstrosity on the island since a law prevents other buildings from extending above palm-tree height.

Europeans came much earlier: In her must-read novel A Tale from Bali, Vicky Baum describes everyday life in Sanur, where the Belgium painter Adrien Jean Le Mayeur founded a cosmopolitan artist colony in the 1930s. His house at the northern end of the beach is now a museum. The beach is wide and protected by a coral reef which enables people, including children, to swim safely. The other side of the coin: when the tide goes out, you cannot swim. Water-skiing and paragliding are also possible. Boat excursions take tourists out to dive on the reef. Sanur is a quiet bathing resort with fine accommodation, much of it directly on the beach, good restaurants and numerous shops – everything you need for a restorative (family) holiday.


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