Archive for February, 2008
The Weaving Cultures of Bali and Flores, Indonesia A Textile Tour With Threads of Life July 19 – August 01, 2008
Source: Threads of Life
Feb 06, 2008 23:29:38
(PRLog.Org) – Feb 06, 2008 – In their motifs and ceremonial uses, the traditional textiles of Indonesia represent an understanding of the natural world and community that has sustained people through the centuries. As economic forces drive weavers to abandon time-honored traditions the textile arts degrade and so do the cultures they express. Supporting the continuation of the textile arts demonstrates that these traditions have value in a modern, global context. This restores people’s pride in their culture and ensures the traditions supporting their physical and spiritual life continue.
During 8 days in Bali, you will learn about the weaving traditions of Bali and eastern Indonesia, and experience hands-on the arts of ikat tie-dyeing, backstrap loom weaving, batik, and dyeing with natural indigo-blue and Morinda-red. In Bali, and also during 4 days in central Flores, you will meet members of the weavers’ cooperatives supported by Threads of Life and see them practicing their arts with a newly refined eye. Facilitated discussions will open a two-way dialogue with the weavers. There will be time for personal interaction and the opportunity to buy directly from the artists.
Source: http://www.prlog.org/
February 8th, 2008
(Antara-News) The Indonesian resort island of Bali has again won “The Best Exotic Destination” award, this time from the London-based Luxury Travel Magazine, a tourism official said.
“The readers of Luxury Travel Magazine in 27 countries have chosen Bali as the best resort island,” the head of the Bali Provincial Tourism Office I Gde Nurjaya said on Thursday.
The award was presented to Bali through the Indonesian Embassy in London, he said.
“We are waiting for information from the embassy on when the award will be sent to Bali,” he said.
He expressed hope the award would further improve Bali`s tourism image in the eyes of the world community as a comfortable and secure tourist destination.
Last year, the province received similar awards from one of the leading magazines in the United States and two magazines with large circulations in Asia.
In 2006, 4.7 million readers of the US-based Time magazine chose Bali as the world`s best tourist island.
Source: http://my-indonesia.info/
February 6th, 2008
(Balidiscovery) Food & beverage suppliers of raw materials and equipment will gather in Bali February 28 – March 1, 2008 at the FHT Bali 2008 – Food, Hotel & Tourism Bali.
Organizers are promising a 40% increase in participants at this year, making the Bali gathering one of the largest trade gatherings of its type in Indonesia.
Those visiting the many booths at FHT Bali 2008 at the Bali International Convention Center (BICC) will:
• Have the opportunity to sample new food and drink products from around the world.
• See the latest in kitchen, hotel and restaurant equipment and technology.
• See top rated international chefs demonstrate their skills.
Bocuse d’Or Cooking Competition
The Indonesian segment of the Bocuse d’Or Asia 2008 culinary competition will be held at the Salon Culinaire 2008 in conjunction with FHT Bali 2008.
During the competition, teams consisting of two professional chefs representing a hotel or restaurant and one official coach will compete. Each team must prepare and present within the allotted time of 180 minutes, one fish main course dish for 14 persons, Western style. The dishes must be presented on 14 individual plates with two appropriate garnishes each. Working in kitchen booths facing the audience, they will endeavor to achieve excellence for their fish dishes as well as the garnishes.
The winner of the Indonesian Bocuse d’Or selected in Bali will go on to represent Indonesia at the first edition of Bocuse d’Or Asia 2008, which will be held at Gourmet World Shanghai in Pudong China May 29-31, 2008. The finals of the international competition will showcase gourmet artisans from 12 nations.
The Indonesian Bocuse d’Or held in Bali is organized by Bali Culinary Professionals - an organization comprised of professional from hotels and restaurants across the Island, food and beverage managers, owners and suppliers to the hospitality industry. The goal of the organization is to create, maintain and improve professional standards of culinary professional through the acquisition of new skills and promoting Balinese cuisine internationally.
FHT Bali 2008 – Food, Hotel & Tourism Bali
Salon Culinaire 2008 - Bocuse d’Or Cooking Competition
February 28 – March 1, 2008
Bali International Convention Center, Nusa Dua, Bali.
Source: http://my-indonesia.info/
February 6th, 2008
The Westin Resort Nusa Dua, Bali has been nominated in the Top Ten Family-Friendly Holiday Resorts Awards for 2007 by Holidays with Kids. The resort received this award after being nominated by readers of the publication for the outstanding holiday appeal and facilities offered to families.
The awards invited readers to vote for the best Family-Friendly Resort they’ve encountered, and to rank their nomination on categories including activities and facilities for kids, childcare and babysitting services, staff hospitality, standard of accommodation, location, accessibility, safety, fun for the entire family, value for money and overall experience. This ensures that not only the most popular holiday operators can be selected, but also those with standards of the highest quality. Nominations came from a broad readership of over 600,000 parents. Holidays with Kids is the highest-circulating audited travel publication in Australia that goes to both trade and consumers. It has an audited circulation and is distributed throughout Australia, New Zealand and Asia.
Another award presented to The Westin Resort Nusa Dua Bali was the Best Value from Budget Travel Magazine and TripAdvisor. This award was created to spotlight hotels that give travellers what they really want: a reliable and satisfying experience at a reasonable price. The winners were determined by a combination of the highest traveller ratings and the TripAdvisor Popularity Index, a measurement of overall traveller satisfaction. TripAdvisor is the world’s leading source for hotel reviews and Budget Travel Magazine, with 600,000 devoted subscribers, was founded by travel icon Arthur Frommer,.
“We are extremely proud to have received this award as providing a uniquely fun and active family experience ensuring that the accommodation, restaurants and activities matches the need of all the members of the family no matter what age or sex.. The extensive Westin Kids Club®, which is complimentary to all in-house guests, was upgraded last year with a new playground as well as a climbing wall, large size trampoline and a 12-meter waterslide to provide a fun filled day at the pool for the children along with a range of daily activities in our extensive Kids Club. Furthermore, we have added to the number of our very unique 88sqm Family Studio’s, that provide two interconnecting bedrooms catering to the needs of parents with up to three children (can be extended to 5 children), featuring PlayStation2, 32inch LCD screens with DVD and entertaining board games. We will continue to strive for excellence in providing great holiday experiences for family vacationers by providing new activity programs and facilities thus providing even greater value for our families that return year in and year out” commented Jan Bundgaard, General Manager of the Westin Resort Nusa Dua, Bali.
Source: http://www.etravelblackboardasia.com/
February 5th, 2008
Prodita Sabarini, The Jakarta Post, Tanjung, Lombok
A perfectly round sun in glaring hues of red and orange was sinking behind the horizon between the islands of Gili Air and Gili Meno in Lombok, West Nusa Tenggara.
Cruising on a boat that was moving into the sunset, I sat dreamily, watching the sky turn from grayish-blue to purplish-pink.
The sun was reflected in the rippling water, giving it a golden glimmer.
I’ve always dreamed of watching the perfect sunset by the beach — like the one so eloquently depicted in Seno Gumira Ajidarma’s collection of short stories Sepotong Senja Untuk Pacarku (A piece of dusk for my love).
Desperate after several attempts at catching the perfect sunset, I was about to give up, almost ready to concede that Seno sunsets were merely fiction.
However, my trip to the island of Lombok saved me from a broken dream.
When I took up an offer to join a sunset cruise organized by five-star Oberoi’s Lombok Beach Club, I got my chance to experience that perfect sunset. The Beach Club is managed by marine adventure company H20 Sportz.
The lulling movement of the boat, cool breeze on my skin and Lombok’s natural beauty made it breathtaking.
Medana beach and the volcanic soil of handsome Mt. Rinjani were visible to the east.
To the west, the silhouette of Mt. Agung on Lombok’s sister island, Bali, was visible.
For vacationers willing to trade the excitement of a tourist crowd for nature and tranquility, Lombok is the place.
Possessing only a fraction of Bali’s tourist infrastructure, much of Lombok remains virtually unexplored. But, National Geographic Traveler magazine recently gave Lombok higher marks than Bali for sustainable tourism.
The island is slightly smaller than neighboring Bali, with a population of 2.3 million, the majority of whom are Muslim.
The indigenous Sasak people adhere to a unique blend of Hindu and Muslim beliefs found only in Lombok.
The island has a wide variety of topographical features and microclimates. North Lombok is the domain of the active Mount Rinjani while the central region is devoted to agricultural. South Lombok, while very arid, offers breathtaking vistas of a fierce sea from atop towering rock outcrops.
The coral reefs off the three Gili Islands are still in good condition, making this a good place for snorkeling and diving.
I stayed at The Oberoi, located in Tanjung, around 35 minutes northwest of Selaparang Airport. From the Medana Beach, where the resort is located, Gili Air and Gili Meno are visible.
I arose early for sunrise watching and fishing, activities organized by the Beach Club.
The new day broke as magnificently as the previous day had ended. Around 6 a.m., from the jetty at Medana Beach, we could see the first morning light give a pinkish hue to the calm waters.
We were taken to Gili islands just off Lombok and enjoyed sunrise photography on the way. We were also lucky enough to catch up with a group of dolphins and land a yellowfin tuna.
At Gili Air — one of the three Gili islands and the nearest to Lombok — some went sailing and some snorkeled. There, in the underwater forest of coral, I spotted white sea turtles.
We anchored off a white-sand beach and, as the day got warmer, I retreated to a shady hammock with a good book.
Gili Air is popular for its coral reefs and tranquil ambience. It’s quieter and more relaxed than Gili Trawangan, which is popular as a party island for backpackers.
We took a ride on a cidomo, a local horse carriage. Thirty minutes was all it took to circle the entire island. After the ride, we were treated to the local spicy Taliwang chicken for lunch.
Unlike Bali, Lombok has only a few five-star hotels. The Oberoi was Lombok’s first luxury resort; the island also has a Sheraton and a Holiday Inn. Budget lodging is available, including at popular Senggigi beach and in the Gilis.
Despite natural beauty and interesting culture, tourism in Lombok lags behind Bali. Lombok suffered from rioting in 2000 as well as the bomb attacks in Bali in 2002 and 2005.
An international airport is under construction, scheduled for completion in 2009. It is expected to bring more international airlines to the island, and more people to witness the beauty of Lombok.
Travel Notes
Getting there: Currently Lombok can be reached from Singapore with Silk Air and from Jakarta with Garuda Airlines.
Domestic carriers make the 20-minute hop from Bali’s Ngurah Rai International Airport to Lombok’s Selaparang airport frequently.
There is also a Bali-Lombok sea alternative: public ferries departing every two hours from Padang Bai in Bali. Tour companies such as Perama tours also go to Lombok.
Accommodation: High-end resorts such as The Oberoi, The Sheraton and Holiday Inn are available. Budget places are available in Senggigi beach and the three Gilis.
Getting around: Lombok has an extensive network of roads, but public buses and bemos (minibuses) are generally restricted to main routes. You can also charter a bemo or cidomo (pony cart) or rent a small motorcycle or a car. Outrigger boats called perahu are used for short trips to snorkeling spots or surf breaks.
Source: The Jakarta Post
February 4th, 2008
Wasti Atmodjo, Contributor, Karangasem
I Wayan Ardana carefully etched the surface of the dried palmyra leaves with the tip of a pengrupak, a tiny iron knife with a triangular tip.
In a fluid, measured movement he manipulated the sharp knife to create an engraved sketch on the leaves’ the smooth surface.
Several minutes later, a rough image of the island of Bali was formed on the leaf. The 50-year-old Ardana smiled as he inspected his work.
“When it is finished, it will be a beautiful, albeit simple, map of Bali on strips of palmyra leaves,” he said.
“This map is one of the most popular souvenirs from this village.”
Ardana is a resident of the tiny village of Tenganan, the home of the proud people of Bali Aga, which means “mountainous Balinese”.
The custodians of an ancient culture and belief system, the people of Tenganan have long considered themselves to be the original Balinese.
Their unique, traditional and conservationist way of life has drawn a steady stream of foreign visitors to the village that is nestled on the slopes of a wooded hill in Karangasem regency, some 70 kilometers east of the island’s capital of Denpasar.
With the growing tourism industry, demand for distinctive mementos from the village has consequently also risen.
Prasi, drawings made on ental or strips of dried palmyra leaves, are one of two most popular souvenirs that have ever came out of the village.
The other is Geringsing, a hand-made fabric with sacred motifs created using a rare double-ikat method. Geringsing is very expensive and difficult to make. Naturally, many visitors opt for Prasi.
Ardana is one of dozens of Tenganan villagers who create Prasi for souvenirs.
Traditional Prasi is mostly an intricate visual narration of selected episodes taken from Hindu epics like the Mahabharata or Ramayana. Souvenir Prasi, on the other hand, generally take the form of simple drawings like the Bali map, traditional calendars or characters from Hindu mythology.
“After the desired images are inscribed on the surface of the leaves then we will apply a special oil to the leaves. The oil will darken the engraved areas, thus enhancing the visual quality of the images,” Ardana said.
The special oil is made by frying kemiri (candlenut fruit, Aleurites moluccana). One kilogram of kemiri can yield enough oil for a hundred palmyra-leaf strips.
“Most of the foreign visitors to this village purchase the map of Bali and the calendar,” he said.
To create his Prasi, Ardana usually uses an ental that is 30 cm long and 4 cm wide.
“I can provide ental of different sizes if a customer wishes,” he added.
It can take up to eight strips of leaves to create one calendar. The loose strips are attached to each other with strings of yarn. The covers are made of strips of engraved bamboo. Ardana can produced two calendars in a day.
The prices for the palmyra-leaf map and calendar range from Rp 100,000 (about US$10) to Rp 150,000. During the tourist season, Ardana sells up to 20 calendars in a day.
“In a quieter season I generally sell two or three pieces per day. However, that’s already more than enough to meet my family’s daily needs,” he said.
One of Tenganan community’s figures, Wayan Sadra, said the trade in Prasi and Gringsing had became one of primary sources of incomes for his fellow villagers.
“Fortunately, Tenganan is a close-knit society, a nature that has made it easier for us to arrange it so that the profitable trade will not turn this community into a place where its residents fight each other for a slice of the profits,” Sadra said.
Source: The Jakarta Post
February 1st, 2008
(Balidiscovery.com) Bisnis Bali reports that the presence of illegal Tourism Information Offices operating across the island of Bali is a source of growing concern.
Travel agencies, souvenir shops and even street vendors are displaying “tourist information” signs, complains the Coordinator of the Bali Tourism Board (BTB), Ngurah Wijaya.
As a result, Wijaya is calling on the government to quickly bring some order to enterprises displaying “tourist information” signs in order to safeguard Bali’s image. Wijaya warned: “Imagine if everyone can easily set up a tourism information office. The information they provide can be incorrect or be used to mislead tourist visitors.”
Fearing that the current situation, if allowed to continue unchecked, will cause Bali’s recovery to come off track, Wijaya wants illegal “tourist information offices” to be closed and replaced with E-Kiosks providing tourist information for the Island’s visitors.
To this end, the government has appointed a local company PT Ochabawez Dinamika Persada to establish 275 “E-Kiosks” across Bali in February 2008.
Source: http://my-indonesia.info/
February 1st, 2008
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