Archive for January, 2009
The Indonesian Vice President, Jusuf Kalla, has confirmed plans to expand Denpasar Ngurah Rai International Airport in Bali under a two-year project that will commence in Apr-09. The reconstruction project will include expansion of the domestic terminal to 70,000 sq m (the same size as the international terminal) and the construction of improved road access to/from the airport. Funding for the project will come from state-owned airport operator, PT Angkasa Pura I and unspecified “other sources.” The airport has a current capacity of two million passengers per annum, but actually accommodates four million. [1297 words]
This report contains the following charts and tables:
- Denpasar Ngurah Ral International Airport
- Map of Indonesia
Source: www.centreforaviation.com/news
January 12th, 2009
I Wayan Juniartha, The Jakarta Post, Denpasar
Once she sang of joyful morning birds; no longer. As she throws herself at the feet of her beloved husband, Sri Tanjung releases the primal scream of a woman betrayed.
This is a song of exquisite pain — the kind of pain a woman feels when her faithful adoration, love and innocence are shattered by her loved one’s senseless distrust.
“My love, you choose to believe the winds and hearsay, and doubt my devotion, the woman, who through the longest of days, the darkest of nights, has prayed for your safe return, has longed for nothing but your love,” she says, sobbing in desperation.
Her plea is in vain; her husband’s heart has been poisoned by jealousy. His ears hear nothing but the sound of his own hatred screaming for retribution. His eyes see nothing but the images of his wife succumbing to another man’s desire.
At that moment, Sida Paksa, a passionate lover and a fierce warrior, realizes there is only one thing left to say, something that cannot be said with words.
As he turns his back on Sri Tanjung, the only love of his life, Sida Paksa understands that now he will not need love any longer. His heart turns to stone.
And at that moment, Sri Tanjung realizes that the end is near and only her demise will prove her chastity.
There are no tears when the princess clasps her hands and prays. There is no hesitation when Sida Paksa draws his kris and drives it silently through his wife’s heart.
There is no sound when the earth embraces her fallen daughter. Her blood, crimson red as any blood would be, exudes a fragrance like no other blood could.
This is a fragrance that forces Sida Paksa to kneel and cry in anguish, realizing that he has just committed the most foolish and tragic mistake of his life.
This was the most touching and powerful scene in Sri Tanjung: The Scent of Innocence, a contemporary musical performed at the newly renovated Ksirarnawa theater in Denpasar’s Art Center in late December.
The musical is the ongoing project of the Denpasar-based Arti Foundation, a cultural group that for years has sought to construct contemporary interpretations and forms of traditional and classical Balinese performing arts.
“Tonight we are performing only eight scenes out of the total 14 scenes we are currently working on,” Sri Tanjung’s director and Arti’s founder Kadek Suardana said on the night.
Suardana, an award-winning director and composer, has the aesthetic penchant of a chemist. He loves to combine elements from different cultures or from different periods of history to create dramatic works that are refreshingly new and disturbingly familiar all at the same time.
His various takes on Shakespeare’s Macbeth — one in the 1980s that incorporated the traditional Balinese masked dance drama Topeng and one in the late 1990s that fully dissolved the European story into the realm of the classical and refined Balinese opera Gambuh — breathed a new energy into the island’s theater as well as earning Suardana national and international praise.
Sri Tanjung is his most recent obsession and the most-consuming one, finance-wise.
Suardana has already ploughed more than Rp 100 million (US$9,500) of his own money into the play’s planning and initial stages, which included a field trip and literary research into various areas in East Java, where locals believe Sri Tanjung is a historical figure and not merely a fictitious character in ancient literature.
“The story has long and strong roots in the local cultures, so we want to get to know the forms of the local performing arts, the sounds of their music and their spirituality,” he said.
Mari Nabeshima, Suardana’s Japanese-born wife and one of Sri Tanjung’s main scriptwriters, traveled to various historical sites in Java to gain firsthand knowledge about the story.
She looked at the relief of the story in Candi Panataran, Blitar, and Candi Surawana, Kediri, which gave her a glimpse of how the story was depicted visually in times long gone.
“I believe that we must at least understand the original context of a literary text before we began constructing a new interpretation of that text,” she said.
Suardana’s Sri Tanjung is based on the 17th century tale Kidung Sri Tanjung originating from Banyuwangi, East Java. In Bali, the story once gained popularity as the theme of a traditional Arja dance-drama, but has since been forgotten by modern Balinese.
Suardana’s meticulous efforts have not been in vain. The trial performance on that Tuesday night drew a demanding crowd, which included some of the island’s most prominent scholars, performers and critics — not to mention the island’s vice governor, AA Ngurah Puspayoga, an avid art lover who also served as the play’s artistic consultant.
This tough audience’s warm reception of the musical was more than enough to have Suardana grinning with joy.
“The performance is deep and touching,” prominent scholar I Made Bandem said. “Kadek (Suardana) has succeeded in creating a musical in which the music, dance and dialogue have achieved an aesthetic fusion so complete that they amplified each other in delivering the philosophical message of the story.”
The full version of the musical will be performed in Denpasar on Feb. 27 and 28 and in Gedung Kesenian Jakarta (GKJ) in early March. Sri Tanjung will then tour Europe.
Source: The Jakarta Post
January 9th, 2009
Bali’s Ngurah Rai International Airport Indonesia will soon undergo a major expansion and renovation, according to an announcement from Indonesian Vice President Jusuf Kalla. The project will begin in the Spring of 2009 and is scheduled to take approximately two years to complete.
Kalla was in Bali recently and took part in a meeting at the airport to plan the expansion. Afterwards, he said that “The expansion project will have to be started not later than April 2009 and the next three months should be used to prepare the tender. The project should be completed within two years.”
The project calls for an expansion of the current runway to accommodate larger planes as well as the addition of a new runway. Additionally, a new domestic terminal is planned and the current international terminal will be expanded. The cost of the planned work is said to be Rp. 1.2 trillion, or about US $111.6 million.
Source: www.homesgofast.com
January 9th, 2009
Ni Komang Erviani, , The Jakarta Post, , Denpasar
The Bali administration launched Tuesday a free health service campaign targeting villages in seven of the province’s eight regencies and the municipality of Denpasar.
The island’s westernmost regency, Jembrana, declined to participate in the campaign, claiming it has carried out a similar program for years.
On the first day of the campaign, physicians, dentists, internists and health workers conducted free medical examinations and dispensed medication in Pegayaman village (Buleleng), Pemecutan (Denpasar), Bona (Gianyar), Pecatu( Badung), Nongan (Karangasem), Tamanbali (Bangli), Sudimara (Tabanan) and Gelgel (Klungkung).
“In 2009, the campaign will target a total of 500 villages and comprise of 6,000 free medical examinations and medication events,” Bali Governor Made Mangku Pastika said.
“We hope this campaign will improve the health status of village residents across the island,” he added.
The administration financed the campaign by allocating special funds from the province’s annual budget.
Jembrana regency has for several years offered free health care through the community health insurance program.
Mangku Pastika praised the regency’s initiative and urged others to follow suit and thus lighten the burden on the provincial administration’s public health sector.
“The campaign will target 36 villages in Jembrana. Yet, since the regency refused to participate, we will distribute these slots among the eight other regencies and Denpasar,” Pastika said.
Komorang Candra Dewi, a resident of Denpasar, welcomed the campaign, calling it a good initiative. However, he reminded the administration to ensure that health services provided during the campaign were of a high quality.
Pastika stressed that the campaign would be carried out on a regular basis since improving public health services was one of his main priorities.
A similar campaign will be carried out in 2009 with 4,000 events.
Source: The Jakarta Post
January 8th, 2009
Discover the luxury of one of Bali’s newest resorts, Breezes Resort & Spa. Opened in November this year, this is a beautiful property recently relaunched as part of the Red Carnation collection hotel group, perfect for couples, groups, families, romantic and relaxing getaways.
The resort, situated in the heart of Seminyak on the South Coast of Bali, is set in a lush private garden that creates an oasis of tranquility, just 25 minutes from the airport. The resort boasts over 100 pool facing rooms and nine family rooms each with amenities to ensure the comfort of all guests including 24-hour room service, en-suite marble bathrooms, cable TV, wireless internet connection, luxury toiletries, 200 thread-count linen sheets and cotton kimonos.
The resort facilities are second to none and include a luxurious day spa offering a selection of traditional and Balinese treatments, Breezes gym with glorious panoramic views of the resort, Breezes boutique packed with all the Balinese gift essentials, a fully air-conditioned 30-seat private cinema open for guests to bring their own DVD’s, activity desk, internet café, guest laundry service and a kids corner offering a variety of fun-filled entertainment and activities to keep the younger guests amused.
In true Balinese style the resorts main features include an expansive four-tiered lagoon pool with its own private beach open 24-hours, swim up pool bar where guests can order their favourite cocktail and large flat screen TV so guests don’t have to leave the pool or miss out on major sporting events. The resort is also home to the popular Buddha Bar and Restaurant open for breakfast, lunch and dinner offering a mix of vibrant and trendy beats and a mix of Balinese style food and wood fired pizza.
Creative Holidays has fantastic air and land deals available for travel to Bali and the Breezes Resort and Spa. Creative Holidays Breezes Seminyak Resort and Spa package is priced from $1619 per person, twin share (ex Perth), $1879 per person, twin share (ex Sydney), $1969 per person, twin share (ex Melbourne), $2079 per person, twin share (ex Brisbane) and $2165 per person, twin share (ex Adelaide) including return economy class airfare flying Garuda Indonesia, ten nights accommodation, free upgrade to a pool view room, breakfast daily and return seat in coach.
This package is available for travel until 23 June, 2009 ex Perth, 30 June, 2009 ex Sydney, 20 June, 2009 ex Melbourne and Adelaide and 17 June, 2009 ex Brisbane. Seasonal surcharges apply. For all other travel dates see your travel agent.
Creative Holidays’ Bali brochure is packed with many other great holiday ideas from value options to luxurious spa options, romantic packages, family getaways and more, making it easier to find a holiday that suits your needs.
Creative Holidays is Australia’s leading independent holiday company with a range of holidays to suit everyone – especially those who enjoy the independence and flexibility of planning their own holiday.
By eTravelBlackgoard
Source: www.huliq.com
January 7th, 2009
Denpasar, Bali (ANTARA News/Asia Pulse) - Indonesian Vice President Jusuf Kalla said Bali’s Ngurah Rai international airport will be expanded under a project to be started in April 2009.
“The expansion project will have to be started not later than April 2009 and the next three months should be used to prepare the tender.
The project should be completed within two years’ time,” Kalla said after a meeting to discuss preparation for the project here Saturday. “The budget provided for the construction of international terminal may reach Rp1.2 trillion (US$111.6 million),” Kalla said.
The meeting, which took place at Ngurah Rai airport was attended by Transportation Minister Jusman Syafil Djamal and Bali Governor I Made Pangku Pastika.
Source:
Business in Asia Today - Jan. 5, 2009
published by Asia Pulse
COPYRIGHT © 2009
ANTARA News
January 6th, 2009
Balinese celebrated the Saraswati Day on Saturday, a day when the Hindus praise and thank the goddess of knowledge for bestowing the ability to read, write and understand nature upon humans.
Thousands of students all across the island participated in the celebration, wearing traditional Balinese costumes and prayed together at their schools in the morning.
Some of the students later joined a mass of prayers at the Agung Jagatnata Temple in Denpasar where they performed traditional musical instruments.
Hindus celebrate the Saraswati Day once in 210 days and give young coconut leafs as an offering to the gods in the event. In Bali, most schools and universities place Dewi Saraswati statue in front of the buildings as a symbol of knowledge and technology. (ewd)
Source: The Jakarta Post
January 5th, 2009
by Asia Pulse
Indonesian Vice President Jusuf Kalla said Bali´s Ngurah Rai international airport will be expanded under a project to be started in April 2009.
“The expansion project will have to be started not later than April 2009 and the next three months should be used to prepare the tender. The project should be completed within two years´ time,” Kalla said after a meeting to discuss preparation for the project here Saturday.
The meeting which took place at Ngurah Rai airport was attended by Transportation Minister Jusman Syafil Djamal, Culture and Tourism Minister Jero Wacik, Bali Governor I Made Pangku Pastika and some local officials.
“The budget provided for the construction of international terminal may reach Rp1.2 trillion (US$111.6 million). If tendered, the bidding price may decline,” Kalla said.
Asked about the financier of this project, the vice president said airport management company PT. Angkasa Pura and Bank Mandiri were ready to finance the tender.
Source: www.property-report.com/
January 5th, 2009
As 2008 comes to a close, co-sponsors Grand Hyatt Bali and Rotary Club Bali Nusa Dua joined forces to put together a charity event to benefit underprivileged children in Bali. First conceived by Mr. Peter Stettler, who is now Regional General Manager of Hyatt hotels in Indonesia, this has been an annual event over the past years.
The success of this year’s party, which was held earlier last week in Karangasem Ballroom at Grand Hyatt Bali, was the result of the outstanding collaboration between Mr. Michael Burchett, President of Rotary Club Bali Nusa Dua, and Mr. Detlev Truernit, General Manager of Grand Hyatt Bali.
Children from several orphanages and one school for the disadvantaged in Bali; Maria Gorethi, Eben Haezer, Widiasih, Hope Children Home, Al Fatah, YPAC, Semaraputra, El Shaday Putra, and Manahaim were invited to join the celebration.
About 300 children of school age from different religious faiths and backgrounds were brought together at the celebration where, following the tradition, an abundance of food, drinks and desserts was served by the staff to the children as part of their service to the community
Fun games, singing, dancing, and a talent show by the children were just a few of the activities in which the children participated on that eventful afternoon. As a grand finale to the event, Santa Claus gave away Christmas gifts to each child.
Source: www.etravelblackboardasia.com
January 2nd, 2009
Fun, fancy and full of prizes would best describe the mood at Hyatt Resorts Bali’s “Year-End Appreciation Party”, which was held in the Grand Ballroom at Grand Hyatt Bali on December 18, 2008. The teams from both Bali Hyatt and Grand Hyatt Bali organised the event, dedicated to travel agents and media colleagues and aimed at showcasing the hotel’s appreciation for the support these partners had extended toward the two properties throughout 2008.
More than 350 guests attended the party, with everyone indulging in the delicious food and drinks, enjoying great entertainment performances by a live band on stage and exciting games. Everyone relished the glamorous yet relaxed atmosphere and, last but not least, vied for the fantastic prizes on offer.
Following an opening remark to kick off this special evening by Mr. Ron Nomura, Director of Marketing of Hyatt Resorts Bali, the Sales and Marketing team staged an amazing medley of Asian dance performances to entertain guests, attracting great enthusiasm.
The winners of the game and door prizes were entitled to complimentary dining, spa treatments and stays at both Bali Hyatt and Grand Hyatt Bali.?
The top-three grand prizes, namely free nights’ stay at Hyatt Regency Yogyakarta, Hyatt Regency Bandung, Grand Hyatt Jakarta and Grand Hyatt Singapore, were all contributed generously by the respective properties, and included complimentary return air tickets to these destinations.
Global Hyatt Corporation, one of the world’s premier hotel companies with properties in 45 countries, provides authentic hospitality to guests through a passionate commitment to personalized service, cultural relevance, and genuine stewardship of the environment. Headquartered in Chicago, the company’s affiliates own, operate, manage and franchise Hyatt-branded hotels and resorts under Park Hyatt?, Andaz?, Grand Hyatt?, Hyatt Regency?, Hyatt Resorts?, Hyatt?, Hyatt Place? and Hyatt Summerfield Suites? brands. Hyatt operates 368 hotels worldwide and currently has properties under development on five continents. Global Hyatt Corporation is also the owner of Hyatt Vacation Ownership, Inc.,and operator of Hyatt Vacation Club?. Reservations for any Hyatt hotels worldwide may be obtained by calling your local Hyatt hotel, Hyatt Worldwide Reservations Centre or logging onto www.hyatt.com
Source: www.etravelblackboardasia.com
January 2nd, 2009
Next Posts