BALI UPDATE #279 - 21 January 2002

GA To Drop Another European Destination?

Garuda May Drop Yet Another European City From its Schedule.

A report carried in the January 17 edition of the Indonesian-language Bisnis Indonesia indicates that the national carrier, Garuda Indonesia Airlines, is considering which of the remaining 3 European destinations it serves to drop in order to rationalize its European schedules.

Garuda presently flies 3 x a week to Amsterdam, 4 x a week to Frankfurt and 3 x a week to London. Prior to the economic crisis which pummelled Asia more than 2 years ago, Garuda flew to 11 European cities.

Speaking to the newspaper, Mr. Djoko Judjojono, the Manager for Europe, said the airline is looking to close one of the remaining 3 routes to Europe in order to prevent further losses and rationalize its routes in terms of the the capacity of the present armada operated by Garuda. Despite almost being cancelled as a port-of-call by the airline in 1998, Amsterdam is, ironically, according to Judjojono, now Garuda's best destination from among the three remaining to them in Europe, recording an average passenger load performance of 77.2%.

At present, Garuda serves Europe with three Boeing 747 aircraft operating its 10 weekly flights. Perhaps signaling the city that may be eventually dropped by the carrier, the airline's executive commented that Frankfurt was currently the worst performing from among its three remaining European destinations. He also pointed out that loads improved markedly on their London flights in 2000 when frequencies to that city were increased from twice to thrice weekly.

Entry #3 - Bali Dream Holiday Contest

Ms. Laura Blady of New York City sends this week's and the third entry in the Bali Dream Holiday Contest.

Ms. Laura Blady, an update reader from Brooklyn, New York, wants to fly to Bali for a Dream Holiday.

How about you? Send your description of what you think a perfect dream holiday in Bali would be like and you might just win 2 tickets on Singapore Airlines, 7 nights at the Fours Seasons Private Estates Bali at Jimbaran Bay, tours and transfers from Bali Discovery Tours, rafting and cycling excursions from Sobek, luxurious spa treatments from Mandara Spa, a helicopter tour from Air Bali, and Cooking Lessons from Bumbu Bali/Rumah Bali.

Laura's entry is, appropriately enough, a dream sequence.

My Bali Dream Vacation

Lead me down the road of twenty years ago. Head north. Pass lane after lane of tropical seduction, determined sarong-clad women balancing on their heads mysterious towers of reds, browns, greens, and yellows. Restore the privacy of secreted compounds bordered by bowing banana bushes, swaying coconut trees, and unexplained poles of tall, decorative bamboo. Rekindle the magic of the spirit house.

Take me inside a family compound and show me the men, cigarettes dangling carelessly from their mouths. Sit them cross-legged on shiny white tile, carving sandalwood into life and paying absolutely no attention to me. Surround me with the wonder of elated children who want nothing more than to touch curly hair or stroke pale skin while we remain innocent enough to delight in our differences. Guide me away with bare hands and contented emotions, having exchanged only heartfelt smiles and honest respect.

Drive me proudly northward. Follow those green rice fields, greener than emeralds, terraced by long-forgotten geniuses and defended by majestic coconut trees that know they've been put on earth by a power greater than us all. Let the beauty of this land enter my being and allow me a moment to cry humbly, enchanted by its magnificence.

Leave me, finally, near the ocean in Sanur. Place me tenderly upon the sand and parade before me those sun drenched, longhaired beach boys. Watch them play soccer and rejoice in the glistening health of their bodies. But this time, when one of them approaches, smiles beckoningly into my eyes, and gently takes my hand, this time make me smile in return, retrieve my hand, and leave my heart intact.

More information: How to Enter the Bali Dream Holiday Contest

Bali to Host People Smuggling Meeting

35 Countries Expected to Attend Meeting to Curb Dangerous Business Based on Illegal Immigration.

The Associated Press reports that following the recommendation made last year by Indonesia's Foreign Minister, Australia and Indonesia will co-host a conference to explore regional solutions to the problem of people smuggling to be held in Bali, February 27 –28.

35 countries have been invited to Bali to participate in the conference expected to be chaired by Indonesia's Foreign Minister, Hassan Wirayuda, and his Australian counterpart, Alexander Downer.

The idea for the conference first surfaced last year as a result of the controversy surrounding Australia's refusal to allow port access to a ship full of central Asian refuges rescued from a sinking Indonesian ship being used to smuggle them to Australia.

Thousands of people seeking economic and political asylum try to illegally enter Australia each year, often using boats provided by smugglers who use countries such as Indonesia and Malaysia as their staging areas.

The conference dubbed The Regional Ministerial Conference on People Smuggling, Trafficking in Persons and Related Transnational Crime will include foreign ministers from 35 nations in Central Asia, North, East and Southeast Asia, as well as the Western Pacific. Attending as observers will be representatives of the United States, Canada and the European Union together with major United Nation agencies.

President Megawati to Open ATF

President to Join Travel Industry at ASEAN Tourism Fair on January 25.

President Megawati Soekarnoputri will deliver the keynote opening address at the ASEAN Travel Forum (ATF) to be held in Yogyakarta January 25 - 28.

346 registered buyers of travel products from 46 countries will join some 1,100 other travel industry professionals, journalists, and government delegates at the conference and travel exchange held each year on a rotating basis in a different member nation of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations.

This year's event has become the pet project of Yogyakarta's Governor and Sultan, Sri Sultan Hamengku Buwono X who has declared a "Royal ATF" and built a massive conference hall - the Yogyakarta Exhibition and Conference Center (YECC) to accommodate the event. In keeping with the special status accorded the ATF by the Sultan, the opening ceremony featuring the Republic's President will be held at Yogyakarta's Royal Palace - the official private residence of the Sultan.

Also speaking at this year's ATF is Mr. Abdul Ghani the President Director of Garuda Indonesia Airlines who is expected to comment on the issues confronting travel and the international airline industry in the wake of the tragic events of September 11.

John Cvetko Leaves Sobek

Sales & Marketing Director of SOBEK Announces Surprise Departure.

John Cvetko, the popular Australian Director of Marketing and Sales for the Bali-based Adventure Operator SOBEK has announced his sudden departure from the company, effective January 18, 2002.

No details surrounding Mr. Cvetko's departure were available, but reports are that the company will soon replace him with another individual who will coordinate the corporate marketing interests of SOBEK, as well as those of affiliated tourism companies in Bali.

Sobek offers a range of adventure sports options in Bali including white-water rafting, cycling and trekking activities.

John Cvetko joined SOBEK in September of 2000 after a series of senior appointments in government-based tourism development projects, tourism education, consulting and hotel management. While in Bali he was known for his high-profile promotion of the SOBEK product range and for his active participation as a Director of the Bali and Nusa Tenggara PATA Chapter.

Mr. Cvetko has made no formal announcement on his future plans at this time.

More information: Contact John Cvetko

Taman Ujung Renovation to Commence in February

Bathing Pavilions of Karangasem's Last King to be Restored to Former Glory.

The massive complex of pools and floating pavilions erected in the sea-side village of Ujung in Karangasem in the 1920's by the regency's last King, Anak Agung Anglurah Ketut, will soon be regaining some of its lost glory under a program of restoration to being in February 2002. Destroyed by massive earthquakes and volcanoes over the past decades, the late King's eclectic collections of architectural styles, ballustrades and stained glass will eventually be completely rebuilt to become a major attraction in eastern Bali.

The first phase of renovation will cost an estimated Rp. 2 billion (+/- US$ 200,000), funded 65% via a loan from the World Bank, 25% by the Government of Bali, and the remainder in a grant of funds from the Minister of Culture and Tourism. When the first phase is completed the southern and eastern wall together with the entrance way will have been repaired, the landscaping of the gardens restored, and the water delivery system renewed including the restoration of two major pools.

The final list of 29 qualified contractors has been selected with the final contractor soon to be appointed to commence work in February.

More information: Take a Tour of East Bali

UPDATE: Merpati Strike Averted

MZ Pilots Greet Passengers with Red Roses As Strike Scheduled for 14 January Called Off.

A threatened strike by the pilots of the Indonesian domestic carrier Merpati Nusantara Airlines (MZ) was averted on Monday, 14 January 2002, as pilots greeted passengers scheduled on morning flights with roses.

The strike by the Merpati Pilot's Association (APM) was called off when the association's management were assured by the Minister of State Owned Businesses that the Board of Directors of the airline would be replaced at a shareholder's meeting scheduled to be held sometime within the coming month.

Concerned passengers boarding MZ flights on January 14, the planned date for the strike, were greeted by banners, notes from the Pilot's association and flowers handed out deck crew who, while delaying their threatened strike action, emphasized they would follow through with the threatened industrial action if the current board were not soon replaced in February.

As reported from balidiscovery.com on 13 January 2002, representatives of the APM recently testified before a National Parliamentary committee detailing their grievances with the airlines appointed Board of Directors.

Change Promised at Garuda, Merpati & Pelni

In a related development, the Deputy Minister for State-Owned Enterprises - Logistics and Tourism, Ferdinan Nainggolan, told the press on Monday, 14 January, that the Government would soon replace the directors of three State-Owned Companies - Garuda, Merpati, and the State shipping company PELNI. Nainggolan claimed that such changes were not necessarily tied to poor performance by the current directors, but to a need to regularly renew managers in top positions.

More information: Related Story: Merpati Flying Troubled Skies

Americans in Bali - A Laughing Matter

American Comedienne Karen Loftus at the Centerstage Lobby Bar at Hard Rock Hotel, January 31 & February 01.

When American, Karen Loftus, told her friends she was going to Bali, they probably remarked: "You must be kidding?"

In fact, she was.

Kidding comes naturally to this critically-acclaimed stand-up comedienne whose sharp and insightful observational humor on life in the early 21st Century has earned her legions of fans via appearances at the Singapore Comedy Festival, and during TV and Stage appearances around the world.

Karen Loftus' one-woman shows "American Woman" and "I'm Not the Blonde You Think I Am" communicate her comedic angst of what it means to be an American, a woman and abroad ... we mean, overseas. A second generation American of Irish descent, Karen, who got reminded of her Irish roots on a daily basis while growing up, says she never really felt American until she left America and visited Ireland.

That she now feels at home wherever she goes, Karen attributes to never having had a home of her own or, for that matter, even a womb of her own; Karen is a twin. A true woman of the world, Karen has learned to make her own space wherever she travels, using Los Angeles for storage.

For two nights, January 31 and February 01, 2002, Karen Loftus' American Woman show comes to Hard Rock Hotel's Centerstage lobby Bar starting at 9:30 p.m.

No Cover Charge. Telephone ++62-(0)361-761869 extension 8002 for more information.

More information: Book a Stay at the Hard Rock Hotel