BALI UPDATE #288 - 25 March 2002

Japanese Government Draws the Line

Japanese Government Threat of Travel Ban if Bali's Police Don't Get Serious on Crime Brings Instant Response.

Citing several unresolved cases of sexual assault against Japanese women visiting Bali and inefficient handling of several other criminal cases involving Japanese nationals, the Japanese Government recently threatened to impose a travel ban on its citizens visiting Bali if the island's police force continued to drag its feet in handling such matters.

The sobering possibility of losing Bali's largest inbound tourist source brought an instant response from both the local private and public sector, Mr. I Gde Wiratha, Chairman of the local Chapter of the Indonesian Hotel & Restaurant Association (PHRI) issued a formal apology on behalf of his association, while Bali's Governor, Dewa Beratha called on local police to take the proper and proportionate steps necessary to handle the cases, suggesting that Bali's image had been tarnished by these events.

THREAT OF A BAN SUSPENDED - AT LEAST FOR NOW

On Thursday, March 21, Japan's Diplomatic Consul in Bali, Kauro Hata, confirmed that because of the widespread local support for his call for police action to resolve the cases, his nation's government was delaying any introduction of a travel ban pending further developments.

Meanwhile, Bali's Chairman of the Indonesian Association of Travel Agents (ASITA), I Gusti Bagus Yudhara, emphasized that the unfortunate experience of a few Japanese tourists is not reflective of the high level of personal security enjoyed by most of Bali's visitors.Yudhara also urged Japanese tourists to use only licensed travel agents and guides, which would allow his association to take the sternest possible action againgst any of its members found to be violating the law or professional standards of conduct.

Visa Update

Tourism Spokesman Urges Calm About Rumored Changes in Visa Policy and He Outlines Future Changes.

Setyanto P. Santosa, the Chief of the Nation's Tourism and Culture Development Board, urged calm in comments made in a press conference held at the Internationale Tourismus Börse in Berlin on Monday, March 18, 2002 and reported in Jakarta's Bisnis Indonesia.

"The Visa on Arrival policy has yet to be decided, but any new policy will not harm the national tourism industry," he assured during the Berlin press conference. Setyanto then outlined the three policy considerations facing the government in dealing with the visa issue. First, the Government might retain the current visa-free short stay facility extended to a number of countries but reduce the validity period from the current 60 days to become 15 or 30 days. Secondly, any introduction of new "visa on arrival" programs must be supported by the introduction of a more satisfactory immigration service counter. And, thirdly, the Government continues to consider every input from the tourism sector in order to ensure that any new policy does not detract from efforts to increase the number of visitors to Indonesia.

On the subject of a proposed visa fee, Setyanto told the press, "actually, if tourists are charged a visa fee of $50 that is not a problem, providing the quality of the service they receive is excellent."

Rotaryana Prima to Open Bali Office

8 April Inauguration Set for Bali Culinary Arts Center.

After more than 27 years in Jakarta, Rotaryana Prima, Indonesia's established name in kitchen, restaurant and hotel equipment supply is opening a Bali office.

Located just 15 minutes from Bali's airport on the road to Nusa Dua, the Rotaryana Prima Center will offer a "one roof concept" to accommodate all of the company's culinary services, including a cafe, demonstration kitchens, a culinary School, offices and showrooms.

An impressive custom built structure able to accommodate 60 guests at any one time and featuring an outstanding collection of Indonesian art, the new Rotaryana Prima office is scheduled for inauguration by the Indonesian Minister for Culture and Tourism on Monday, April 8, 2002.

More information: For more information on Rotaryana Prima

Feng Shui! Geshundheit!

Bali-Based Authority on Space Clearing & Feng Shui Announces New Schedule of Seminars.

Bali resident, Karen Kingston, an expert on Space Clearing - the Feng Shui art of clearing and consecrating energy in buildings, and international best selling author of two books on the subject, has just announced her current schedule of seminars in Bali.

The popular seminars, now in their third year, Karen Kingston's Feng Shui Workshops will be held at the Kamandalu Resort & Spa, in Ubud, during the first two weeks of May, 2002.

Karen Kingston is one of the world's leading Feng Shui teachers and an internationally recognized authority on Space Clearing, the art of clearing and consecrating energy in buildings. Her two bestsellers, Creating Sacred Space with Feng Shui and Clear Your Clutter with Feng Shui - have been translated into 17 languages.

Karen Kingston's 2002 Schedule

May 1: A Sacred Way of Life (US $150)

May 2: The Art of Uplifting (US $60)

May 3: Clear Your Clutter (US $150)

May 6 & 7: Space Clearing (US $300)

May 8: Advanced Space Clearing (US $150)

May 10: Personal Purification Ceremony (with intro seminar on May 8) (US $150)

May 12: Change Your Bedroom, Change Your Life! (US $150)

All proceeds from the May 10 program will be donated to Balinese charities.

More information: Visit Karen Kingston's Website

Entry #12 - Bali Dream Holiday Contest

'And Now For Something Entirely Different' - A Dream of Bali From A Soggy Manchester, England Perspective.

This week's entry certainly proves that virtually "anything goes" when sending your Bali Dream Holiday Contest entry. So, what's keeping you?

The contest runs until the end of April and we're waiting for your vision of a perfect dream holiday in Bali and the chance to 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.

Entries are welcome from everyone in every form, from both veteran travelers to Bali or those who have only dreamed of visiting our tropical paradise.

Peter Dorney, headline@cybreway.com.sg, originally from Manchester, England who describes himself as "Mancunian...born within the sound of the Stretford End (that's the rough part of Old Trafford Football Ground), currently sunning himself in Singapore," sent the following entry -musings on a dream holiday in Bali from the perspective of a cold, soggy Mancunian.

Apologies to the Manchester Chamber of Commerce, which we're sure is a lovely spot with a great soccer team.

BALI DREAMING

Rain, rain, rain, rain, rain. Is that all it does round here?

The answer is actually, No - It also snows, gets foggy, freezes, blows a gale and chills you to the bone - sometimes.

And then there's the winter.

It must be nice to travel and see things rather different than umbrellas and sodden streets. Certain folks talk about a thing in the sky called the sun, which is supposed to be red, but the only things in the sky around here are clouds and not even the paper is read as your hands would get frostbite holding the pages.

Me aunty Minnie once said she'd become a greenie, which meant she was on a pea-soup diet for a week. As for any other form of greens, well, they used to have grass in the nearby park until the ducks went mad one day and ate it after which they all laid green eggs. Folk said we should enter them for the Guinness Book of Eggords but no one bothered.

I've heard of this place Bali and I know it was in the film South Pacific as they sang a song about washing hair a lot ... must be very clean people, or perhaps there's a Clairol factory there.

Our milkman knows all the words of "Bali High" and he says you can go to bed in Bali without having to wear your raincoat ... and umbrellas are used to keep off the sun rather than the rain. Can you believe that?

What a treat it would be if once - just once - I could wake up without the sound of water running down the windows and stairs (we have a terrible leak in the upstairs loo) and step outside my room to soak in the sun instead of the rain.

What a wonderful thing it would be to have the chance to wallow in the warmth and delights of the people of this dream island - instead of the fast-cooling waters of our bath which never gets very hot anyway, despite a supposedly new immersion heater.

Will someone let me crack open my concrete jungle and let me travel to this magical land? There I would feel the Balinese earth beneath my feet, the smell of the island in my nostrils (instead of the gas works) and touch the culture of the people.

Let me watch the sun rise into a clear cloudless sky and later sink into a shimmering still ocean - just once will do for I am easily satisfied.

Let me reach out to the people of this dream island and learn how paradise was created - it's probably a secret, but no harm in asking is there?

Let me.let me.let me.oh let me.but then maybe I am only dreaming.

More information: How to Enter the Bali Dream Holiday Contest

Above it All in Lombok

It Takes a Great Pilot to Land on a Mountain Top. Having a Float Plane Also Helps.

At 3,726 meters in height, Lombok's Mt. Rinjani is the second highest elevation in Indonesia after Irian Jaya. Nowhere else in the vast archipelago is the name "ring of fire" more aptly demonstrated than from atop this craggy mountain where, on a clear day, you can see Bali's Mt. Agung to the west and Sumbawa's Mt. Tambora to the east. The privileged few who have seen this sight have typically only managed to do so after organizing a small village or porters to carry water, food, tents and the exhausted up and down of this arduous 2 to 3 day mountain hike.

Huff, puff, I think I can, I think I can.

Now, those wanting to visit Lombok's mountain top can save their gasps for the breathtaking scenery, thanks to the introduction into service of a luxurious 8 passenger Cessna Caravan 208 Floatplane based in nearby Bali and operated by Travira Air. Flown by teams of experienced expatriate and Indonesian pilots, the plane flies over the jungle canopies of north Lombok, then circles the rugged mountain top before descending into the wide crater to circle a still steaming volcanic cone and, conditions permitting, land in Lake "Segera Anak." Surprisingly rich in vegetation and bird life, "Segera Anak's" volcanic lake is roughly 6 by 8 kilometers and an easy landing for the Travira Floatplane.

Carp and tilapia live in the lake where they co-mingle with the small gas bubbles floating to the surface, quiet testimony that the lake itself is a volcanic crater. A setting that is strikingly beautiful and surrealistic, local Lombok Sasak and visiting Balinese pilgrims make regular pilgrimages climb to the lake to throw offerings into the lake, believed to be home to powerful spirits.

After touchdown, the plane's pilot maneuvers the plane near a shore, before cutting the engine and manning canoe paddles that bring the plane to shore. Passengers are able to step ashore and explore the amazingly varied range of flora that have established themselves on the steep banks of the caldera. Once securely tied to shore, the plane's baggage compartment opens to reveal a lavish rattan picnic basket replete with a sumptuous breakfast or luncheon menu, depending on the time of your visit.

Following a quick swim in the crater or a walk around its rocky edges, the Caravan gets airborne again for the climb out of the crater and down the deep green ravines and gorges of Mt. Rinjani and across the narrow Lombok straits for a landing in Bali.

Bali Discovery Tours is the General Sales Agent of Travira Air at telephone ++62-361-286283 or facsimile ++62-361-286284.

More information: Charter a Flight to Rinjani

Japanese Bring Bali Home

Balinese Style Dwellings Popular with the Japanese.

Apparently, so many Japanese visitors feel so at home in Bali that they decide at the end of their stay to take their home "back home" to Japan.

According to a Bali-based official of Indonesia's Department of Industry and Trade, Mr. Ketut Gde Mendera, the wantilan pavilion-style houses in Bali are a big "hit" in places like Tokyo and Kyoto, encouraging Japanese entrepreneurs to begin exporting these dwellings in a semi-knockdown state.

In deciding to erect these small wooden structures that combine native woods, bamboos and elephant grass thatched roofs - the Japanese are following visitors from Australia, Latin America, Europe, Singapore and Korea who have arranged for the export and re-construction of the Balinese traditional houses in the backyards.

When visiting Bali truly there's no place like home.

Garuda Aims for Tourist Market

More Flights for Bali as National Carrier To Pursue Long Haul Tourist Travelers as Key to Recovery.

Speaking at a press conference at ITB Berlin, Marco Umbas, Director of Planning and Marketing Development for Garuda Indonesia, announced that his airline is now focusing on the long haul tourist market as a key element of their plan for economic recovery. Citing the basis for this marketing approach, Umbas discussed how the Airline felt that the tourism sector was more likely to rebound before the business travelers segment in the post 9-11 world economy.

Predicting load factors of around 60% would be achieved on their European routes by July, he explained that Garuda will soon add 3 more flights each week on their Frankfurt-Denpasar and London-Denpasar routes.

The Airline's top marketing planner also suggested that Garuda is considering undertaking service to Italy.

During the course of the Berlin press conference, Garuda Indonesia and the Bali Tourism Board signed a Memorandum of Understanding to increase tourism flows to Bali. Included in the agreement are plans to extend a free night's accommodation to guests arriving in Bali on board a Garuda international flight as a tactic to increase the length of stay.(BISNIS INDONESIA)

Bali High on San Diego's List

San Diego Newspaper Sunday Travel Section Praises our Island Paradise.

Knight Ridder writer Rebecca Rodriquez gave full page exposure to vacationing in her article entitled Bali High: For A Little Island This Paradise Has Big Attractions which appeared in the Sunday, March 17 edition of the San Diego Union Tribune.

Highlighting Bali's peace and calms as a "Hindu Oasis," the American writer explored Bali's "breathtaking panorama, great scenery, great surfing, bargain shopping and proximity to much of Asia."

Read this excellent coverage of Bali via the link below.

More information: Bali High - San Diego Union Tribune Article