JAKARTA REFERENCE

One of the most popular tourist destinations in the world, Bali for
few years awarded as the world best island by The International Travel
Magazine. There, however, are still many people who do not know in
depth about the uniqueness of Balinese culture. Life in Bali is always
related to "Tri Hita Karana" or a tripartite concept that include the
spiritual relationship between human and God, and their environment.
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The rapid growth of development in tourism has had a big impact and
influences to Bali tradition and lifestyle. Interestingly, Balinese
culture is still as what it was, growing along with the of
globalization. It is the Balinese civilization what makes the island
different from other destination.
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Geography
Among 17,500 islands across the Indonesian archipelago, Bali is one of
the 33 provinces of the Republic of Indonesia, the largest
archipelagic country in the world, made up of 2,000,000 km2 of land
with a chain of islands stretching over 500,000 km from Sumatra to
Papua, and covers territorial waters of more than 5,000,000 km2.
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Situated between Java and Lombok, the island of Bali is located 8 to 9
degrees south of the equator with the Java Sea to the north, the
Indian Ocean to the south. Bali's covers an area of 5,636 km2 or 0.29%
of Indonesia, measuring just 90km long the north-south axis and less
than about 140km from west to east.

Divided into three areas of water, the North Bali Sea is about
3,168km2, the East about 3.350km2, and the West about 2,982km2. Bali
Sea covers an area of 9,500km2. The North Bali sea runs along the
coastline of Buleleng, the East Bali Sea runs along the coastline of
Karangasem, Klungkung and Gianyar, and the West Bali Sea include the
coastline of Badung Tabanan and Jembrana.
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Climate
With sunshine shining throughout the year, Bali has a tropical monsoon
climate, with pleasant day temperatures between 20 to 33 degrees
Celsius or 68 to 93 degrees Fahrenheit. Rainy season starts from
October to March, when the West monsoon brings heavy showers and high
humidity. June to September is considered the driest season, with low
humidity and it can be fairly cold in the evenings, the best time for
any outdoor activities.
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Something unique can be found about climate in Bali. Even when it
rains most times in the most parts of Bali you can often enjoy sunny
days on the "Bukit", the hill south of Jimbaran. On the other hand,
you may expect cloudy skies and drips throughout the year in Ubud and
the mountainous areas. Most interestingly perhaps, the international
weather reports for "Denpasar" or "Bali" mention showers and rain
storms all times of the year. In higher regions such as in Bedugul or
Kintamani you'll expect to wear either a sweater or jacket when
evening falls.
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Topography
The province of Bali is divided into nine regencies (eight regencies
and one municipality) with its own capital. Buleleng covers an area of
1,365.88 km2 or about 24% of the Bali's land. Jembrana covers an area
of 841,80 km2 or about 14.94%, Karangasem 839,54 km2 or about 15% of
Bali's land, Badung 420,09 km2, Denpasar 123,98 km2, Gianyar 368 km2,
Klungkung 315,00 km2 and Bangli 520,81 km2 or about 31%.
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The topography of Bali is formed by a mountain chain that stretches
from west to east splitting the island into two parts. Some of the
volcanic peaks are active, including Mount Agung, 3,142m, the tallest
point above sea level, and mount Batur 1717m. Some barren peaks
include mount Merbuk, Patas, Seraya, Prapat Agung, Klatakan,
Sanghyang, Mesehe, Musi, Lesung, Tapak, Adeng, Pengiligan, Catur,
Penulisan and mount Abang. The north side of the mountain slopes is
fairly steep, creating narrow lowland along the coastal area.
Meanwhile, the south slopes are much leaner, forming a fertile plain
that becomes the main center of Balinese culture. Some of the most
beautiful white sandy beaches are in the south, including Sanur Beach,
Kuta and Nusa Dua. The south slope also is home to four lakes, i.e.
Lake Buyan (367 hectares), Lake Tamblingan (115 hectares), Lake
Beratan (376 hectares) and Lake Batur (1,605 hectares).
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Flora & Fauna
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Flora
Just like common tropical islands, in Bali you will find a wide
variety of plants by surprise. Huge banyan trees are everywhere in the
villages by the Bale banjar or pavilion, or temples ground. Tamarind
is also a typical Balinese tree mostly found in the north coast, as
well as clove at the highlands. Meanwhile acacia, flame tree and
mangrove can be found along the south coastlines. Craft and house use
basketries, a dozen species of coconut palms and varieties of bamboos
are also everywhere across the island.
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Flowers families are just as surprisingly as the variety of big
plants. The most common are hibiscus, bougainvillea, jasmine, and
water lilies. Magnolia, frangipani, and a variety of orchids are found
in many front yards and gardens, along roads, and in temple grounds.
In the day to day life flowers are routinely used as decorations in
temples, on statues, as offerings for the gods, and during prayers.
Dancers wear blossoms in their crowns, and flowers are worn behind the
ear during ceremony sessions.
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Fauna
Like some other parts of Indonesia, Bali was home for big mammals such
as elephant and tiger, although they no longer exist since early of
last century. However, Bali still is rich of wildlife with the
existence of various species of monkeys, civets, barking deer and
mouse deer. There are 300 species of birds occupy the island including
wild fowl, dollar birds, blue kingfishers, sea eagles, sandpipers,
white herons and egrets, cuckoos, wood swallows, sparrows, and the
endangered Bali starlings. The underwater world or marine life of Bali
has been noted as one of the best in the world with various species
such as dolphin, shark and sun fish, and some smaller inhabitants like
colorful coral fish, small reef fish, and moray eels, as well as
crustaceans and sponges.
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The existence of these flora and fauna become necessary for the day to
day life of Balinese, where ceremonies and rituals always flourish.
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People & Life Style
Bali's population of over 3,000,000 souls spread over the whole
island, including those in the smaller islands of Nusa Penida, Nusa
Ceningan, Nusa Lembongan, Serangan and Menjangan Island. The
overwhelming majority of Balinese are Hindus, with the increasing
number on non-Hindu migrating from the closest neighboring islands of
Java and Lombok.
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The coastal areas in the south are the most populous area with over
370,000 people living in various professions in the capital of
Denpasar. Farming has been the primary way of living in Balinese life.
Where else fishing, trading and craftsmanship are also in fashion from
generation to generation. Yet with the fast growing of tourism since
past few decades, young people start to build up a new touch in their
living culture.
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Life in Bali is very communal under the organization of villages.
Temple ceremonies, marriage, cremation, farming and even the creative
art festivals are decided by the local community institution called
"Banjar". The responsibilities in the day-to-day life are normally
administered by both the Banjar and the government. The local
government mostly responsible for schools, health clinics, hospitals
and roads, and Banjar is responsible for all other aspects of life.
There is another association exists in the banjar named "Subak" that
concerns to the production of rice and organizes the complex
irrigation system. Every family who owns a rice field must be a member
of their local Subak, which then ensures that every member gets his
fair distribution of water. A banjar consists of an average of 50 to
150 family members, owning a meeting venue called the Bale Banjar,
which is used for regular gatherings and a center for local gamelan
orchestras and drama groups..
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How to get to Bali
With the increasing number of direct flight to Bali from some other
parts of the world, it makes it easier to go to Bali. From Bali,
flight to Jakarta is about 1.5 hours, to Singapore and Perth
(Australia) 2.5 and 3 hours, to Hong Kong about 4.5 hours, and to
Sydney/Melbourne about 5.5 to 6 hours, with various airlines offering
their services. Please check at "airline info" for more information
about flight schedules. Just make sure you look for "Denpasar (DPS)"
instead of "Bali" in airline time tables. It is the capital of Bali.
Or you can check your "Travel Agents" for more travel arrangements and
accommodation.
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Economic
As the most populous area of the island the southern part Bali is
where most jobs are to be found, mostly in the hotel or tourist
industry, aside from the major farming industry. Smaller scales of
home businesses are also in the trend such as textile or garment,
handicrafts and souvenirs, providing Bali's economy with more than
200,000 jobs, and exports have been increasing around 6,7% (data
August 2006 – August 2007) valued at around US$ 380 million. Of the
total foreign exchange earners, textiles and garments contribute about
27,4% and wood products including statues, furniture and other
handicrafts 18,2%. Silver work is ranked third 0,41% with 4,500
workers employed. And this sector keep growing steadily with target
market widely open on the US, Europe and Japan.
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Rice has become an important agricultural product besides vegetables,
fruits, coffee, copra, vanilla, soy beans and chilies. Most recently
vineyards also can be found along the north coast line. Meanwhile
fishing and seaweed farming are also important commodities for foreign
markets. It is interesting to observe the ability of the people of
Bali in coping with the globalization era which acquires professional
skills.
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Local Transportation
Because of the size of the island, it is not difficult to get around
Bali by various modes of transportation. The traditional types of
transportation to the high class limousine are available for tourist
to choose. Not to forget the sea transportation that connect Bali to
some of its sister islands. However, train does not exist in Bali.
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Bemo : this is the most used transportation in Bali especially in the
city of Denpasar. It is a miniature van with a routine route set by
local government periodically. This type of transportation is good for
short distance around town and cities, because of its size and
passenger can get in and out at any point. Most importantly, it is
cheaper compared to some other type of transportations, even though
fairly slow. Price ranges usually around Rp 3,200 to Rp 4,000 per one
stop over.
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Buses : there are buses for transportation between towns that
relatively bigger compared to bemo. These buses connect all towns and
most places of the island through local bus stations. Likewise bemo,
buses also can be stopped at any point of the routes. They mostly
operate day time inter island, but some are available at night for
long distances within cities. Fares are between Rp. 1.500 to Rp.
10.000 per one stop point.
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Taxi : Taxi is the most efficient and convenience transportation in
the island. Either chartered or metered one, they are everywhere and
quite inexpensive compared to some other countries. In Bali there are
some different companies providing taxi services.
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Rental Cars, Motorbikes and Bicycles : If you plan to explore Bali in
half day or full day trip, the best way is hiring a car with the
driver. The average rate is from Rp 120,000 to Rp 300,000 a day
depending on the type of the vehicle. There are many independent car
rentals around the island. If you wish to have better services, you
can go to a Travel Agent. You even can hire a tour guide of your own
language. The other possibility is to rent a self drive car. An
international driving license from your own country is required. This
rule also applicable for motorbike rental, but in some cases you can
get a temporary permit at local police office. Price ranges are around
Rp. 35,000 to Rp. 50,000 per day for motorbike and Rp. 15,000 for
bicycle. Likewise, a safety helmet is a compulsory when you ride a
motorbike. Meanwhile, bicycles are normally available for rent at
hotels. Some bigger resorts even provides bicycle tour for free
including a professional tour guide.
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Dokar : in many areas of Indonesia, a traditional horse and cart
transportation still can be found in many different versions. In Bali,
this kind of transportation is known as "dokar". Nowadays, the use of
dokar is simply limited due to efficiency. In some areas dokars are
even prohibited by the government because it becomes a dwindling sight
around the street. A dokar ride can be a fairly bumpy and unique
experience. That is why some hotels and event organizers sometime
offer a dokar ride for their guests, wedding couples or special
groups.
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Sea transportation : to travel to some sister islands of Bali famous
for their marine activities, local cruises is the most convenient.
They normally offer a tour package including meal, activities and even
a resort to stay over night. Some traditional boats are also in
service for shorter distances such as to Serangan or Menjangan island.
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History
Bali has a long chain of history from the ice-age era (pre-historic
time) to modern, global civilization era. With a dynamic
characteristic indicating selectivity and flexibility, the Balinese
culture initially reflects a configuration of an expressive culture
dominated by religious, solidarity and aesthetic values. Nowadays, it
develops along with the adoption of foreign values especially in the
aspects of the economic, science and technology, as a result of the
global modernization.
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In general, the history of Bali is divided into three different eras
including the pre-historic, the Hindu-Buddhist era and the modern
culture.
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The pre-historic marked the oldest and simplest way of life, an era of
hunting and food-stuff gathering, verified by the discovery of several
tools and hunting equipments. In the following era there were also
building construction system and a particular communication system.
These were just proofs of the existence and further development of
Balinese culture. The Balinese culture flourished that nowadays one
can indicates a perfect bonds between religions, tradition and culture
to become the identity of the Balinese community.
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The Dutch seamen were the first Europeans to arrive on Bali and
started to introduce western culture in 1597, though they hadn't
discovered any appealing aspect until 1800s. Around 1846 the Dutch
returned with colonization in their minds, having established a strong
political base as majority of the Indonesian islands were under their
control since the 1700s. The military campaign embarked from the
northern coast of Bali. With the help of Sasak people of Lombok, by
1911, all Balinese principalities were under the Dutch control.
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The sense of Indonesian nationalism began to grow after the World War
I, with the young generation declaring the national language in 1928,
known as Bahasa Indonesia. During the height of World War II the
Japanese arrived, expelling the Dutch and ruled the country for about
3.5 years, which ended later in 1945 when Indonesia declared
independent led by its very first president, Sukarno. Yet the new-born
nation was only recognized by the international community as an
independent country in 1949.
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