Bali Travel Newspaper Vol. 1 No. 20 by Bali Travel Newspaper

”THK Awa rd the ca s & re A fo r

t of Bali, piri e s ture. th o f n a n

on” is focu itati d co ssing d e nser an r vt cc e ple io p

Vol. I, No. 20  November 11 - 24, 2011 IDR. 2,000

Publisher : Wisnu Wardana; Address : Jl. Melati 43 Denpasar, Bali-Indonesia ; Phone/fax (0361) 227610 Email : info@www-balitravelnews.com ; Licence/SIUPK : 0094 / 22-09 / PK / I / 2011; TDP : 22.09.5.52.00072

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No. 20  November 11 - 24 , 2011

Bali Island of the Gods A step forward to preserve the real Bali By Jan Hendrik Peters Strategic Advisor THK Foundation

The launching of ‘Bali Island of the Gods’, a new book about the soul of Balinese religious culture, is great; not because of the quantity but just because of the quality.

This THK assessment of organizations is important as an eﬀort to preserve Bali as the Island of the Gods. As we can see around us, Bali tourism is completely out of balance, while THK implies the opposite namely that balance in life is a condition to achieve happiness. In this respect the new book ‘Bali Island of the Gods’ can be helpful to understand the meaning of the soul of Bali, expressed in the many rituals and ceremonies of Balinese religious culture.

Rituals and ceremonies

The soul of Bali

Attending the launching of a new book is always great. And then I am not speaking about all those books that are just focused on the ego of the author and have not any value regarding the content. I would say that people who just produce rubbish like that are cunning businessmen and can not be qualified as author.

To provide a complete survey of all rituals and ceremonies on Bali would be a mission impossible and has never been the intention of Ketut Sumadi. An eﬀort like that would take a lifelong study by a talented scientist and even then it would be uncertain if this could be concluded successfully. I myself prefer a variety of books, written by a variety of authors that as a whole would be more representative and illustrative for Balinese religious culture than just a single bulky book written by one author. So far authors who have written about the unique Hindu culture, have always concentrated on aspects of Balinese culture and had never the ambition to write one all comprehensive standard work. This would be simply impossible, for many reasons, but mainly because the Balinese culture is not a fixed one but all the time changing by the impact of a fast changing world in which norms and values are diﬀerent from those in the past.

The launching of the book ‘Bali Island of the Gods’ is what I would call great because in this book a dynamic survey of rituals and ceremonies is provided that are performed in the traditional villages up till now. In the traditional village you will find the true belief of men in God. And in their worship to God they find the spirit to take care for each other and for the environment. The THK Foundation is promoting the implementation of the philosophy of THK among all kinds of organizations on Bali and based on a thorough assessment awards are presented to those organizations that performed well. A special THK team explores the performance of THK, whether an organization is keeping balance between the three dimensions of THK, and what still has to be done for improvement next year. Although not all organizations are participating, I presume that in the near future all organizations will be included in this process of assessment. When the concept of THK will be recognized by all organizations such as hotels, villas, resorts, government offices, schools and universities, the future of Bali tourism will become more sustainable. But unfortunately, that is not yet the case. In this respect I would recommend that the participation of organizations is required by provincial law.

Chief Editor : Wisnu Wardana; Publicist: Jan Hendrik Peters, KG. Dharma Putra, Journalists/contributors: Torsten Thierbach, Gung Man, Krisna; Marketing : Made Yudha ; Secretariate : Dewi ; Address : Jl. Melati 43 Denpasar, BaliIndonesia ; Phone/fax: (0361) 227610 Email : info@www-balitravelnews.com ; Jakarta : Bambang Hermawan, Villa Pamulang Mas, Blok C9/4, Pamulang, Tangerang Selatan ; NTB : Riyanto Rabbah, Jl. Abdul Kadir Munsi, Gang Dahlia No. 14, Mataram ; Yogyakarta : Titah Pratyaksa (083 1190 19410); Bank : BPD Bali KCP. Kamboja No. 0370115000510 A/N Biro Promosi & Pengembangan Pariwisata Budaya.

Bali tourism probably has been a blessing for Balinese people in the past, but has developed in a way that the question is arising whether Bali tourism is not doing more bad than good for Bali. That would be the case if Bali would lose its identity as Island of the Gods. Has the philosophy of THK lost its credibility as life philosophy for the Balinese under pressure of mass tourism and is the worship to God reduced to just entertainment for international tourists? The book ‘Bali Island of the Gods’ by Ketut Sumadi could be helpful in answering these questions. After reading this book, I was impressed how people in their community were living as true believers and followers of the philosophy of THK. My first thought was that this Hindu life, rich of rituals and ceremonies would never be sacrificed to a greedy tourism. Destroying desa adat would be unforgivable. It would be like young people killing themselves with narcotics. It would mean that the Gods would turn their back to Bali and would look for an island, where people would appreciate them more than the Balinese. True believer This book is even more challenging because it is written by an author who is a true believer himself. You do not question his credibility; always wearing a simple traditional outfit, walking with a stick in his hand, inviting other people to follow, with moustache, beard and hair tail, in line with religious tradition and living in a small house without any finery and with only some attributes in his sleeping room such as krisses (keris), bells and sticks, he is using in his spiritual relationship with God. I have had many discussions with Sumadi, enough to know that he has fully accepted the philosophy of THK as his guide to happiness.

Sumadi did not write the book ‘Bali Island of the Gods’ as an objective observer, but as a true believer. And that makes a difference. Of course he wants to preserve Bali as the Island of the Gods and must feel disillusioned to see that his Bali is about to lose its identity, destroyed by mass tourism that is unscrupulous and more geared towards making money than worshipping God. Mass tourism Even as a true believer Sumadi is explaining Hindu belief in a rather objective way and does not close his eyes for reality. Throughout the book, cartoons are illustrating the text; sometimes even completing the text. Look at the cartoon on the front cover, where we see the sexually attractive lady in a champagne coupe next to the small villager who is worshipping God. If no action will be taken, mass tourism will win from the traditional village or in other words materialism will win from idealism. It is not fair if an investor is buying the ricefields from the poor farmer, who has difficulty to survive with his family and can not even pay the tax for his land. Selling his ricefields is the last thing the farmer ever would do, but there is no alternative to overcome his poverty. As said before, mass tourism is unscrupulous and shrinks back from nothing. Investors will misuse the poverty of the farmers by buying their land, absolutely not for the benefit of the farmers but only in their own benefit. In this respect the poverty of the farmers is a threat for the farmers, but at the same time an opportunity for the investor who wants to remodel the whole of Bali in some kind of amusement park. But that is quite different from Bali the Island of the Gods as described by Sumadi, although we can read between the lines that also Sumadi is worried about the future. But he has not surrendered to mass tourism. The best remedy to his opinion is not so much to fight mass tourism but instead to promote a positive strategy in developing a kind of tourism which is respecting the religious culture of Bali. The book ‘Bali Island of the Gods’ is a step in that direction. Traditional village God is okay as long as it makes money. Tourist guides bring international tourists in big buses to holy places to attend a ceremony or festival. When asked to their experience, tourists will always tell enthusiastically about what they have seen but are ignorant about the meaning of rituals and ceremonies. The book of Sumadi will fill this gap by providing all necessary information in a nutshell. When once international tourists understand, they probably would like to stay for some days in the traditional village. No doubt that their stay will be a once-in-a-lifetime experience. In this way community-based-tourism (CBT) can be developed step by step, spreading over the island and forming a network of desa wisata. Traditional villages are basic in Balinese life, where the villagers are living in line with THK, worshipping God, living together and taking care for the environment. It seems so simple and probably it is, but it is far from boring, paving the way to happiness. The central figure in this local life is the farmer: the wetland farmer in the ricefields; the dryland farmer in the mountains and the fisherman along the sea. All three have in common that their professional life is hard, worrying to survive. The positive feeling of

being a farmer or fisherman is nowadays overshadowed by the negative feeling of insufficient income to take care of the family. And the children dream of a life in tourism with much more perspective than a life in the village. It is all so logical, but the dilemma is how to stop this process of decline of the traditional village and start instead a process of revitalization. It is clear that this can only be achieved if all people and organizations work together, sharing the same vision but as long as there is no political blueprint in which the desa adat is protected and financially supported, it will be nearly impossible to keep desa adat alive on the long term. Subak In the traditional village the tourists will learn about the subak, the ingenious irrigation system, in which the philosophy of THK is practiced by all farmers in the subak organization. The subak is responsible for the distribution of the water from the mountains and rivers to the ricefields of all subak farmers in an efficient and effective way. Democratically all members of the subak decide by majority about the maintenance of the irrigation system and new investments. From planting the rice seeds until the harvest of the rice the farmers worship Dewi Sri, the Goddess of fertility and prosperity, in the subak temple asking for her blessing to provide them with good weather and a rich harvest. It goes too far to explain the significance of subak more in detail. Professor Wayan Windia, one of the THK assessors, who has done research to subak and is considered as the authority in this field, is promoting subak as one of the two institutions in which the philosophy of THK has been practiced throughout history. Subak together with desa adat can be seen as the origin of the real Bali, the soul of Bali Island of the Gods. Conclusion If we agree with the statement that desa adat and subak have become the icons of -what I would say- the real Bali, it implies automatically that without these two institutions Bali would lose its image of Island of the Gods. This would be the worst that can happen. Sumadi has signaled in his book that a choice has to be made between the attractive lady, inviting international tourists to come to her party and the hardworking farmer who has accepted THK as his guide to happiness. For me it would be the farmer and I hope for all of you. Confronted with this dilemma of the lady versus the farmer, the THK Foundation has to take up the challenge to fight for the farmer. This NGO is the right organization to mobilize and bundle all forces in society in order to achieve that Bali will be developed in line with the philosophy of THK. An effective way to influence the public opinion is to inform, discuss, debate, protest and write about the future of Bali; on TV, radio, on symposia, in interviews and with articles in the newspaper. Most convincing will be that Bali tourism will first of all benefit the Balinese people. Bali is blessed with a fantastic spiritual culture. In a world where people are looking for spirituality, Bali has the potential to attract international tourists for a once-in-a-lifetime experience. The dream that once in your life you must have seen Bali as some kind of ultimate experience is probably too optimistic, but that many international tourists will be attracted by Bali’s dynamic culture, is absolutely no fantasy but reality. 

No. 20  November 11 - 24 , 2011

Sanur Village Festival 2011

III

FUN BIKE

Melon Harvest at PF2N 2011

FOOD FESTIVAL

Music, Food and Bazaar

Variety Jamboree MELON and a range of other quality varieties will add color to the Variety Jamboree at the National Flora Week (PF2N) and Sanur Village Festival (SVF) event, this coming November 19-22. The melons to be harvested had been planted in the second week of September at the PF2N and SVF event location, the Sunrise Beach (Pantai Matahari Terbit), Sanur.

THE Food Festival segment of the Sanur Village Festival is always the main attraction each year. With a main stage set in the centre of the arena, visitors are treated with various traditional, contemporary entertainment and music throughout the five days of celebrations. Those performing onstage are the best in their class which include national musicians such as Dwiki Dharmawan, Mus Mujiono, Nugie, Ully Sigar Rusady, Steven Jam as well as notable performers from Bali the likes of Balawan and Ayu Laksmi. The food arena itself is participated by various hotels and restaurants located in the Sanur area and Bali in general, presenting an assortment of international and local cuisine. Food prices vary with a maximum limit of Rp. 40,000 per item which is meant to provide a wide opportunity to visitors to sample several different cuisines. Additionally, visitors are also presented with a variety of souvenirs available at the Bazaar arena beside the Food Festival, displaying various traditional and modern handicrafts. 

These yellow quality melons can be harvested on the 65th day of planting. Their maintenance is easy, increasing production, and providing higher economical value compared to other melon varietied. Besides that, of course, these melons are larger in size. These quality melons have previously undergone tests in Klaten, Central Java and Kulon Progo, Yogyakarta; and have provided optimal harvest results. This jamboree showcases 9 5 v a r i e ti e s from various seed producers comprising of 11 chili, tomato, eggplant, long beans, watermelon, melon, cucumber, bitter melon (momordica), squash, cabbage, and sweet corn. Also included are 20 vegetable varieties resulted from cultivation by IPB, Balitsa, Balitro, and Balitbu. All of the varieties have been planted in the exhibition area and have been taken care of since plantings in the beginning of August. 

THE Sanur Village Festival fun bike will take place on Sunday, 20 November starting from 6AM at Matahari Terbit beach, Sanur and finish point will be at the main area of Sanur Village Festival 2011. Five thousand participants are expected to be participating in this fun activity where they will have to cycle through around 14 km in the middle of Denpasar city. Registration fee is set at Rp. 15.000 per person to make sure everybody is able to join the event including students, and to create a fun atmosphere to all participants. Tickets will be available at Sanur Village Festival’s secretariat at Sanur Development Foundation, Pregina Production House, Sanur and also at some appointed bicycle stores in town. This is the second year of this fun bike even at the already famous Sanur Village Festival. At the finish point participants will entertained by Nugie, a famous singer from Jakarta along with some local musicians. And of course the event’s committee will provide door prizes including a motor bike supported by a partner along the way. By mid day, participants will then have the opportunity to enjoy variety of best quality of cuisines at the food festival and spend the rest of their time at the event’s venue. 

Bali Hosts National Flori and Flora Week 2011 The most extravagant exhibition is held in 2011 combining the Sanur Village Festival 2011 and the Indonesia Horticulture Festival 2011. DENPASAR Municipality will host the National Flori and Flora Week (PF2N) 2011 taking place on November 19-22. Such grandiose event brings together the producers of flori-flora with farmers, businessmen, researchers, experts, as well as horticultural enthusiasts from all over Indonesia and overseas. Held on an area of 9 hectares on Sunrise Beach, Sanur, the exhibition poses a great, complete, and perfect event because it can perfectly combine two annual events namely the Sanur Village Festival and the Indonesia Horticulture Festival. Exhibition, flower parade, variety jamboree, auction markets, culinary festival, entertainment center and various events accompanying the three events oﬀer a healthy lifestyle needs, knowledge and entertainment. Mayor of Denpasar, Ida Bagus Rai Dharmawijaya Mantra, said the moment was an opportunity to advance the community’s creative industries and introducing the superior horticultural products to a wider audience. He invited all the horticultural farmers and related industries to enliven the programs. Denpasar, having potential as the market of ornamental flowers and plants was expected to be a marketing coach, both for consumers at home and export purposes. “I hope this

opportunity can be taken advantage as good as possible to display the strength of flora from all regions in Indonesia,” said Rai Mantra when commenting on the event accompanied by the Head of Denpasar Agriculture Agency, Gede Ambara Putra. PF2N is an activity held by the Directorate General of Horticulture, Ministry of Agriculture of the Republic of Indonesia. It has been routinely held in key cities across Indonesia. At first, it was held only for the flora of Indonesia in the National Flori Week (PFN) in Tomohon (2008), then packaged with fruit commodities, vegetables and herbal plants in the National Flori and Flora Week (PF2N) ever held in Banten (2009), Batam ( 2010) and this year Denpasar city is entrusted to be the organizer. Participants of this event includes large agricultural employers, farmer associations and farmer groups, Agriculture Agency of the regencies, cities and provinces throughout Indonesia; industry and manufacturers of agricultural products, excelling seeds and seedlings, processed food products, health, beauty; industrial machinery and agricultural implements, food processing machinery, as well as businesses and services related to agriculture such as banking and

cargo; universities and NGOs in the field of horticulture. Meanwhile, potential buyers will come from all walks of business, industry and services. A total of 20 potential wholesalers and exporters of orchids and cut flowers are scheduled to visit the exhibition. Additionally, it will also present the stakeholders of tourism such as hotels, spas, restaurants and agrotourism; food product processing industry, herbal medicine, herbal drink and cosmetics; farmers of agricultural producers and agricultural investors. Approximately 200 heads of agencies from all cities, regencies and provinces in

Indonesia, diplomats, horticultural associations of ASEAN member countries and the world, and representatives of the chambers of commerce of the neighboring countries will witness the exposition.Based on previous experience, visitors to this event came from various walks of life. Moreover, it is held in Bali denoting an international tourist destination, of course it will attract

many foreign tourists. A number of participants of the World Orchid Conference in Singapore on November 13-20 had expressed their intention to resume their business and leisure trips to Bali and drop in the exhibition. In the meantime, international students having interest in the ecology who are holding a conference in Bali are also interested in taking part in the PF2N. As scheduled,

it will also be visited by participants of the ASEAN Summit. Aside from exhibitions and business contacts, this event will be graced by competition of ornamental plants, fruit arrangement, fruit carving, fruit eating, flower arrangement, orchid and gebogan. In addition, it will jazzed up with

horticultural commodities parade and a decorated car parade featuring a variety of horticultural and processed products. Splendor of the parade makes synergy with the expertise of the artists enlivening the Sanur Village Festival, an annual event held by the Sanur Development Foundation since 2006. PF2N will also filled with interagency /related government agenccies coordination program, scienti forums of the research and tific d development institution belonging tto universities and government, d dissemination of studies and findiings by universities and governm ment research and development, aas well as horticultural meeting forrum. The event constitutes an opp portunity for society to know the p progress of science, technology, c condition of horticultural business a well as laws and regulations as c concerning with horticulture in t terms of protection of intellectual p property rights and patents, regul lation of horticultural trade systtem, tax policies and other related m matters and forum communication o of all stakeholders. Some of these activities are p packaged in the form of floriculture workshops, evaluation meeting of floriculture, seminar on floricultural development, citylevel coordination, dissemination of biological agents & biopesticides yielded by college or research and development studies, coordination meeting, and the meeting of seedling competition winners.  BTNewspaper/PR

No. 20  November 11 - 24 , 2011

ICA Gathering THE Indonesian Chef Association (ICA) organized its meeting in Ultimo Restaurant, Seminyak, Tuesday (Oct 25). The current event teamed up with Pronas, one of the leading canned food products in Indonesia, so the gathering took place lively with the distribution of a variety of door prizes. Pronas becoming the prominent ingredient of chefs launched several new products and changed its logo to follow the new developments and innovations.  BTNewspaper/Photo by: Krisna

Indonesian Food and Beverages Executive Club

Media Gathering and “HAPPYNOMICS” Launched ON Tuesday (25/10), dekuta Hotel held a media gathering at depalm restaurant and was attended by around fourteen fellow media in Bali. The event was held to express dekuta’s appreciation to all media in Bali whom have been supporting dekuta’s performance within this year. The event was opened with Pumpkin Devine Cocktail which is the newest beverage creations of Mr. Arya, one of bartender from depalm Restaurant. With pumpkin as its main ingredients, this pump-

MONTHLY meeting of the Indonesian Food and Beverages Executive Club (IFBEC), Thursday (Oct 27) was organized in the Rock Bar, Ayana Resort and Spa, Jimbaran. The gathering was graced with a standing party while enjoying the magnificent waves of Jimbaran Beach.  BTNewspaper/Photo by: Krisna

kin cocktail truly is divine–in flavor to make invited guests who came to the gathering caught by pleasant divine cocktail. The highlight of this event was the introduction for Mr. Putu Agus Aryanta as depalm head chef and the creator of Happynomics. Happynomics is consisting of new five lunch menu that is Chicken Rissoles, Tom Yum Fettuccine, Fried Rice with Cheese, Balinese Yellow Rice and Balinese Betutu Chicken. It’s Only IDR40.000, - (tax and service charge included) and enjoy the delicious lunch menu complete with the drink. Low price in luxury presentation and its delicious taste was enough to satisfy and surprised the guests. The event was followed by serving Chicken Rissoles and Balinese Yellow Rice, which is two of the favorite dishes from Happynomics menu and continued by interesting game also lucky draw for guests. The event was ended with an intimate, friendly atmosphere, and extraordinary moments that will be remembered by everyone.  BTNewspaper/PR

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No. 20  November 11 - 24 , 2011

Activities at Bali Mandira Bali Mandira Beach Resort & Spa Biker’s on THK Fun Bike FUN bike is one of the activities that recently held by THK Organization. The activity which has the purpose to strengthen relationship among stakeholders in the industry , bikers community, association as well as government Having a healthier life style as well as encouraging “Greener Earth” are also the main objective for the event. As more and more people are building their awareness of the importance for sustainable industry in Bali in line with the Tri Hita Karana

concept as the principal foundation on Bali Tourism Development. The opening ceremony was performed by the Vice Governor of Bali and took place in East Side of Parking Area in Renon which is also the start point for biking. As the eﬀort to encouraging “greener life style” Bali Mandira Beach Resort & Spa has actively participate a in various events and activities related to spread the awareness for greener Bali.  BTNewspaper/bds/PR

Bali Mandira Bikers Team, from left Danang – Eka – Widi – Ayu Manik – Dewa – Witara.

Fabulous Colours by Ten Masters on Art for Humanity THE PATRA Bali Resort & Villas will host “Fabulous Colours by Ten masters on Art for Humanity”, a painting exhibition featuring 30 masterpieces by Ten Bali based talented artists – Ventje Sumakul, Bambang Wiwoho, Jeﬀry .R, Bebet Betrush, Shelley Epstone, Oddy Moelyono, Robin Dougherty, Teguh, Puding Moksa, Davina Stephens for 2 weeks from October 22nd . The art on show will present a diversity of visions, techniques, ideas and emotions by each master. They include impressionist, abstract, symbolic, acrylic, collage and realism works. For the realism, master painters have found inspiration for their work in the unique character and beauty of the faces of Bali, which they believe are influenced by the nature of Bali, the religious and cultural activities of the people. One of artist, Ventje Sumakul, was born in Jakarta 9th March 1941 and lives in Jl. Danau Tondano 61, Taman Sari, Sanur Bali. His style of painting that seeks to represent the familiar or typical in real life, rather than an idealized, formalized, or romantic interpretation of it. While Davina Stephens works between the several cultures that she has either visited or lived in as a means to satisfy her curiosity about diﬀerent working methods. Her work method proceeds by building up paintings

by b layers which result in her canvases being alive, with allegories eﬀortlessly b captured in latter day surreal landc scapes. Within this ‘bathers series’ we s can c see a woman and a child uniting with the blue sea. The body often w represents lightness of being, visible r but floating. against ethereal backfloating This representation r grounds communicates a certain sensitivity, and also suggests ambiguity between embedded movement and the more fluid movement around. “Fabulous Colours by Ten Masters on Art for Humanity” exhibition was held at the Heritage Floating Lounge of The Patra Bali Resort & Villas from October 22nd until the 5th November 2011 with 50% of all proceeds going to the Yayasan Indonesian Solemen for the many homeless children in Indonesia.  BTNewspaper/PR

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Beyond Bali

No. 20  November 11 - 24 , 2011

Palembang on the Musi River

Heart of Ancient Srivijaya WHEN visiting Palembang, do not miss the Musi river cruise. It’s simply a ‘must try’. After passing a number of houseboats and passing under the Ampera bridge you will reach the floating market known as Pasar 16 Ilir, where activities peak around 11 am. Further down on the left are Palembang’s main harbour, the Boom Baru, and the massive Pusri Fertilizer Plant.

The island is today the center of the Cap Go Meh celebrations. During Cap Go Meh, Chinese communities from around the city squeeze into this small piece of land, together with those coming from Hongkong, Singapore and China. They arrive here on local transport called ketek, - which are small boats with noisy engines - , on ferries, speed boats, and decorated dragon boats a alighting from the I Intirub factory or f from Kuto Besak F Fort. Begin your city tour of

h visit the h Kemaro island l d Then that sits in the middle of the Musi river, where stands a large Buddhist temple and the grave of a Chinese princess, who was destined to wed a Srivijaya king.

Palembang at the Museum Sultan Machmud Badaruddin II which faces the Musi river. This building was built by the Dutch in 1823 on what was formerly the Sultan’s palace. The Museum has an open-air theater oﬀering traditional dances. No remains are left of the original palace since Dutch colonialists attacked and burned it down in 1821 AD. Behind the Museum is the Art Market, where you can see artisans work on the delicate gold and silver songket sarongs, and the redand-balck lacquer ware for which Palembang is famous. Here are also sea-shells souvenirs, woven mats a more. and A distance from the M Museum is the Kuta Besak F Fort. Built in 1780 by Sultan M Muhammad Badaruddin ( (father of Sultan Mahmud B Badaruddin II), the fort is the o only one in Indonesia with a Indonesian name, with an

no Dutch or British name attached. This is because its entire construction was done by locals. Today this is used by the army, and is closed to the public. The New Museum of South Sumatra is located 5 km. north of Palembang and has a collection of megalithic statues found at Pasemah, on the western plains of South Sumatra. Here is also a beautifully carved 150 years old limas house traditional Palembang-style house of the aristocracy, displaying rich ceremonial costumes, farming and fishing implements and traditional coﬀee preparations. The Chinese population has a significant share in the development and growth of Palembang. One of the Chinese cultural heritage is the Cheng Ho Mosque. Cheng Ho was a Chinese Muslim admiral sent by the Emperor, who in the 15th century traveled to South East Asia with his fleet of 62 ships and 27,800 seafar-

ers. In Palembang, he sojourned and visited his Moslem acquaintances. Today we can visit the mosque built in memory of Admiral Cheng Ho, which is located at Jakabaring Palembang. Musi River Tour You will find something missing if you visit Palembang without taking a Musi River tour. This famous river is the longest in Sumatra at 750 kilometers long. Taking the Musi River tour is a must for visitors who wish to know the Palembang of the past. Long ago, the native population in Palembang lived along this river. Some even built their homes along the river banks. When taking the tour, you can find several tourist sites such as Kemarau Island and temples. Local people rely on this river for their transportation. You can see many motor boats (taxis) taking passengers to the other side of the river.  BTNewspaper/www. indonesia.travel

Museum Sultan Mahmud Badaruddin II TAKE a trip back in time and explore the history of Palembang by stepping into the Sultan Mahmud Badaruddin II Museum (SMB II). Not only is the museum rich in its collections, but the building itself is a historical legacy, as it is a monument of the golden age of the Palembang Sultanate. Located on the riverbank of the Musi, the museum exhibits various collections ranging from archeology, ethnography, biology, arts and especially numismatics, the study or collection of currencies. Here, you can find many historical remnants from photo collections of the Kedukan Bukit inscriptions, ancient statues of Buddha and the Ganesha Amarawati, as well as various other remnants including those from the Sriwijaya era. Sultan Mahmud Badaruddin II was the ruler of Palembang from 1803 to 1821. This museum that bears his name was once the palace of the Palembang Darussalam Sultanate. Originally called the Keraton Kuto Kecik or Keraton Kuto Lamo, this building along with the Palembang Grand Mosque was built during the era of Sultan Mahmud Bada-

The airport is located on Tanjung Api-Api Street and is accessible from many countries including Malaysia, Singapore, China, and Thailand. The distance between the airport and the museum is about 6 km away. From the airport, take a taxi or a rented car. Balaputera Dewa Museum The South Sumatra Museum consists of two smaller museums, Balaputera Dewa and Sriwijaya. This museum is more popularly known as Balaputera Dewa Museum.

ruddin Jayo Wikramo or SMB I. Distinct from other buildings of the same era that mainly uses woods, the palace was built with bricks.

After Indonesia’s Proclamation of Independence in 1945, the building became a military base for Indonesia’s IV regiment: the Sriwijaya .

With the arrival of the Dutch in the 17th century, the palace was occupied by the colonial army. During the 1st Palembang war in 1819, the Dutch landed 200 troops here who were placed at the Keraton Kuto Lamo. After Sultan Mahmud Badadruddin II was captured and exiled, the Dutch plundered and wrecked buildings in Palembang, including the Keraton Kuto Lamo. In 1823, the Dutch began to reconstruct buildings upon the ruins. At the former Keraton Kuto Lamo, a residence was built for the Kingdom of Netherland’s commissary in Palembang, Yohan Isaac van Sevenhoven. On 1842 the building was completed and was locally popular as the snail house (Rumah Siput).

As a site that was involved in so many historical events, the Sultan Mahmud Badaruddin II Museum is a display that elaborates various eras in history. As day turns into night, prep your camera to face the overall front view of the museum and wait for all lights to shine. When it does, check your camera’s LCDs and see what splendor you’ve captured.

History still held a grip on this building when the Japanese arrived in the 1940’s. With the 2nd World War raging in the Pacific, the Japanese utilized this historical building as their military base.

Museum Sultan Mahmud Badaruddin II is a perfect place to explore the history of Palembang. From the age of Sriwijaya, the Palembang Darussalam Sultanate, the Dutch colonial era and the Japanese occupation up to the early era of Indonesia;s independence are all presented in its 368 collections. The architecture itself is unique as it is a combination of Dutch colonial and native Palembang Palace style. To go to Palembang, take a flight to the Sultan Mahmud Badaruddin II International Airport.

Balaputera Dewa Museum is a public museum which stores and maintains historical and cultural objects. Balaputra Dewa is the name of a Sriwijaya king. This 23,565 square meter (5.8 acres) museum has 3,715 collections consisting 16 geological, 26 biological, 2,073 ethnographical, 87 archaeological, 37 historical, 456 numismatic, 29 philological, and 221 ceramologic collections; and 55 art objects, and 15 modern technological collections. The Balaputera Dewa Museum also has collections of Limas and Ulu traditional houses, and statue wards. The Sriwijaya Museum is a special museum for historical objects of the Sriwijaya kingdom which lasted from the 7th to 13th centuries. It has 191 collections. Both museums are only closed on Mondays and national public holidays. They are open from 08:00 to 15:30, except for Saturdays and Fridays, which are half days. The entrance fee to Balaputera Dewa Museum is Rp 500 (5 cents US) per child and Rp 1,500 (15 cents US) per adult. The entrance fee to the Sriwijaya Museum is only Rp 250 (2.5 cents US) per child and Rp 500 (5 cents US) per adult. 

Cover Story

No. 20  November 11 - 24 , 2011

VII

BALI SAFARI & MARINE PARK

Bali’s Premier Dance and Performing Arts Theatre BALI SAFARI & Marine Park proudly announces the forthcoming NEW dance and performing arts theatre that Bali has never seen before. It is an indoor mega-stage theatre complex with 1200 seating capacity, fully equipped with advanced multi-media technology with ‘state of the art’ sounds and lighting. Bali is enjoying a fabulous colossal epic show and dance performance, a stunning International standard show production - Bali Agung. “Bali Agung – The Legend of Balinese Goddesses” is a blend of Balinese traditional and contemporary dance performance, collaborative music and cutting-edge puppetry on Bali’s largest modern stage to date. The epic cast includes 120 Balinese dancers, shadowpuppet masters, accomplished actors as well as astonishingly well- trained elephants, a range of an exotic range of animals such as eagles and tigers. All supported by stage powerful a sounds and lighting that transforms this fifty-five minutes journey of uplifted wonder into an inspiring experience of a lifetime. This operatic performance is inspired by the historic and legendary accounts of Sri Jaya Pangus, King of the unassailable Balingkang

Kingdom of the Balinese 12th century Bali and his beloved Chinese wife, Kang Ching Wie. The sheer drop into the crater lakes with a volcano rising from its centre provided an epic background for a tragic and heroic story. The General Manager, Hans Manansang says “… our vision is to create a story of a life time that captures the essence of Bali – it is an evolution in the perspective of Balinese culture. It is also our commitment in conservation as well as to keep Bali as the top travel and leisure destination”. ‘Bali Agung’ has been created and produced by an internationally acclaimed theatrical team from music composer to costumes designer, those who involved in the Grand Opening production of Sydney and Beijing Olympics, in collaboration with highly accomplished well known Balinese artists and musician. All promising a unique daily show at the Bali Theatre, in the Park indeed. For further information, please contact: Novielia Tanuwidjaja; Marketing Manager; M. +62813 1510 5949; E. novielia@tamansafari. net; www.balisafarimarinepark.com. 

WHO’S WHO

New Theatre will be Alive with Music ONE of Australia’s most experienced musicians and composer, Chong Lim who was musical the director and composer for the closing ceremony of the Commonwealth Games in Melbourne, has written the orchestral score for ‘Bali Agung’. Chong Lim has worked in the music business for more than 20 years and has heard his work played at the Olympics Games, also composed music for the opening ceremony of the 2006 Asian Games in Doha, Qatar. He has worked with the who’s who of music, from Kylie Minogue, Olivia Newton-John, Tina Arena, Paul Kelly, Dame Edna Everage, Sir George Martin, Boz Scaggs, Jermaine Jackson, Anthony Callea, to Delta Goodrem, Christine Anu and many more as either Producer or Musical Director. Chong has also felt the excitement of being on stage in front of tens of thou-

sands of people when he played in bands while studying at Melbourne University. He had his first break when he joined Venetta’s Taxi and later The Eurogliders, culminating in becoming a member of John Farnham’s band in 1994 and most famously becoming John’s musical director. His passion for music turned to television when he signed on as Musical Director on the television program Don’t Forget Your Toothbrush and since then has worked on nearly all of Australia’s highest rating television programs. Chong was the Musical Supervisor for the stage production of “Dirty Dancing” and also helped orchestrate Guy Sebastian’s album ‘Taller, Stronger, Better’ while Guy was starring in the TV dance series of It Takes Two. Later he produced David Campbell’s album ‘Swing Sessions’ with a full orchestra recorded mostly live and they reunited

to produce “Swing Sessions 2” which went platinum and was a top 10 recording on the ARIA charts. The music he has composed for ‘Bali Agung’ has been recorded by the Sydney Symphony Orchestra and is combined with live performers playing Gamelan and gongs. Words cannot adequately describe the beautiful blending of the Asian and western styles but those who have heard it describe it as pure magic. Originally from Malaysia, Chong returned there in 2007 as the musical director and composer for “Citrawarna”, a Malaysian cultural event held in Kuala Lumpur. Whilst he had been playing piano since the age of seven, Chong now works as a producer, musical director, arranger, keyboard player, sound programmer and was made an Australian Day Ambassador in January 2010.  BTNewspaper/PR

VIII

No. 20  November 11 - 24 , 2011

COMMONWEALTH BANK TOURNAMENT

Sabine Lisicki Enjoy Pottery Artwork in Bali SABINE LISICKI (Germany) ranked 18th in WTA tooks time to enjoy making and painting at Jenggala Ceramic Art Shop before started playing in Commonwealth Bank Tournament of Champions 2011. Sabine Lisicki relieved her jetlag in Bali by painting pottery which will be auctioned oﬀ for charity. In her blog for the WTA Tour, the German reveals that her parents are also in Bali. Lisicki’s mother Elisabeth, a painting and ceramics artist, enjoyed doing art with her daughter, while father Richard was busy taking the pictures for Sabine’s Facebook page. When she was in Bali two years ago Sabine enjoyed a visit to Jenggala, a company that produces ceramics and conducts classes where people can learn to make and paint pots and various other items. While she was there she produced a plate that was later sold by auction for $1000. The money went towards the tournament’s charity, the Smile Foundation, that finances surgery for children born with facial defects. The German was looking forward to making a return visit and, like before, she was joined by her mother Elizabeth, who is in fact a ceramics artist. After moulding two pots, Sabine picked up the paintbrush and decorated a dish, while her mother sat beside her painting a horse. “I don’t really get a chance to do it because we are never home,” said Sabine, “but I really enjoy painting because it is so relaxing and a way to get away from the tennis for a while. After the season is over this week I will definitely spend some time painting.”  BTNewspaper/ Robertus Pudyanto/Net