Culinary map

Culinary map on the way to please domestic tourists
Dicky Christanto, The Jakarta Post, Denpasar

A comprehensive culinary road map pointing out famous eateries in Bali’s tourist spots of Kuta, Denpasar, Sanur and Ubud is currently in the works.

The map is being prepared by the Bali Tourism Board, in cooperation with free culinary magazine ChefUs and Bali Village, an association of tourism promotion agencies.

Titled Warung Lipat (folded eateries), the map will feature a brief history of each restaurant as well as their location and popular menu items. About 40 such restaurants have been documented so far and the organizers are awaiting input from others.

The map’s publication is set to coincide with the school holidays which run from June to July.

“This map is designed especially for domestic tourists to explore our culinary spots for themselves,” tourism board chairman I Gusti Ngurah Wijaya said Wednesday.

The coordinator of the Warung Lipat production committee, Sri Dian Ekawaty, said the list of restaurants was drawn up by a team of independent food lovers made up of tourism board staffers and local journalists. The team spent months reviewing the food and interviewing the restaurants’ owners and customers.

“We also asked people who’d never visited the restaurants what their impressions were, just to get an idea of the place’s reputation. We’ve had to drop many restaurants from our list simply because their reputations weren’t very good,” she said.

Perry Markus of the Association of Bali Hotels and Restaurants said renowned chefs from the Bali chapter of the Indonesian Chefs Association’s would also be involved in checking the restaurants’ merits.

“We will ask these chefs to help increase the quality of the food served,” he said.

Komang Adi Arsana of the chefs’ association said a team of chefs had been tasked to regularly visit the restaurants and give advice on increasing food quality and maintaining cleanliness.will not only provide them with information but also some useful tips on topics such as how to preserve the food without losing the flavor so customers can savor it longer,” he said.

Besides providing information about popular restaurants, Wijaya said, it was hoped the map could positively contribute to the local economy because of its free advertising for restaurants.

“We’re not charging these local restaurant owners at all and that’s why it will be a free advertisement for them as well,” he said.

He said the tourism board planned to print about 100,000 maps to distribute at Ngurah Rai International Airport and in every hotel and shopping mall in the four tourist spots.

Ekawaty said up to Rp 195 million had been invested in the project with funding from the tourism board and several other tourism associations.

To cover the production costs, she said, the production committee was also selling advertising space in the map, with prices starting at Rp 4 million.

Art and Uniques

Art and Uniques in Denpasar

How weird is weird? Well, nobody could answer that for sure including Tjia Jie Hong, the owner of Art and Uniques in Denpasar. There is no certain limitation to the meaning of the word aneh (weird). This was why he picked the name Aneh-aneh for his business. Aneh-aneh is a workshop providing various kinds of artworks with extraordinary designs, mostly made from wood and roots. It is located next to the busy Ngurah Rai express highway.

On the day, there were two big roots of litchi leaned against the side of the bridge connecting the workshop to the highway according to Irawaty Wardany.

One of which had an image of Medusa’s face, a monstrous snake-haired female character from Greek mythology, carved on its surface. The other was still in its original condition. Four workers were busy cleaning the root’s surface and preparing it for the carvers who would give the root a new existence. Doni, one of workers, said it would take them two weeks to a month to clean the root before it was ready to be carved.

Entering the workshop we found more artworks made of wood and stone, and some home decors made of glasses.

“Ninety percent of our products are made of woods — teak wood, litchi wood and suar wood (rain tree wood), which are mostly brought from Java,” he said.

However, he said, he did not want to restrict himself to certain mediums.

“Aneh-aneh also means we do not focus our work on a single material,” he said.

He said the ideas for his artworks mostly came from his or his customers’ imagination. He established Aneh-aneh five years ago after retiring from his previous job.

“I was jobless and I had no idea about how to start a business.
“I just called it Aneh-aneh,” he said. “We prioritize design rarities.”
Most of his artworks are sold abroad.

“I have sold my artworks all throughout the world. Eighty percent of them were sold abroad,” he said.

Currently 60 artists work for him in the workshop, he said.
The name Tjia Jie Hong and his Aneh-aneh Arts and Uniques entered the public’s consciousness in 2007 when the Indonesian Record Museum recorded that he had made the largest baby cart.

The cart was displayed at an exhibition conducted during the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change in December last year.

Visit the website in www.rajacraft.com

Elephant Safari Park

Elephant Safari Park in Taro

“There is never a surviving (rescued) baby in the camps. They are not adequately provided with enough medicines, foods, milk … there is simply not enough funding going into the camps,” said Nigel, who from 2002 until 2005 attempted to transport a group of Sumatran elephants from Minas camp in Riau province to the elephant park in Bali.

The park is an eco-tourism center that aims to conserve the Sumatran elephant according to Trisha Sertori.

Changes in law thwarted a 2002 effort to transport and save the animals, which included two baby elephants orphaned when their parents fled farmers.

“The 2002 transfer went on hold until 2004. The baby elephants died within months of the failed transfer. We had left milk and medical supplies, but maybe workers took the milk home for their own families,” said Nigel of the hardship faced by the elephants and their human protectors in the underfunded camps.

He said since the successful transfer of ten elephants in 2005, the park has repeatedly offered to take abandoned baby elephants, raise them and return them to Sumatra for release or camp life.

“We have offered to take any babies, bring them here, raise them and send them back as adults. Never has one been sent,” said Nigel, who became involved in elephant conservation quite accidentally in 1997.

“An Australian guy came to my office and asked if I wanted to take on some elephants. This was something I had never given thought too. Elephants are not native to Bali, but I went out to Taro to have a look. There were nine adult elephants in the middle of a dried out paddy field. It was the most horrible environment for elephants I’d ever seen. I had to do something for these animals. That’s how the Elephant Safari Park was born,” said Nigel.

It is almost impossible to compare that dried paddy field of ten years ago with the lush new jungle of the park. More than US$1 million has been spent recreating a shaded jungle habitat needed by elephants.

Nigel said when he took on the nine elephants already in Bali, he knew he was taking on a workload that would continue for the rest of his life. But he said recreating a healthy environment was essential if the animals were to survive away from their Sumatran jungle home.

“This area was ideal. It’s mountainous and cooler than the coast. Elephants do not do well near the coast and in dry climates. They get cataracts and skin complaints and need to live in humid cool mountain areas. They don’t like the full sun and are happy in the jungle. We have tried to replicate that here.

“That’s why we chose this area, which is a long way off the tourist track, but we figured tourists need to come to the elephants’ habitat rather than moving elephants to the tourists,” said Nigel.

He added that any idea of establishing an elephant park in Sumatra, home of the elephants, was almost an impossibility given the costs involved.

“This is a business. We receive no funding. People would not go to Sumatra … it’s hard enough to do it here,” he said, adding the cost of housing and feeding 27 elephants around 250 kilograms of food each day meant the park needed to be run as a business.

And while business may at times seem to be a dirty word, Nigel points out that it is through business that the 27 elephants at the park live healthy and happy lives. So successful and happy are the elephants that one, Fatima, is pregnant.

“We have been trying to breed here for some time, but it is extremely difficult. But we have now managed to get one female pregnant. She is due in 2009 after a 22 month gestation period.”
Unlike many captive breeding programs, the Elephant Safari Park does not use artificial insemination (AI), allowing the elephants to breed naturally in a secluded area of the park, closed to tourists.

“We don’t use AI. We have a honeymoon area north of the park. When the male comes into musth (heat) he chooses his female and they are moved to the honeymoon area. It is a huge success for us that the elephants are breeding,” said Nigel.

In the future, the park aims to develop a full research area. A lab has already been built, according to Nigel, but hospital grade equipment — such as ultrasound machines — is expensive and so far out of the park’s financial reach.

“With the lab we can do blood and urine tests here, rather than sending them to Jakarta. With an ultrasound we can monitor a baby elephant’s development. We can have ongoing research done here.

“There is very little information on elephants in Indonesia at this time and I believe we can have far more success with our breeding program with good research. If there are any hospitals out there with an old ultrasound machine, we’d love it,” Nigel said.

With the rate of destruction of Sumatra’s remaining forests, and the ongoing battle for land between elephants and farmers on the island, there are grave fears that parks, such as the Elephant Safari Park at Taro may be the only places left with living Sumatran elephants and their precious DNA.

“When people look at Sumatra’s jungles, they believe there is still plenty of jungle for the elephants. But this is simply not true. There are isolated patches of jungle between palm oil plantations, farms and towns, but they are not linked and the areas are not adequate to sustain elephant populations.

“Even if there were corridors linking these jungles, there would still be battles between farmers and elephants. In a perfect world these animals would live wild in the jungle, but this is not a perfect world,” Nigel said.

“The alternative is that these elephants remain in the dusty, underfunded camps in Sumatra where too many are dying.”

He stressed the park did not own the elephants, saying they were on loan from the Indonesian government.

“We have an obligation to care for these animals for the rest of their lives.

“This is a really sensitive issue, but if things continue as they are, the Sumatran elephant will be extinct within 20 to 50 years,” said Nigel pointing out that around half of Sumatra’s remaining wild elephant population are in camps, where breeding is unlikely.

The other half that represent a breeding population are still in the wild and constantly at risk of death at the hands of farmers, or starvation as forests are lost.

It seems that only parks like the one at Taro are able to offer these animals salvation.

“I think the park is a good example of how business can care for the environment and build a stronger economy for the local people here,” said Nigel.

Most staff members at the park have been recruited directly form Taro village.

One elderly local said the park was a critical development for the area, offering many young people work.

“This is very important to our village and we are happy to have the elephant park here,” said the elderly Balinese man.

The park pays royalties to the village for allowing the elephants to be ridden through a community jungle.

30 things, you should know in Bali and Lombok

30 things you can do in Bali and Lombok. I’ll list them and hope they give you a idea for an activity while you are here.

1. South Lombok beaches - great coastline,sweeping bays, dramatic headlands.
2. Pura Luhur Batukaru - one of Bali’s most beautiful and atmospheric temples located in the highlands.
3. Sunrise from Gunung Batur - sunrise views of Mt. Abang, Mt.Agung and Mt. Rinjani
4. Temple festivals - Bali as 20,000 Hindu temples and all have ceremonies.
5. Kuta nightlife - This part of the island offers a variety of late nightlife entertainment.
6. Nusa Penida’s south coast - Awesome cliffs drop off to the ocean hundreds of meters below.
7. Gunung Agung - The largest and most magnificent volcano located in east Bali.
8. Tenganen - The ancient Bali Aga village where crafts such as ikat weaving are kept alive.
9. Pemuteran - Scuba diving center and traditional fishing boats are the attraction here.
10. Kerta Gosa paintings, Klungkung - Classical Balinese paintings.
11. Rice paddies of Iseh and Sideman - lovely sweeping terraces.
12. Seafood barbecues, Jimbaran - Sit on the beach side tables and enjoy a mountain of freshly grilled seafood.
13. Bali museum, Denpasar - a great collection of exhibits featuring Balinese traditional life.
14. Tirtagangga Water Palace - Situation is tranquil east Bali the gardens features fountains and pools for swimming.
15. Street food - choose from a variety of traditional offering including chicken and turtle sate, bakso and spicy fruit salad.
16. Ubud - Bali’s top inland destination featuring a relaxed environment, arts and crafts as well as fine restaurants.
17. Spas - For those wanting to get away from it all and try something new here’s the answer. Try one of the many traditional massages or baths.
18. Gili Islands - White sandy beaches and clear turquoise water make this great get away spot.
19. Gamelan music - The glong glong rattle rattle is synonymous with Bali for returning visitors.
20. Diving and snorkeling - Shallow reefs and great marine life are very accessible from the beach and using a local with a boat.
21. Sanur - a low key resort area located on Bali’s south coast.
22. Shopping - knock off fashion in Kuta, arts and crafts in Ubud, bargains galore.
23. Tanah Lot - The most photographed temple in Bali perched on a rocky outcrop that is only accessible at low tide.
24. Barong-Rangda dance - This traditional dance is a metaphor for the battle between good and evil, very much a part of the culture.
25. Lombok crafts - featuring textiles, baskets, pottery and furniture.
26. Kecak dance - Performance by torchlight accompanied by a chorus of 50 men.
27. Neka Art Museum Ubud - A collection of the finest art in Bali featuring works from the 17the century to the 1960’s.
28. Learning to paint, cook or dance - Short tourist-oriented courses are accessible and enjoyable for visitors.
29. Pura Meduwa Karang - A great example of northern Bali’s temple architecture.
30. Climbing Rinjani - This challenging multi-day climb takes you through forest, rocky peaks and a crater lake.

Well that’s the list. I think we can all add our own and I’m surprised to think they left out surfing, with the best wave in the world at Desert Point in Lombok and novice friendly Kuta beach right here for beginners to learn on.

I’d like to add East Bali to the list as it for me represents the Bali I imagine, with its lush paddies, towering volcanoes and slow pace of life. Cruising the countryside in Tabanan on a motorbike as this gives a tourist all the freedom you can want and awesome views. For partiers Jalan Dhyana Pura offers more than Kuta in my opinion and for fine dining try Jalan Oberoi ( Laksmana ) in Seminyak.

Tamasha in Bali

Bali, a small island paradise of Indonesia, has a population of 30 lakh people, of whom 93 per cent are Hindus. A few weeks ago, in the star hotels of this remote corner of the world were assembled around 10,000 important people, representing governments, scientific institutes, and NGOs from 192 countries, to discuss what should be done to counter dangerous global climate change.

The previous Kyoto conference on the same theme failed to achieve anything, mainly because the United States refused to accept enforceable international guidelines for curbing carbon dioxide emissions. This time as well, the United States agreed only at the very last minute to investigate the question further, buying itself time for two more years.

Following the recently published U.N. Inter-Governmental Climate Change report, which won the Nobel Peace Prize, it is abundantly clear that more than a 2° C rise in global temperature by 2050 can cause untold harm to the environment and human societies. It has been calculated that this temperature limit can be maintained if heat-trapping greenhouse gases in the atmosphere are kept to 450 parts per million of CO{-2} equivalent.

To keep to this limit global emission of these gases should not exceed 1,700 gigatonnes in the first half of this century, and Western nations should reduce emissions by 80 per cent below the present levels by 2050. The European Union promises to reduce its greenhouse gas emissions by 30 per cent compared to 1990 levels, provided other industrial countries also act, though so far it has not kept even the modest commitments it made at Kyoto.

But many scientists are pleading that global temperatures should be lowered to pre-industrial, that is 1860, levels if we are to strive for security.

Garuda supporters bring Christmas Spirit to Bali

On Tuesday 18 December, Garuda Indonesia in Sydney once again opened its doors for what has become an industry tradition at Christmas time – the annual Garuda “open house”.
Each year friends and colleagues are invited to celebrate the holiday season with some excellent food, a few drinks and the opportunity to share the spirit of giving that epitomizes Christmas by entering a raffle to raise funds for a Balinese charity.

This year the charity was the Baithel Children’s Home in East Bali.

“For several years, Garuda Indonesia’s Sydney staff has been supporting the children’s home with funds raised through regular “jeans” days,” NSW Sales Manager for Garuda Indonesia, Kerry Timms, said.

“The home provides shelter, food and care to some 200 children from Bali and other neighbouring islands; some as far away as Irian Jaya. Their lifestyle is very basic and meals consist mainly of rice and a few home grown vegetables but Bapak Gama and Ibu Sara (pictured) provide a loving and stable environment for the children.”

The raffle raised $384 for Baithel with first prize of a magnum of champagne going to Carmel Eastick and Adam Watson of World Reps. Second prize, a 1.5 litre bottle of Shiraz, went to Elena Lonergan of TIFS.

“The real winners will be the children of Baithel, who collectively consume 75kg of rice per day! So, as you can imagine, the organizers are very grateful for any amount of financial assistance.” said Mr. Timms.

Visit Indonesia Year 2008

Indonesia is ramping up for a giant tourism year in 2008. The Indonesian government launched Visit Indonesia Year 2008 on Wednesday and hopes are high that this campaign can get the tourist sector to the next level. Here’s more from the Jakarta Post.Visit Indonesia Year 2008 officially launched

The Jakarta Post, Jakarta
The government officially launched Visit Indonesia Year 2008 on Wednesday, with the main aim of luring up to 7 million foreign tourists and booking US$6.4 billion in foreign exchange income.

To help reach the target, the government is setting aside $15 million for a domestic and international advertising blitz.

“The budget will be used to finance the promotion campaign, especially abroad,” Culture and Tourism Minister Jero Wacik told a media conference before the grand launch of the program, which will be the second for the country.

The government held its first Visit Indonesia program in 1991, which was not particularly successful, increasing the number of foreign tourists by merely 400,000 from the year earlier, according to the Central Statistics Agency (BPS).

BPS data show that in 1991, around 2.5 million foreign tourists visited the country, from 2.1 million in the previous year.

This year, foreign tourist arrivals are expected to hit 5.5 million, well short of the 6 million targeted.

Jero said the ministry had so far bought advertising time on several international television channels.

However, the larger portion of the money will be used to finance international forums, where it can effectively introduce and promote the program.

Thamrin B.Bachri, the ministry’s director general, added that such forums would be held mainly in countries which traditionally provided the most tourists for Indonesia, such as Australia, Singapore, Malaysia Korea and China.

“These international promotion programs will take the biggest portion of the budget allocation.”
Wednesday’s grand launch was highlighted by performances from Indonesian singers such as Ruth Sahanaya, Rossa and pop band Ungu.

Last week, the ministry had to revise its tourism slogan when it was pointed out it was grammatically incorrect. “Celebrating 100 years of nation’s awakening” was changed to “100 years of national awakening”.

Garuda Indonesia was forced to repaint 10 planes servicing international routes that had already been daubed with the slogan.

Next year the ministry is set to organize more than 100 international events and cultural festivals across the country. (ndr)

In the past there have been complaints about the lack of a coordinated marketing effort for the Indonesian tourism industry. The fact that people flock to Bali, Sulawesi and other places being due more to the efforts of private companies than ant national industry marketing. This new campaign got off to a stuttering start with grammar errors in the logo’s tag line. However that sorts itself out the fact remains that Indonesia offers unique cultures, tremendous bio-diversity, fabulous opportunities for adventure and all the creature comforts a short term tourism could hope for. Getting that across to more people will be the challenge, but its one that is possible.

Christmas 07 & New Year's 08 season in Bali

The Christmas / New Years season in Bali attracts tourists and a the recent break in bad weather brought them out. Driving anywhere in Kuta / Seminyak one will notice the license plates (DK = Bali, L = Surabaya, B = Jakarta and so forth). Lately there is ample opportunity to stop and spot out of town license plates due to the traffic jams.

On many Kuta streets the road is wide enough for 1 car and 1 lane of motorbikes, Jl. Legian being a good example. Out of towners often don’t realize this and try to go 2 abreast, getting stuck at the first wide parked car. The scenes this creates can be frustrating or hilarious depending on your point of view. The other night on Jl. Kunti in Seminyak a westerner was patiently waiting in his SUV to squeeze down the narrow street. A jam occurred and other cars and bikes piled up to prevent anyone backing up. Jumping out of his car and hollering “Use your heads, just use your heads,” he attempted to manually direct the cars backwards. When his turn to go came a local lady on a bike pulled in front of him, generating unkind words from him. She is reciprocated and for the rest of us it was like viewing some sort of unruly sitcom. The best way to handle these hold ups is to sit tight and think of something funny.

My next door neighbour went to Gili Trawangan for Christmas. Not sure what she was hoping to find, some peace and quiet with her rain? Wanting to return yesterday she as told the boats were not sailing due to high winds and waves.