Travel To Ubud, Center Of Bali’s Magical Arts And Culture

Far removed from the drunken bikini scene in Kuta, Ubud can be described as a magical, wonderful, cultural center. Above all, it is famous as an arts and crafts hub. Half (if not more) of the town and nearby villages seem to consist of artists' workshops and galleries, mostly retailing cheap reproductions for tourists.


There are some remarkable architectural sights, artistic gems to be found, and a general feeling of well being to be enjoyed thanks to the spirit, surroundings and climate.

While Ubud seems to outsiders like one small town, it is in fact 14 villages, each run by its own banjar (the land-owning married men's association; in effect the local government). It's clear that Ubud has been growing rapidly and some central parts are coping less well with the influx of tourists than in previous years (although the drop in visitors following 9/11 and the Kuta bombings slowed development). That said, most developments are sympathetic to the zeitgeist, if not designed specifically in the style of Balinese architecture. Growth is continuing due to the popularity of the Ubud area, but there are still terraced rice fields along the rivers and regular, quiet village life carries on relatively undisturbed just a stone's throw away. However, the encroachment of hotel rooms onto paddy fields, particularly near Monkey Forest and and along the Agung river is noticeable. Many hotels will promote themselves as being "in Ubud" when they are more likely to actually be located in one of the surrounding villages that make up the greater Ubud.

Due to its location 600 meters above sea level, Ubud enjoys somewhat cooler temperatures than the coast (sometimes necessary to bring a pullover for the evening), although the midday sun can still be scorching, and the humidity usually relentless.

There are some great sights in the town of Ubud which are easily walked between. You will need some from of transport to get to the temples in the vicinity. An easy option is to join a tour or you can just charter a car and driver as needed.

* Botanic Garden, Kutuh Kaja. The recently opened Botanic Garden is a wonderful way to spend a few hours walking around and exploring the valley that it fills. It is best to go in the morning and avoid the afternoon heat.

* Goa Gajah (Elephant Cave), Bedulu village, Gianyar. The centerpiece here is a cave dating back to the 11th century, the entrance which is an ornately carved demon's mouth. Inside are some fragmentary lingam and yoni (phallus and vagina) statues, as well as a statue of Ganesha. Statues stand guard around pools near the entrance. Other part of the Goa Gajah complex werre not excavated until the 1950s. Nominated as a UNESCO World Heritage Site. A little path leads to a waterfall, rice fields and some Buddhist stupa fragments.

* Gunung Kawi (Poet Mountain), Tampaksiring (18 km northeast from Ubud). Dating from the 11th century, this is presumed to be the burial complex of King Anak Wungsu and his many wives. Reached by climbing down 371 steps, the location at the bottom of a steep valley lined with paddy fields is stunning. The smaller complex on the south side of the river is presumed to be for the king's wives, while the larger complex is thought to be for the King himself and perhaps his concubines. You must take off your shoes before entering into the central pura complex. About one km downstream there are further tomb cloisters. On the way back up, take a break at Cafe Kawi, which has cold drinks and fresh breezes.

* Monkey Forest, Jalan Monkey Forest, Ubud. A sacred forest full of ravenous monkeys, so don't bring any food or risk bites and rabies injections. Stroll through to find Pura Dalem Agung Padangtegal, a temple of the dead. A visit to the very informative website beforehand is highly recommended

* Museum Puri Lukisan (Museum of Fine Arts), Jalan Raya, Ubud (on the main road just west of the market). The first private museum in Bali which opened in 1954. Three buildings showcasing traditional and modern Balinese art. The displays are a little musty and English labeling is a little spotty, but some of the works, particularly the carvings, are quite amazing. Exhibits by noted artists I Gusti Nyoman Lempad and Rudolph Bonnet, amongst others.

* Tirta Empul, Tampaksiring (20 km northeast from Ubud). One of the holiest temples on Bali, built around hot springs that now bubble eerily in the central courtyard. Balinese themselves come here to bathe and purify themselves physically and spiritually, and during Galungan the sacred barong masks are bathed here. The complex dates to 960, but the present buildings are all modern reconstructions.

Singaraja : The Host Of Sail Bunaken / Sail Indonesia-Lovina 2009

Sail Bunaken is a new name for yacht Rally Sail Indonesia. It is officially called Sail Bunaken 2009. this activity is a kind of rally which crosses do of Indonesian Ocean and visits some demote islands in Indonesian archipelago that have various and unique cultures. The event had been opened officially on August 19, 2009, which was signed by sailing pass and flying pass of tens military planes from Blitung harbour to the bay Manado, North Sulawesi.

Its main activity was attended by 39 warships from 22 countries and 10 warships from Indonesia. It included USS George Washington (an aircraft carrier / a mother ship) from United States and three tall ships.

Singaraja will become the host of Sail Bunaken / Sail Indonesia-Lovina 2009. This activity is an international event which becomes the largest event in Asia, it will be attended by hundreds ships. Lovina beach in Singaraja will become the check point for Bali. There are about 165 yachts from 20 countries with 402 crews / tourists surely will join in this event. The participants come from US, Australia, New Zealand, England, France, Germany, Austria, Switzerland, Italy, Nederland, Turkey, New Caledonia, Vanuatu, Malaysia, Singapore, Philippine, Spain, Belgium, Norway.

Even though, some yachts have been reached the shore, but the event will be held on October 2, 2009 at Lovina Beach. It will be welcomed by the Regent of Buleleng Regency, Drs. Putu Bagiada MM in a special welcome dinner. In this event, many university students were invited to be tourist guides. This event, which has the purpose to whip up the spirit of maritime matters, will be lively with culture attractions, like bull races, colossal dances name Gita Bahari, painting and handicraft exhibition.
We provide CIQP (Custom, Immigration, Quarantine, Port Clearance) at the site to serve the tourists especially in extending their visa, licensing and anything related to the arrival of the tourists. We also provide health center to anticipate Swine flu and ready with medicines.

It is expected that yacht rally Sail Bunaken – Sail Indonesia 2009 that had crossed Singaraja, will bring positive impacts toward Buleleng inhabitants, and increase the promotion of Buleleng destinations. Thus, the cruisers from many countries who has arrived on Lovina Beach will not only stay in Caribbean but also in Lovina. It appears that they enjoyed staying longer in Lovina. It is showed by the fact that since the beginning of September there were 15 yachts had reached Lovina beach. Moreover yacht rally is expected to be able to improve the economy life of the society, to develop international relationship, to enhance the willingness of the society toward seashore and ocean conservations.

For all participants of Sail Bunaken / Sail Indonesia – Lovina, we hope they can enjoy the peace atmosphere of Lovina beach with its beautiful panorama and friendly society, as well as can also develop maritime sector in Buleleng. Finally we hope that all the participanta also can stimulate commitment to save and preserve the beauty of Lovina.

Travel To Kuta Beach Of Lombok Island

Travel to Kuta Beach will give you a great moment. Kuta is a town in the south of the island of Lombok in Indonesia. The scenery is spectacular, with cliffs and mountains reaching the coast creating jugged and awe inspiring landscapes and views. The beaches are also some of the best in Indonesia, with pristine white sand and transparent blue greens in the water. Kuta has some of the best surfing in the world, so naturally many of the tourists are surfers.


But Kuta also has a wide variety of hotels and restaurants for back packers to wealthy travelers. So many travelers travel to Kuta just to unwind, relax on the beach, rent a motorcycle, read a book or take a nap in the afternoon.

The village of Kuta provides all the basic travel necessities, such as toiletries, tropical clothing,souvenirs, fruits and bottled water. However, closest place where you can buy pharmacy supplies, luggage, develop photos, and make travel reservations is in the city of Praya. Praya is also the nearest place with a bank and ATM machine to take local money. Praya is approximately 30 km from Kuta. If you hire a driver for a day tour of the area, the driver can arrange to pass through Praya. Alternatively, Praya can be reached via local public transport. The trip is about an hour ride so prudent travelers bring enough local currency for their stay.

Travel To Senggigi Beach Of Lombok Island

Senggigi Beach
The Senggigi region can be broadly divided into four areas: far northern Tanjung, north Mangsit Beach, central Senggigi and the southern stretch near Batu Bolong. The exact boundaries of each areas are rather ill-defined. One section bleeds into another. Pockets of development can be found in some areas, while long stretches of open, undeveloped land lie in between. Nightlife and major restaurants are concentrated in the central town of Senggigi. Tanjung, Mangsit, and Batu Bolong are primarily home to resorts and offer very little other tourist activities, such as shopping and nightlife. The first time traveler should be aware of these distinct regional differences. Simply booking a hotel in Senggigi could mean a relatively remote location where the town center can only be reached by taxi.


Senggigi is the place to find hotels/resorts with manicured grounds and swimming pools. Many accommodations advertise they are located only a short distance from the beach. However, the beaches can vary in quality from broad, white sand beach in one location to coarse, black sand beach in the next. Senggigi is not a typical tourist resort town where a day can be spent shopping and socializing at the local bars and restaurants (such as found in Bali). Most visitors use Senggigi as a home base and take day trips to the waterfalls, the Gili Islands, or just exploring the still authentic villages, temples, and jungle habitat found within a couple hours drive.

Lombok's post-2000 misfortunes hit Senggigi hard, with many developments halted and businesses closed and boarded up. Things are starting to improve again, with a few new villas going up, shops re-opening and attracting more tourist who seek the solitude and unspoiled scenery of Lombok.

How To Find A Reliable Discount Holiday Agent

Few of us book a holiday without looking for the best travel deals. Travel is now one of the biggest online sectors, and it’s to the internet that we turn to look for cheap holidays. There’s no shortage of sites offering extraordinary deals, but it can be difficult to know which are reliable and which aren’t. Here are some guidelines to help you tell the difference.

1. Independence

A travel agent that isn’t tied to any particular company or promoter is best placed to offer great deals. They can negotiate with a range of suppliers, or direct with airlines and accommodation owners to ensure that they get the best price for you. You can be sure that they’re not pushing you towards a particular operator and that you’re really getting good value for money.

2. Professional membership

It’s really important that a discount travel agent is a member of a professional body. In the UK, this is ABTA, the Association of British Travel Agents. ABTA members have to abide by a strict code of conduct and agencies are regularly assessed to ensure that they are meeting the organisation’s high standards. ABTA membership also means that you have a independent body to channel complaints to, should you have any problems with the agent.

3. Secure payments

If you’re booking online, it’s vital that you make sure that the site’s payment system is secure. This protects you from fraud and is an essential part of any online shopping system. If you can’t find anything on the site that gives you information on the payment system, then don’t book online.

4. Contact

A good discount holiday travel agent, whether online or on the high street, should be easily contactable and offer excellent customer service. Even at discount prices, booking a holiday is a financial commitment and you need to be sure that you can contact the agent should you need any help.

Article Source: http://www.travelarticlelibrary.com

Travel To Bali, Indonesia By: Criss Lee

Traveling to Indonesia for vacation is definitely a travel you will never forget.Plan for a long ride to get there, as it is a 31 hour flight from New York. Bali is a wonderful area with an array of fun filled activities to choose from. It is the main tourist area of Indonesia


The people of Bali are very friendly, and enjoy having visitors come to their area. Many speak English to interact with tourists. They have chosen to preserve their culture for all to see rather than change it to become like other countries. The beaches are a main attraction with surfing being one of the most popular activities. Others enjoy renting a boat for the day to relax on the open waters.

Lodging in Bali ranges from small bungalows to huge fancy hotels, all with basic accommodations to meet the needs of tourists. The view from your hotel will be wonderful because of the rich beauty of the area regardless of where you choose to stay.

The people of Bali are very artistic. They enjoy painting, weaving, carving, basket making, and other arts. Children are taught art from a very early age. They often display their makings to sell to the tourists.

Temples are a main vacation attraction in Bali. They are called Pura. The temples provide an opportunity to explore religion and art of the culture. The people of Bali are still very religious, and it is very important that those visiting the Temples show respect for their religious beliefs.

Art galleries exhibit creative and attractive art work to view. Wildlife and nature reserves are popular in Bali. Many people go to get a glimpse of the very dangerous Komodo Dragon, a large lizard that is found only in the area and is extinct. The rare Java tiger is also displayed.

There are more than 400 volcanoes in Indonesia, 128 are still active. They offer a historical view of this natural creation to observe. Botanic Gardens are also a very popular attraction. Displaying flora and fauna as well as promoting conservation, people are drawn to the beauty of such attractions.

While Indonesia is a beautiful and serene place to visit, it is strongly advised at this time to be cautious with such visits due to the possibility of terrorist attacks. If you do choose to travel to the area do not travel alone and make sure you have registered with the US Embassy.

Article Source: http://www.travelarticlelibrary.com

Holiday Traveling Tips By: Sally Rutherford

The holidays certainly can be stressful, and traveling during a holiday is certainly not fun. The roads are packed, traffic is thick, and everyone is anxious to get to their destination. Traveling is also more expensive. Don't you love it when people take advantage of the holidays like that?!?
I thought I could give you some tips for when you travel this holiday. Hopefully these tips can save you some peace of mind as well as money!

1. If you are flying and have presents to take ship them in advance. They will be there when you arrive and you do not have to mess with taking them on the plane. If you do take them on the plane do not wrap them. With the heightened security at airports they will probably just be unwrapped and checked anyway.
2. Consider renting an apartment or condo for a week. You can find some great deals online and save a considerable amount of money over paying for a hotel. Depending on the size of your family you may want to look into renting a vacation home.
3. Don't eat out anymore than you have to. Eating out is expensive. Use your rental to its full advantage and go to the grocery store and buy what you need to cook your own meals. Get the kids involved and let them help pick the meals and even help cook them.
4. Recreation during the holidays is one of the great benefits of having a family. You can play board games or card games. Take along a Frisbee or football and get outside and throw them around. When you rent a place for the week it offers you all kinds of ways to save money. You can take along your favorite DVDs and have some family movie time everyday.
5. If you rent a vacation home you might want to share it with another family. Being able to split the costs with someone you enjoy being around during the holidays can save you a lot of money as well. This idea may or may not work for you depending on the ages of your kids and the common interests of the family you travel with.
These are just a few holiday travel tips if you are on a budget. Even if you are not on a budget you can save some money during the holidays and have some quality time with your family that you might not get staying with a relative or in a hotel.
Article Source: http://www.travelarticlelibrary.com

Influenza A H1N1 precautionary act by Indonesia

Since WHO declares it as a pandemic (on June 11, 2009), until July 27, 2009, 134,503 people are positively infected by influenza A H1N1 in the world. It is transmitted directly from human-to-human contact through cough, sneeze or things touched by the infected person. Therefore, the distribution is extremely rapid.

Some preparedness have been taken by government to suppress the number of influenza A H1N1 patients especially in Bali in order to keep tour and travel activities grow: supporting Port Health Office (thermal scanner and Health Alert Card, which must be filled in), preparing referral hospitals, supplying logistics, improving contact investigation, ILI surveillance, laboratory, communication, education and information, as well as performing International Health Regulations (IHR).

In addition, it also covers community surveillance, which is people having quite serious influenza should go to health center, while people having very serious one must go to health center, and clinical surveillance, which is developing surveillance of severe acute respiratory infection (SARI) in health center and hospital levels to find very serious cases, while slight cases do not need inpatient treatment in hospital.

Source:
Center for Public Communication, Secretariat General MOHRI.
For queries, please call: 021-52907416-9, facs: 52921669, Call Center : 021-30413700, or send e-mail to: puskom.publik@yahoo.co.id, info@puskom.depkes.go.id, kontak@puskom.depkes.go.id.

Vacation In Bedugul Botanical Gardens

Bedugul Botanic Garden are well known as Kebun Raya Eka Karya; they are vast tropical gardens located in Bedugul in the high highland areas on Bali and are some 1.150 meters above sea level. If you are in Lovina heading south it will take an approx 1.5 hour scenic drive to get there. Be sure to take the time to stop at the Beratan Lake to see Pura Ulun Danu ( a water temple ) then continue past the traditional fruit market Candikuning and then take a right turn.


The botanic garden were opened in 1959 as a place to conduct research for flora that grows in the eastern part of Indonesia. The wide park collects many types of trees including flowering and medicinal trees.

This garden has more than 1187 plant types and a multitude of flora. In this area there is a beautiful orchid garden with a collection of over 320 orchid types which are from Bali, Java, Nusa Tenggara Timur, Sulawesi and Papua. There is also a fragrant rose garden with an extensive collection of roses.

All plantations are categorized and well arranged, surrounded by decorative plants and flowers this area is not only beautiful but educational.

Originally, Bedugul botanic garden was only for scientists but now is open to the public and is fast becoming one of the island favorite tourist destinations especially for domestic tourists.

This botanic garden is open every day and the visitors are obligated to pay a minimum entrance fee. At the entrance you can study the map of the garden it shows there is an 8 km foot path that is interesting to navigate and from one location you can see the Beratan Lake.

For those who like adventure there is also a tree top adventure park. The park includes six main circuits that stretch from tree to tree, as well as nets, Tarzan Jumps, and Bridges. Each run also features a " Flying Fox".