Bali. Indonesia
Foto. Dreamland-Beach-Bali
See also: Lake Toba Indonesia
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Bali is an
Indonesian island located in the westernmost end of the
Lesser Sunda Islands, lying between
Java to the west and
Lombok to the east. It is one of the country's 33
provinces with the provincial capital at
Denpasar towards the south of the island. The province covers a few small neighbouring islands as well as the isle of Bali.
With a population recorded as 3,891,428 in the 2010 census,
[3] the island is home to most of
Indonesia's Hindu minority. In the 2000 census about 92.29% of Bali's population adhered to
Balinese Hinduism
while most of the remainder follow Islam. It is also the largest
tourist destination in the country and is renowned for its highly
developed arts, including
traditional and modern dance, sculpture, painting, leather,
metalworking, and
music. Bali, a tourist haven for decades, has seen a further surge in tourist numbers in recent years.
Bali was inhabited by around 2000 BC by
Austronesian peoples who migrated originally from
Taiwan through
Maritime Southeast Asia.
[4]
Culturally and linguistically, the Balinese are thus closely related to
the peoples of the Indonesian archipelago, Malaysia, the Philippines,
and Oceania.
[5] Stone tools dating from this time have been found near the village of Cekik in the island's west.
[6]
In ancient Bali, nine Hindu sects existed, namely Pasupata, Bhairawa,
Siwa Shidanta, Waisnawa, Bodha, Brahma, Resi, Sora and Ganapatya. Each
sect revered a specific deity as its personal Godhead.
[7]
Balinese culture was strongly influenced by Indian, Chinese, and particularly
Hindu culture, beginning around the 1st century AD. The name
Bali dwipa ("Bali island") has been discovered from various inscriptions, including the Blanjong pillar inscription written by
Sri Kesari Warmadewa in 914 AD and mentioning "Walidwipa". It was during this time that the complex irrigation system
subak
was developed to grow rice. Some religious and cultural traditions
still in existence today can be traced back to this period. The Hindu
Majapahit Empire (1293–1520 AD) on eastern
Java
founded a Balinese colony in 1343. When the empire declined, there was
an exodus of intellectuals, artists, priests, and musicians from Java to
Bali in the 15th century.
The first
European contact with Bali is thought to have been made in 1585 when a
Portuguese ship foundered off the
Bukit Peninsula and left a few Portuguese in the service of
Dewa Agung.
[8] In 1597 the Dutch explorer
Cornelis de Houtman arrived at Bali and, with the establishment of the
Dutch East India Company
in 1602, the stage was set for colonial control two and a half
centuries later when Dutch control expanded across the Indonesian
archipelago throughout the second half of the nineteenth century (see
Dutch East Indies).
Dutch political and economic control over Bali began in the 1840s on
the island's north coast, when the Dutch pitted various distrustful
Balinese realms against each other.
[9]
In the late 1890s, struggles between Balinese kingdoms in the island's
south were exploited by the Dutch to increase their control.
The Dutch mounted large naval and ground
assaults at the Sanur region
in 1906 and were met by the thousands of members of the royal family
and their followers who fought against the superior Dutch force in a
suicidal
puputan defensive assault rather than face the humiliation of surrender.
[9] Despite Dutch demands for surrender, an estimated 1,000 Balinese marched to their death against the invaders.
[10] In the
Dutch intervention in Bali (1908), a similar massacre occurred in the face of a Dutch assault in
Klungkung.
Afterwards the Dutch governors were able to exercise administrative
control over the island, but local control over religion and culture
generally remained intact. Dutch rule over Bali came later and was never
as well established as in other parts of Indonesia such as Java and
Maluku.
In the 1930s, anthropologists
Margaret Mead and
Gregory Bateson, and artists
Miguel Covarrubias and
Walter Spies, and musicologist
Colin McPhee
created a western image of Bali as "an enchanted land of aesthetes at
peace with themselves and nature", and western tourism first developed
on the island.
[11]
Imperial Japan
occupied Bali during World War II. Bali Island was not originally a
target in their Netherlands East Indies Campaign, but as the airfields
on
Borneo were inoperative due to heavy rains the
Imperial Japanese Army decided to occupy Bali, which did not suffer from comparable weather. The island had no regular
Royal Netherlands East Indies Army (KNIL) troops. There was only a Native Auxiliary Corps
Prajoda
(Korps Prajoda) consisting of about 600 native soldiers and several
Dutch KNIL officers under command of KNIL Lieutenant Colonel W.P.
Roodenburg. On 19 February 1942 the Japanese forces landed near the town
of Senoer. The island was quickly captured.
[12]
During the Japanese occupation a Balinese military officer,
Gusti Ngurah Rai,
formed a Balinese 'freedom army'. The lack of institutional changes
from the time of Dutch rule however, and the harshness of war
requisitions made Japanese rule little better than the Dutch one.
[13]
Following Japan's Pacific surrender in August 1945, the Dutch promptly
returned to Indonesia, including Bali, immediately to reinstate their
pre-war colonial administration. This was resisted by the Balinese
rebels now using Japanese weapons. On 20 November 1946, the
Battle of Marga
was fought in Tabanan in central Bali. Colonel I Gusti Ngurah Rai, by
then 29 years old, finally rallied his forces in east Bali at Marga
Rana, where they made a
suicide attack
on the heavily armed Dutch. The Balinese battalion was entirely wiped
out, breaking the last thread of Balinese military resistance. In 1946
the Dutch constituted Bali as one of the 13 administrative districts of
the newly proclaimed
State of East Indonesia, a rival state to the Republic of Indonesia which was proclaimed and headed by
Sukarno and
Hatta.
Bali was included in the "Republic of the United States of Indonesia"
when the Netherlands recognised Indonesian independence on 29 December
1949.
The 1963 eruption of
Mount Agung killed thousands, created economic havoc and forced many displaced Balinese to be
transmigrated
to other parts of Indonesia. Mirroring the widening of social divisions
across Indonesia in the 1950s and early 1960s, Bali saw conflict
between supporters of the traditional
caste system, and those rejecting these traditional values. Politically, this was represented by opposing supporters of the
Indonesian Communist Party (PKI) and the
Indonesian Nationalist Party (PNI), with tensions and ill-feeling further increased by the PKI's land reform programs.
[9] An attempted coup in Jakarta was put down by forces led by General Suharto. The army became the dominant power as it instigated
a violent anti-communist purge,
in which the army blamed the PKI for the coup. Most estimates suggest
that at least 500,000 people were killed across Indonesia, with an
estimated 80,000 killed in Bali, equivalent to 5% of the island's
population.
[14] With no Islamic forces involved as in Java and Sumatra, upper-caste PNI landlords led the extermination of PKI members.
[15]
As a result of the 1965/66 upheavals, Suharto was able to manoeuvre Sukarno
out of the presidency, and his
"New Order"
government reestablished relations with western countries. The pre-War
Bali as "paradise" was revived in a modern form, and the resulting large
growth in tourism has led to a dramatic increase in Balinese standards
of living and significant foreign exchange earned for the country.
[9] A bombing in 2002 by militant
Islamists in the tourist area of
Kuta killed 202 people, mostly foreigners. This attack, and
another in 2005,
severely affected tourism, bringing much economic hardship to the
island, although tourist numbers have now returned to levels before the
bombings.
Geography
The island of Bali lies 3.2 km (2 mi) east of
Java, and is approximately
8 degrees south of the
equator. Bali and Java are separated by the
Bali Strait.
East to west, the island is approximately 153 km (95 mi) wide and spans
approximately 112 km (69 mi) north to south; its land area is
5,632 km².
Bali's central mountains include several peaks over 3,000 metres in elevation. The highest is
Mount Agung (3,031 m), known as the "mother mountain" which is an active
volcano.
Mountains range from centre to the eastern side, with Mount Agung the
easternmost peak. Bali's volcanic nature has contributed to its
exceptional fertility and its tall mountain ranges provide the high
rainfall that supports the highly productive agriculture sector. South
of the mountains is a broad, steadily descending area where most of
Bali's large rice crop is grown. The northern side of the mountains
slopes more steeply to the sea and is the main coffee producing area of
the island, along with rice, vegetables and cattle. The longest river,
Ayung River, flows approximately 75 km.
The island is surrounded by
coral reefs. Beaches in the south tend to have white sand while those in the north and west have
black sand. Bali has no major waterways, although the Ho River is navigable by small
sampan boats. Black sand beaches between Pasut and Klatingdukuh are being developed for tourism, but apart from the seaside temple of
Tanah Lot, they are not yet used for significant tourism. [[1 Tegalalang rice terrace ubud bali.jpg|right|thumb|
Subak irrigation system]] The largest city is the provincial capital,
Denpasar, near the southern coast. Its population is around 491,500 (2002). Bali's second-largest city is the old colonial capital,
Singaraja, which is located on the north coast and is home to around 100,000 people. Other important cities include the beach resort,
Kuta, which is practically part of Denpasar's urban area, and
Ubud, situated at the north of Denpasar, is the island's cultural centre.
Three small islands lie to the immediate south east and all are administratively part of the
Klungkung regency of Bali:
Nusa Penida,
Nusa Lembongan and
Nusa Ceningan. These islands are separated from Bali by the Badung Strait.
To the east, the
Lombok Strait separates Bali from
Lombok and marks the
biogeographical division between the fauna of the
Indomalayan ecozone and the distinctly different fauna of
Australasia. The transition is known as the
Wallace Line, named after
Alfred Russel Wallace, who first proposed a transition zone between these two major
biomes. When sea levels dropped during the
Pleistocene ice age, Bali was connected to Java and
Sumatra
and to the mainland of Asia and shared the Asian fauna, but the deep
water of the Lombok Strait continued to keep Lombok and the
Lesser Sunda archipelago isolated.
Ecology
The
Bali Starling is found only on Bali and is critically endangered.
Bali lies just to the west of the
Wallace Line,
and thus has a fauna which is Asian in character, with very little
Australasian influence, and has more in common with Java than with
Lombok. An exception is the
Yellow-crested Cockatoo, a member of a primarily Australasian family. There are around 280 species of birds, including the critically endangered
Bali Starling, which is
endemic. Others Include
Barn Swallow,
Black-naped Oriole,
Black Racket-tailed Treepie,
Crested Serpent-eagle,
Crested Treeswift,
Dollarbird,
Java Sparrow,
Lesser Adjutant,
Long-tailed Shrike,
Milky Stork,
Pacific Swallow,
Red-rumped Swallow,
Sacred Kingfisher,
Sea Eagle,
Woodswallow,
Savanna Nightjar,
Stork-billed Kingfisher,
Yellow-vented Bulbul,
White Heron,
Great Egret.
Until the early 20th century, Bali was home to several large mammals: the wild
Banteng,
leopard and the endemic
Bali Tiger.
The Banteng still occurs in its domestic form, while leopards are found
only in neighboring Java, and the Bali Tiger is extinct. The last
definite record of a Tiger on Bali dates from 1937, when one was shot,
though the subspecies may have survived until the 1940s or 1950s.
[16]
The relatively small size of the island, conflict with humans, poaching
and habitat reduction drove the Tiger to extinction. This was the
smallest and rarest of all Tiger subspecies and was never caught on film
or displayed in zoos, while few skins or bones remain in museums around
the world. Today, the largest mammals are the
Javan Rusa deer and the
Wild Boar. A second, smaller species of deer, the
Indian Muntjac, also occurs.
Squirrels are quite commonly encountered, less often is the
Asian Palm Civet, which is also kept in coffee farms to produce
Kopi Luwak.
Bats
are well represented, perhaps the most famous place to encounter them
remaining the Goa Lawah (Temple of the Bats) where they are worshipped
by the locals and also constitute a tourist attraction. They also occur
in other cave temples, for instance at Gangga Beach. Two species of
monkey occur. The
Crab-eating Macaque,
known locally as “kera”, is quite common around human settlements and
temples, where it becomes accustomed to being fed by humans,
particularly in any of the three “monkey forest” temples, such as the
popular one in the
Ubud
area. They are also quite often kept as pets by locals. The second
monkey, endemic to Java and some surrounding islands, such as Bali which
is far rarer and more elusive is the
Javan Langur, locally known as "lutung". They occur in few places apart from the
Bali Barat National Park.
What is interesting about this species is that the young are born an
orange colour, though by their first year they would have already
changed to a more blackish colouration. In Java however, there is more
of a tendency for this species to retain its juvenile orange colour into
adulthood, and so you can see a mixture of black and orange monkeys
together as a family. Other rarer mammals include the
Leopard Cat,
Sunda Pangolin and
Black Giant Squirrel.
Snakes include the
King Cobra and
Reticulated Python. The
Water Monitor can grow to an impressive size and move surprisingly quickly.
The rich coral reefs around the coast, particularly around popular diving spots such as
Tulamben,
Amed, Menjangan or neighboring
Nusa Penida, host a wide range of marine life, for instance
Hawksbill Turtle,
Giant Sunfish,
Giant Manta Ray,
Giant Moray Eel,
Bumphead Parrotfish,
Hammerhead Shark,
Reef Shark,
barracuda, and
sea snakes. Dolphins are commonly encountered on the north coast near
Singaraja and
Lovina.
Many plants have been introduced by humans within the last centuries,
particularly since the 20th century, making it sometimes hard to
distinguish what plants are really native. Among the larger trees the
most common are:
Banyan trees,
Jackfruit,
coconuts,
bamboo species,
acacia trees and also endless rows of
coconuts and banana species. Numerous flowers can be seen:
hibiscus,
frangipani,
bougainvillea,
poinsettia,
oleander,
jasmine,
water lily,
lotus,
roses,
begonias, orchids and
hydrangeas exist. On higher grounds that receive more moisture, for instance around
Kintamani, certain species of
fern trees,
mushrooms and even
pine trees thrive well. Rice comes in many varieties. Other plants with agricultural value include:
salak,
mangosteen,
corn, Kintamani orange, coffee and
water spinach.
A team of scientists has conducted survey from 29 April 2011 to 11
May 2011 at 33 sea site of Bali. They have discovered 952 species of
reef fish which 8 of them were new discoveries at
Pemuteran,
Gilimanuk,
Nusa Dua,
Tulamben and
Candidasa and 393 coral species, including two new ones at
Padangbai and between Padangbai and
Amed.
[17] The average coverage level of healthy coral was 36 percent (better than in
Raja Ampat and
Halmahera by 29 percent or in
Fakfak and
Kaimana by 25 percent) with the highest coverage was found in
Gili Selang and
Gili Mimpang in
Candidasa,
Karangasem regency.
[18]
Environment
Some of the worst erosion has occurred in
Lebih Beach,
where up to 7 meters of land is lost every year. Decades ago, this
beach was used for holy pilgrimages with more than 10,000 people, but
they have now moved to
Masceti Beach.
[19]
From ranked third in previous review, in 2010 Bali got score 99.65 of
Indonesia's environmental quality index and the highest of all the 33
provinces. The score measured 3 water quality parameters: the level of
total suspended solids (TSS),
dissolved oxygen (DO) and
chemical oxygen demand (COD).
[20]
Due to over-exploitation by the tourist industry which converse
massive land, 200 out of 400 rivers on the island have dried up and
based on research, the southern part of Bali would face a water shortage
up to 2,500 liters of clean water per second by 2015.
[21]
To ease the shortage, the central government plans to build a water
catchment and processing facility at Petanu River in Gianyar. The 300
liters capacity of water per second will be channeled to Denpasar,
Badung and Gianyar in 2013.
[22]
Administrative divisions
The province is divided into 8
regencies (
kabupaten) and 1
city (
kota). These are:
| Jembrana Regency |
Negara |
841.80 |
231,806 |
247,102 |
261,618 |
| Tabanan Regency |
Tabanan |
839.30 |
376,030 |
398,389 |
420,370 |
| Badung Regency |
Mangupura |
418.52 |
345,863 |
388,548 |
543,681 |
| Gianyar Regency |
Gianyar |
368.00 |
393,155 |
421,067 |
470,380 |
| Klungkung Regency |
Semarapura |
315.00 |
155,262 |
163,291 |
170,559 |
| Bangli Regency |
Bangli |
520.81 |
193,776 |
208,508 |
215,404 |
| Karangasem Regency |
Amlapura |
839.54 |
360,486 |
376,711 |
396,892 |
| Buleleng Regency |
Singaraja |
1,365.88 |
558,181 |
599,866 |
624,079 |
| Denpasar City |
Denpasar |
123.98 |
532,440 |
574,610 |
788,445 |
| Totals |
|
5,780.06 |
3,146,999 |
3,378,092 |
3,891,428 |
Economy
Three decades ago, the Balinese economy was largely agriculture-based
in terms of both output and employment. Tourism is now the largest
single industry; and as a result, Bali is one of Indonesia’s wealthiest
regions. About 80% of Bali's economy depends on tourism.
[23] By end of June 2011,
non-performing loan
of all banks in Bali were 2.23 percent average, relatively quite low
compare to about 5 percent average of Indonesian banking industry
non-performing loan.
[24] The economy, however, suffered significantly as a result of the terrorist bombings
2002 and
2005. The tourism industry is slowly recovering once again.
Agriculture
Although tourism produces the GDP's largest output, agriculture is still the island’s biggest employer;
[25][citation needed] most notably rice cultivation. Crops grown in smaller amounts include fruit, vegetables,
Coffea arabica and other
cash and subsistence crops.
[citation needed] Fishing also provides a significant number of jobs. Bali is also famous for its
artisans who produce a vast array of handicrafts, including
batik and
ikat cloth and clothing,
wooden carvings,
stone carvings, painted art and silverware. Notably, individual
villages typically adopt a single product, such as wind chimes or wooden
furniture.
The Arabica coffee production region is the highland region of Kintamani near
Mount Batur.
Generally, Balinese coffee is processed using the wet method. This
results in a sweet, soft coffee with good consistency. Typical flavors
include lemon and other citrus notes.
[26] Many coffee farmers in Kintamani are members of a traditional farming system called Subak Abian, which is based on the
Hindu
philosophy of "Tri Hita Karana”. According to this philosophy, the
three causes of happiness are good relations with God, other people and
the environment. The Subak Abian system is ideally suited to the
production of fair trade and organic coffee production. Arabica coffee
from Kintamani is the first product in Indonesia to request a
Geographical Indication.
[27]
Tourism
Pura Taman Ayun, another temple which is a popular tourist destination
A statue of Arjuna on a street in Bali
The tourism industry is primarily focused in the south, while
significant in the other parts of the island as well. The main tourist
locations are the town of
Kuta (with its beach), and its outer suburbs of Legian and
Seminyak (which were once independent townships), the east coast town of
Sanur (once the only tourist hub), in the center of the island
Ubud, to the south of the
Ngurah Rai International Airport,
Jimbaran, and the newer development of
Nusa Dua and
Pecatu.
The American government lifted its travel warnings in 2008. The
Australian government last issued an advice on Friday, 04 May 2012. The
overall level of the advice was lowered to 'Exercise a high degree of
caution'.
Kuta Beach is a popular tourist spot in Bali
An offshoot of tourism is the growing real estate industry. Bali real
estate has been rapidly developing in the main tourist areas of Kuta,
Legian, Seminyak and Oberoi. Most recently, high-end 5 star projects are
under development on the Bukit peninsula, on the south side of the
island. Million dollar villas are being developed along the cliff sides
of south Bali, commanding panoramic ocean views. Foreign and domestic
(many Jakarta individuals and companies are fairly active) investment
into other areas of the island also continues to grow. Land prices,
despite the worldwide economic crisis, have remained stable.
In the last half of 2008, Indonesia's currency had dropped
approximately 30% against the US dollar, providing many overseas
visitors value for their currencies. Visitor arrivals for 2009 were
forecast to drop 8% (which would be higher than 2007 levels), due to the
worldwide economic crisis which has also affected the global tourist
industry, but not due to any travel warnings.
Bali's tourism economy survived the terrorist bombings of 2002 and
2005, and the tourism industry has in fact slowly recovered and
surpassed its pre-terrorist bombing levels; the longterm trend has been a
steady increase of visitor arrivals. At 2010, Bali received 2.57
million foreign tourists. It is surpassed the target of 2.0–2.3 million
tourists. The average occupancy of starred hotels achieved 65 percent
(last year 60.8 percent), so still capable for accommodates tourists for
next some years without any addition of new rooms/hotels,
[28] although at the peak season some of them are fully booked.
Bali received the Best Island award from
Travel and Leisure
in 2010. The award was presented in the show "World's Best Awards 2010"
in New York, on 21 July. Hotel Four Seasons Resort Bali at Jimbaran
also received an award in the category of "World Best Hotel Spas in Asia
2010". The award was based on a survey of travel magazine Travel and
Leisure readers between 15 December 2009 through 31 March 2010, and was
judged on several criteria. Thermes Marins Bali, Ayana Resort and Spa,
(formerly The Ritz-Carlton) got score 95.6 scored out of a maximum 100
of satisfaction index with spa facilities and services as No. 1 Spa in
the world by Conde Naste's Traveller Magazine for 2010 by their readers
poll.
[29]
The island of Bali won because of its attractive surroundings (both
mountain and coastal areas), diverse tourist attractions, excellent
international and local restaurants, and the friendliness of the local
people. According to BBC Travel released in 2011, Bali is one of the
World's Best Islands, rank in second after
Greece.
[30]
On August 2010, the film version of
Eat, Pray, Love (EPL), which starred
Julia Roberts, was released in theaters. The movie was based on
Elizabeth Gilbert's
best-selling memoir of the same name. It took place at Ubud and
Padang-Padang Beach at Bali. The 2006 book, which spent 57 weeks at the
No. 1 spot on the New York Times paperback nonfiction best-seller list,
has already fueled a boom in EPL tourism in Ubud, the hill town and
cultural and tourist center that was the focus of Gilbert's quest for
balance through traditional spirituality and healing that leads to love.
[31]
Newly launched packages by luxury resorts and spas like Ubud Hanging
Gardens and the cliff-top Ayana promise to recreate Gilbert's four
transformative months on Bali in a few passing days with yoga classes,
drawn-out beach dinners, massage therapy. Other tours built around the
book focus on curative group gatherings and self-discovery of the kind
Gilbert had.
[32]
EPL helped boost Bali’s tourist numbers, together with the stable
security situation on the island. Bali had 2.5 million visitors in 2010,
exceeding their target of 2.3 million. That figure was also an
improvement from 2009’s 2.2 million and 2008’s 1.96 million visitors.
[33]
The Tourism Office admitted that they had done nothing to maximize the
opportunity to promote Bali and surrender to the filmmakers to promote.
[34]
Since 2011, China has displaced Japan as the second-largest supplier
of tourists to Bali, while Australia still tops the list. China tourists
increased by 17 percent from last year due to the impact of
ACFTA and new direct flights to Bali.
[35]
In January 2012, Chinese tourists year on year (yoy) increased by
222.18 percent compared to January 2011, while Japanese tourists
declined by 23.54 percent yoy.
[36]
Transportation
A major form of transport in Bali is the
Moped
The
Ngurah Rai International Airport is located near Jimbaran, on the
isthmus at the southernmost part of the island.
Lt.Col. Wisnu Airfield is found in north-west Bali.
A coastal road surrounds the island, and three major two-lane
arteries cross the central mountains at passes reaching to 1,750m in
height (at Penelokan). The Ngurah Rai Bypass is a four-lane expressway
that partly encircles Denpasar and enables cars to travel quickly in the
heavily populated south. Bali has no railway lines yet.
December 2010: Government of Indonesia has invited investors to build Tanah Ampo Cruise Terminal at
Karangasem, Bali amounted $30 million.
[37] In 17 July 2011 the first cruise ship (
Sun Princess)
will anchor about 400 meters away from the wharf of Tanah Ampo harbor.
The current pier is only 154 meters and will be a 300 to 350 meters to
accommodate international cruise ships. The harbor would be safer than
Benoa and has a scenic backdrop of a panoramic view of mountainous area
with green rice fields.
[38]
In December 2011, the auction process will setlle and predicted Tanah
Ampo to become the main hub for cruise ships in Indonesia in 2013.
[39]
A Memorandum of Understanding has been signed by 2 ministers, Bali's Governor and
Indonesian Train Company to build 565 kilometers railway along the coast around the island. It will be operated from 2015 onwards.
[40]
On 16 March 2011 (Tanjung) Benoa port has received a "Best Port
Welcome 2010" award from London's "Dream World Cruise Destination"
magazine.
[41] Government plans to expand the role of Benoa port as export-import port to boost Bali's trade and industry sector.
[42]
On May 2011, an integrated Areal Traffic Control System (ATCS) was
implemented to reduce traffic jams at four crossing points: Ngurah Rai
statue, Dewa Ruci Kuta crossing, Jimbaran crossing and Sanur crossing.
ATCS is an integrated system connecting all traffic lights, CCTVs and
other traffic signals with a monitoring office at the police
headquarters. It has successfully been implemented in other ASEAN
countries and will be implemented at other crossings in Bali.
[43][44]
On 21 December 2011 officially kicked off the construction of the Nusa Dua-Benoa-
Ngurah Rai International Airport
toll road which provide also with a special lane for motorcycle has
been done by seven state-owned enterprises led by PT Jasa Marga with 60
percent of shares was named PT Jasa Marga Bali Tol will construct the
9.91 kilometers toll road. The construction is estimated to cost Rp.2.49
trillion ($273.9 million) and is expected to be finished by April 2013
before
Apec
Summit and the Bali Summer Summit 2013. The project will through 2
kilometers mangrove forest and through 2.3 kilometer beach, both in 5.4
hectares area. Elevated toll road will be built over the mangrove forest
on 18,000 concrete pillars which will occupy 2 hectares of mangroves
forest, but will compensate by new plant of 300,000 mangrove tress along
the road. On 21 December 2011 the Dewa Ruci 450 meters underpass has
also been kicked off on the busy Dewa Ruci junction near Bali Kuta
Galeria with estimated cost Rp136 billion ($14.9 million) from the state
budget.
[45][46][47]
To solve chronic traffic problems, the province will build a toll road connecting Serangan with
Tohpati, a toll road connecting Kuta, Denpasar and Tohpati and a flyover connecting Kuta and Ngurah Rai Airport.
[48]
Demographics
The population of Bali was 3,891,428 (at the 2010 Census). There are an estimated 30,000 expatriates living in Bali.
[49]
Religion
Unlike most of Muslim-majority Indonesia, about 93.18% of Bali's population adheres to
Balinese Hinduism Hindu Dharma, formed as a combination of existing
local beliefs and
Hindu influences from mainland Southeast Asia and South Asia. Minority religions include Islam (4.79%), Christianity (1.38%), and
Buddhism (0.64%). These figures do not include immigrants from other parts of Indonesia.
When Islam surpassed Hinduism in
Java
(16th century), Bali became a refuge for many Hindus. Balinese Hinduism
is an amalgam in which gods and demigods are worshipped together with
Buddhist heroes, the spirits of ancestors, indigenous agricultural
deities and sacred places. Religion as it is practiced in Bali is a
composite belief system that embraces not only theology, philosophy, and
mythology, but ancestor worship, animism and magic. It pervades nearly
every aspect of traditional life.
Caste is observed, though less strictly than in India. With an estimated 20,000
puras (temples) and shrines, Bali is known as the "Island of a Thousand Puras", or "Island of the Gods".
[50]
Balinese Hinduism has roots in Indian Hinduism and in Buddhism, and
adopted the animistic traditions of the indigenous people. This
influence strengthened the belief that the gods and goddesses are
present in all things. Every element of nature, therefore, possesses its
own power, which reflects the power of the gods. A rock, tree, dagger,
or woven cloth is a potential home for spirits whose energy can be
directed for good or evil. Balinese Hinduism is deeply interwoven with
art and ritual. Ritualizing states of self-control are a notable feature
of religious expression among the people, who for this reason have
become famous for their graceful and decorous behavior.
[51]
Apart from the majority of Balinese Hindus, there also exist
Chinese
immigrants whose traditions have melded with that of the locals. As a
result, these Sino-Balinese not only embrace their original religion,
which is a mixture of Buddhism, Christianity, Taoism and Confucianism,
but also find a way to harmonize it with the local traditions. Hence, it
is not uncommon to find local Sino-Balinese during the local temple's
odalan.
Moreover, Balinese Hindu priests are invited to perform rites alongside
a Chinese priest in the event of the death of a Sino-Balinese.
[52] Nevertheless, the Sino-Balinese claim to embrace Buddhism for administrative purposes, such as their Identity Cards.
[53]
Language
Balinese and
Indonesian are the most widely spoken languages in Bali, and the vast majority of Balinese people are
bilingual or
trilingual.
The word "bahasa" literally means language in Indonesian, and the most
common spoken language around the touristic areas in Bali are Bahasa
Indonesia, as many people in the tourist sector are not solely Balinese,
but migrant workers from Java, Lombok, Sumatra, and other parts of
Indonesia. There are several indigenous Balinese languages, but most
Balinese can also use the most widely spoken option: modern common
Balinese. The usage of different Balinese languages was traditionally
determined by the
Balinese caste system and by clan membership, but this tradition is diminishing.
Kawi and
Sanskrit are also commonly used by some Hindu priests in Bali, for Hinduism literature was mostly written in Sanskrit.
English is a common third language (and the primary foreign language) of many Balinese, owing to the requirements of the
tourism industry. Other foreign languages, such as Chinese, Japanese,
Korean, French or German are often used in multilingual signs for foreign tourists.
Culture
The famous dancer I Mario, picture taken 1940.
Bali is renowned for its diverse and sophisticated art forms, such as
painting, sculpture, woodcarving, handcrafts, and performing arts.
Balinese percussion orchestra music, known as
gamelan, is highly developed and varied. Balinese performing arts often portray stories from Hindu epics such as the
Ramayana but with heavy Balinese influence. Famous
Balinese dances include
pendet,
legong,
baris,
topeng,
barong,
gong keybar, and
kecak
(the monkey dance). Bali boasts one of the most diverse and innovative
performing arts cultures in the world, with paid performances at
thousands of temple festivals, private ceremonies, or public shows.
[54]
The Hindu New Year,
Nyepi,
is celebrated in the spring by a day of silence. On this day everyone
stays at home and tourists are encouraged to remain in their hotels. On
the day before New Year, large and colourful sculptures of
ogoh-ogoh
monsters are paraded and finally burned in the evening to drive away
evil spirits. Other festivals throughout the year are specified by the
Balinese
pawukon calendrical system.
Balinese dancers wearing elaborate headgear, photographed in 1929. Digitally restored.
Celebrations are held for many occasions such as a tooth-filing (coming-of-age ritual), cremation or
odalan (temple festival). One of the most important concepts that Balinese ceremonies have in common is that of
désa kala patra, which refers to how ritual performances must be appropriate in both the specific and general social context.
[55] Many of the ceremonial art forms such as
wayang kulit and
topeng are highly improvisatory, providing flexibility for the performer to adapt the performance to the current situation.
[56] Many celebrations call for a loud, boisterous atmosphere with lots of activity and the resulting aesthetic,
ramé, is distinctively Balinese. Often two or more
gamelan
ensembles will be performing well within earshot, and sometimes compete
with each other in order to be heard. Likewise, the audience members
talk amongst themselves, get up and walk around, or even cheer on the
performance, which adds to the many layers of activity and the
liveliness typical of
ramé.
[57]
Kaja and
kelod are the Balinese equivalents of North
and South, which refer to ones orientation between the island’s largest
mountain Gunung Agung (
kaja), and the sea (
kelod). In addition to spatial orientation,
kaja and
kelod
have the connotation of good and evil; gods and ancestors are believed
to live on the mountain whereas demons live in the sea. Buildings such
as temples and residential homes are spatially oriented by having the
most sacred spaces closest to the mountain and the unclean places
nearest to the sea.
[58]
Most temples have an inner courtyard and an outer courtyard which are arranged with the inner courtyard furthest
kaja.
These spaces serve as performance venues since most Balinese rituals
are accompanied by any combination of music, dance and drama. The
performances that take place in the inner courtyard are classified as
wali, the most sacred rituals which are offerings exclusively for the gods, while the outer courtyard is where
bebali
ceremonies are held, which are intended for gods and people. Lastly,
performances meant solely for the entertainment of humans take place
outside the walls of the temple and are called
bali-balihan. This
three-tiered system of classification was standardized in 1971 by a
committee of Balinese officials and artists in order to better protect
the sanctity of the oldest and most sacred Balinese rituals from being
performed for a paying audience.
[59]
Tourism, Bali’s chief industry, has provided the island with a
foreign audience that is eager to pay for entertainment, thus creating
new performance opportunities and more demand for performers. The impact
of
tourism
is controversial since before it became integrated into the economy,
the Balinese performing arts did not exist as a capitalist venture, and
were not performed for entertainment outside of their respective ritual
context. Since the 1930s sacred rituals such as the
barong dance
have been performed both in their original contexts, as well as
exclusively for paying tourists. This has led to new versions of many of
these performances which have developed according to the preferences of
foreign audiences; some villages have a
barong mask specifically for non-ritual performances as well as an older mask which is only used for sacred performances.
[60]
Balinese society continues to revolve around each family's ancestral
village, to which the cycle of life and religion is closely tied.
[61] Coercive aspects of traditional society, such as
customary law sanctions imposed by traditional authorities such as village councils (including "
kasepekang", or
shunning) have risen in importance as a consequence of the democratization and decentralization of Indonesia since 1998.
[61]
Heritage sites
Taman Ayun Temple, the
Pakerisan watershed and
Batukaru will be proposed to
UNESCO as World Heritage sites by Bali administration.
[62]
