Buleleng Tourism Information Guides - all buleleng tourism vacancy and holiday information

Buleleng Tourism Information

2008-05-03T01:07:00.001-07:00

Subdistricts :

1. Gerokgak
2. Seririt
3. Busung Biu
4. Banjar
5. Buleleng
6. Sukasada
7. Sawan
8. Kubutambahan
9. Tejakula

Regency of Buleleng consists of 9 Subdistrict covering 146 village/administrative village and 163 traditional village with width about 1,365.88 km² ( 24.25% from wide of Bali Island). Having tropical climate influenced by monsoon and rains of during the month of October until April. Circumstance of Topography of Regency of Buleleng most representing hilly area unfolding in South arch share, while in regional upstate of regency of long Buleleng from West to East coastally is which is long enough (144 Km) and about sea of Java in northside, westside Regency of Jembrana, eastside Kabupaten of Karangasem, South arch of Regency Bangli,Tabanan and Badung.
Height of Regency of Buleleng between 100-1,000 m is above sea level(dpl), with inclination of land ground of bigger than 40% covering 23.89% Regency Region.

Social Aspect of Economics Sum up resident of Regency of Buleleng pursuant to result of registration of year 1999 as much 577.644 people with comparison of sex ratio 96.86% Density 423 people / km², and growth rate of resident 1.10%.

Pursuant to higher education ended, a lot of 39.92 have % education to SD, and 0.63 have % commensurate education to of college. From his land ground use faced in 1999, showing 8.5% used as by a rice field farm, plantation 21.4 %.State Forest 35.6% dry farming 31.5% and the others use for the width of 3.0%.

To develop commodity / area product, marginally Regency of Buleleng potency have its development to still at sector field of is effort, agriculture, small areas of industries and the tourism. Development of agricultural sector in wide meaning is which given high priority by have reached results which enough see the with excitement. Some product which still own potency to be developed to represent very valuable asset for area earnings improvement. From other side agricultural sector, industrial sector of crafting and also represent sector which is given high priority by its development. This sector still very potential to be developed to remember supported by adequate SDM and SDA.

A night in Lovina Bali

2007-08-27T05:43:00.000-07:00

The north coast of Bali is a different scene than the one we are used to in Kuta / Seminyak. No big expat community or overpowering tourist scene or much nightlife.

Sean, Chris and I drove our rented Kijang over the mountains past Juliana’s home village of Baturiti and past lake Bratan. We swung through to the coast and headed west from Singaraja to Lovina. The area that calls itself Lovina is actually several villages that have developed in a ribbon like fashion along thew northern coastal road.

I visited 10 years ago and back then I found quite a few backpack type travelers. These there are not too many of any kind of tourist, but I can tell the area is geared towards mid range tourists.

The place we’re staying, Hotel Nugraha is slightly to the west of Loviina and their asking price was 350,000rp for a twin room. We got 2 rooms for 500,000rp and this includes breakfast. Room s are a bit small and are very clean with AC and bathroom accessories.

The Nugraha is located next to the beach which is dark volcanic sand. When the tide is out it isn’t that attractive but when the tide is in you can swim quite far in still water and only be in 4 feet of water.

The road is close to the hotel so traffic noise is a constant.
Right now we’re in a very slow internet cafe 5 minutes from the hotel and will head for Amed and Ujung shortly. Its rainy season now and the skies are overcast. I enjoy the tropics and a good storm. If you are visiting you might find it annoying but we are in Bali and this is part of the deal, just like Hawaii or Florida.

Lovina - Kalibukbuk - Nirwana Seaside

2007-08-27T05:41:00.000-07:00

Lovina is conveniently located on the north coast of Bali, approximately 7km west of Singaraja, the main coastal town. Lovina itself isn’t a town, but rather a string of villages marketed as a resort area. Arriving via Seririt to the west, one has a great opportunity to window shop for a place to stay. One of my suggestions is to stay in a place not on the main road, but with enough space that you won’t hear the traffic. We stayed at the Nirwana Seaside Cottages located next to the beach in central Kalibukbuk. I’ve stayed there before and its and okay place.

Built in 1980, the losman style rooms at the front didn’t appeal to me so we headed for the newer AC rooms at the rear of the large property close to the pool. After a drive there’s nothing like jumping into a pool to unwind. The Nirwana Seaside charged us 500,000rp total for 2 adjoining rooms, both with AC, hot water and TV. The rooms were okay with the only complaint being the hot water not being so consistent. Still staff were nice and we had immediate access to the central beach area. Kalibukbuk has the famous dolphin statue next to the beach and is a place where locals and tourists gather around sunset. Drink sellers and strolling vendors offered their wares (small Bintang 8,000rp) and my mother in law loved haggling for cheap necklaces to give to the kids back in Java. After the drive and a swim I was cooked, so sat like a bump on a log while the business was taken care of.

Lovina has a black sand beach and the whole beach scene is about 1% of Kuta beach. Lovina does not receive swell so the waves are ripples, the water temperature warmer than the south coast. The main thing to do as far as tourists are concerned is ‘dolphin watching’. This means rising at 6am and boarding a small outrigger in pursuit of dolphins for the purpose of viewing them up close. This has become a very heavily marketed activity and I wasn’t tempted in the slightest. Much better in my view to hire a boat and go for a slow cruise along the coast for an hour or 2. Ika wanted to take Jevon on a boat for 20 minutes the afternoon we arrived. After negotiating she offered 20,000rp but the owner wanted 50,000rp. I think they were asking something like 100,000rp for the morning dolphin chasing. While we were in Lovina the place seemed quiet, with scattered family groups from France and Holland. The staff at Nirwana told us last week they were busy, because of tour groups. Apparently they do not get too many walk in guests.

Kalibukbuk has a tightly packed selection of bars and restaurants, with some live music. Partiers staying in Lovina may be interested to know there is one legitimate nightclub, the Volcano in Anturan, which opens at 12 midnight, entrance 50,000rp for ‘bules‘. Locals will sometimes tell you there are cafes serving beer, which roughly translates into the kampung version of a hostess bar, where you sit around and get served beer by the waitresses. These places are a waste of time and are just plain nasty. I remember having a beer in one place where the plastic table cloth had about 500 cigarette burns in it. I was scared to put my beer down in case anything crawled into in. When I’m on a road trip, all I’ve got the energy for is food and a drink, late night partying just isn’t going to happen.
After teaching my father in law the game of draughts (checkers) and sampling some rather average Indonesian food we hit the sack (separate sacks).

Gedong Kirtya: Lontar manuscripts in Singaraja Bali

2007-08-27T05:23:00.000-07:00

Gedong Kirtya, the only palm-leaf manuscript library in Bali or maybe in the world is founded in 1928. Gedong Kirtya was opened to the public by the then Governor General of East Indies, A. C.D. de Graff on 14 September 1928. The date of the opening is engraved on a monogram or candra sangkala on the entrance door. This monogram consists of the image of a human riding on an elephant with a bow in his hand, killing his enemy with an arrow. This image is interpreted as follows: a human represents the figure 1; elephant figure 8; arrow figure 5 and the dead person figure 0. According to Caka year, Gedong Kirtya was founded in Caka 1850.

Situated in the heart of Buleleng regency, precisely on Jalan Veteren No.20 Singaraja, Gedong Kirtya houses some 7,500 cakep (titles) of lontar. The manuscripts here are categorized into some divisions based on their respective topic. Vedic group gives valuable information on Vedic teachings, Mantra and Kalpasastra (benefits of ritual activity). The religious group covers the Palakerta carrying the regulation like Dharmasastra, Kertasima, Awig-awig; Sesana or guidelines on moral; while Niti on law and legislation.

The Wariga group tells about astronomy and astrology; Tutur describes about the knowledge of cosmos. Itihasa group includes the Parva, Kakawin, Kidung and Geguritan. Meanwhile, the Babad group explains Pancangah (genealogy), history including the falls of kingdoms. The Tantri group is a narration originating in the literature of ancient India, similar to Aesop’s fables. Lelampahan group is story tale played in the performance of gambuh, human wayang and arja operetta.

Gedong Kirtya also houses a set of inscribed bronze plates inscribed with old Balinese edict from the Pejeng-Bedulu Dynasty dating from the 10th century. These are called prasasti and are considered the oldest written records in Bali.

In addition to preserving the ancient manuscript, the museum has responsibility to transliterate the most ancient and rarest palm-leaf manuscript into the romanized Balinese language. So sacred are the manuscripts that many Balinese in its early days of this museum were afraid to enter the Gedong Kirtya lest they be cursed by spirits.

Klenteng Ling Gwan Kiong: Singaraja, Bali

2007-08-27T05:11:00.000-07:00

Just off Jalan Erlangga and a stones throw from the ocean sits the beautiful Chinese temple Ling Gwan Kiong.

Winding your way through the narrow back streets and alleyways towards the harbour area is fascinating. Some of the original buildings built by the Dutch are still present and architecturally brilliant. There are also some great warungs in the area. When you finally arrive at the harbour area you will espy the magnificent Chinese temple.

A colourful and beautifully constructed klenteng, access to the temple is via a water bridge over a pond filled with pink and white lotus flowers. An unusual array of Koi fish can be seen in the depths of the water of this quaint pass over to the inner temple.

I spoke to the guardian of the temple, an elderly Chinese man hard of hearing, and I found it hard to obtain the information I needed regarding the klenteng. Instead, he ushered me into one of the many prayer areas, and smiled.

Gold Bhudda statues and ornately decorated textiles were to be found everywhere. I was particularly impressed with the murals of Deities hand-painted on the entrance doors and surrounding walls.

I can well imagine this temple to be a hive of pageantry and colour during Imlek, Chinese New Year.

Great Places in Singaraja

2007-08-27T04:47:00.000-07:00

Ling Gwan Kiong Chinese Temple: Just off Jalan Erlangga and a stones throw from the oceansits the beautiful Chinese temple Ling Gwan Kiong. A colourful and beautifully constructed klenteng, access to the temple is via a water bridge over a pond filled with pink and white lotus flowers. An unusual array of Koi fish can be seen in the depths of the water of this quaint pass-over to the inner temple. Gold Bhudda statues and ornately decorated textiles are to be found everywhere. Particularly impressive are the murals of Deities hand-painted on the entrance doors and surrounding walls.

The Waterfront Harbour: This is a nice place to relax and quite stunning with its panorama of the open ocean. It is a quite place and there are some deserted and old Dutch warehouses to be found here but they are rundown but one can imagine the hive of activity that once occurred there.

Take a stroll along the beach and have a look at some of the scattered traditional villages along this stretch. There is also a monument called Yudha Mandala Tama that was erected in 1987 and commemorates the independence struggle against the Dutch in the 1940’s.

Singaraja Central Market: Located right in the centre of the city on the main street, this poky and dusty market is fabulous to meander through albeit a tad claustrophobiatic at times. The market is seldom visited by westerners so be aware of pilfering but it is a place where you an also get some great shopping and cheaper than in Kuta!. It is a general goods market meaning it has just about everything.

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Great Places in Singaraja

2007-08-27T04:38:00.000-07:00

Singaraja is in the regency seat of Buleleng and is often referred to as Lion City. Located on thenorth coast just east of Lovina, Singaraja was once the capital of Bali under Dutch colonial administration. It is a place not renowned for people to stay overnight or for a few days and most travellers travel further along the coastline to places like Lovina where the accommodation is more prodigious and of better quality. However, it is a city of charm with its wide, tree-lined streets and Dutch colonial architecture present every where you look.

Singaraja is also an educational centre having two university campuses. But, that is not all that the Lion city has to offer. Being steeped in history, Singaraja has some great places to visit as well as some really good warungs and restaurants, and, not to forget the numerous market places. A turn down any corner will reveal a surprise and the people are amongst the friendliest on the island.
Here are a few places you might want to check out next time you are up this way:

Gedong Kirtya Museum and Library: This is the only library in the world with a large collection of lontar manuscripts both ancient and sacred texts on leaves of the lontar palm. The building also houses books from the Dutch colonial era and some very interesting inscribed copper plates called prasasti. The library actually contains over a thousand texts on the sciences from philosophy to astrology and medicine. Not far from the Library is the museum which houses the collection of the last Raja of Buleleng.

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