Bali

May 15, 2009 at 5:52 am (News)
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From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

This article is about the Indonesian island. For other uses, see Bali
Bali
Lambang Bali
Motto: Bali Dwipa Jaya
(”Glorious Bali Island”)
Map showing Bali within Indonesia
Capital Denpasar
Governor Made Mangku Pastika
Area 5,632.86 km2 (2,175 sq mi)
Population 3,150,000 (2000)
Density 559.2 /km2 (1,448 /sq mi)
Ethnic groups Balinese (89%), Javanese (7%), Baliaga (1%), Madurese (1%)[1]
Religion Hindu (93.18%), Muslim (4.79%), Christian (1.38%), Buddhist (0.64%)
Languages Indonesian (official), Balinese
Time zone UTC+8
Web site www.baliprov.go.id

Bali is an Indonesian island located at 8°25′23″S 115°14′55″E/8.42306°S 115.24861°E/-8.42306; 115.24861Coordinates: 8°25′23″S 115°14′55″E/8.42306°S 115.24861°E/-8.42306; 115.24861, the westernmost 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.

With a population recorded as 3,151,000 in 2005, the island is home to the vast majority of Indonesia’s small Hindu minority. 93.18% of Bali’s population adheres 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 dance, sculpture, painting, leather, metalworking and music.

History

Temple offering in predominantly Hindu Bali island.

Bali was inhabited by Austronesian peoples by about 2000 BCE who migrated originally from Taiwan through Maritime Southeast Asia.[2] Culturally and linguistically, the Balinese are thus closely related to the peoples of the Indonesian archipelago, the Philippines, and Oceania.[3] Stone tools dating from this time have been found near the village of Cekik in the island’s west.[4]

Balinese culture was strongly influenced by Indian and Chinese, and particularly Hindu culture, in a process beginning around the 1st century AD. The name Bali dwipa (”Bali island”) has been discovered from various inscriptions, including the Blanjong charter issued by Sri Kesari Warmadewa in 913 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 by Dutch explorer Cornelis de Houtman who arrived in 1597, though a Portuguese ship had foundered off the Bukit Peninsula as early as 1585.[citation needed] Dutch colonial control was expanded across the Indonesian archipelago in the nineteenth century (see Dutch East Indies). Their political and economic control over Bali began in the 1840s on the island’s north coast by playing various distrustful Balinese realms against each other.[5] 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 marched to certain death against superior Dutch force in a suicidal puputan defensive assault rather than face the humiliation of surrender.[5] Despite Dutch demands for surrender, an estimated 4,000 Balinese marched to their death against the invaders. In 1908, a similar massacre occurred in the face of a Dutch assault in Klungkung. Afterwards the Dutch governors were able to exercise little influence over the island, and local control over religion and culture generally remained intact.

Dutch rule over Bali had come later and was never as well established as in other parts of Indonesia such as Java and Maluku. Imperial Japan occupied Bali during World War II during which time a Balinese military officer, Gusti Ngurah Rai, formed a Balinese ‘freedom army’. 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.[6] 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, 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 Republic 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.[5] 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 per cent of the island’s population.[7] With no Islamic forces involved as in Java and Sumatra, upper-caste PNI landlords led the extermination of PKI members.[8]

Bali blast monument.

As a result of the 1965/66 upheavals, Suharto was able to maneuver Sukarno out of the presidency, and his “New Order” government reestablished relations with western countries. The pre-War Bali as “paradise” was revised 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.[5] 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.

Geography

See also List of bodies of water in Bali and List of mountains in Bali.

Topography of the island

The island of Bali lies 3.2 km (2 mi) east of Java, and is approximately 8 degrees south of the equator. East to west, the island is approximately 153 km (95 mi) wide and is approximately 112 km (69 mi) north to south; it’s land area is 5,632 km². The highest point is Mount Agung at 3,142 m (10,308 feet) high, an active volcano that last erupted in March 1963. Mountains cover centre to the eastern side, with Mount Agung the easternmost peak. Mount Batur (1,717 m) is also still active; an eruption 30,000 years ago was one of the largest known volcanic events on Earth.[citation needed]

In the south the land descends to form an alluvial plain, watered by shallow, north-south flowing rivers, drier in the dry season and overflowing during periods of heavy rain. The longest of these rivers, Sungai Ayung, is also the longest on the island (approx. 75 km).

The principal city is the present provincial capital and largest city, Denpasar, near the southern coast. Its population is around 300,000. 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, which is north of Denpasar, and known as the island’s cultural centre.

Southern Bali in the foreground and Mount Agung behind

There is a coastal road surround the island, as well as three major two-lane arteries that cross the central mountains at passes reaching to 1,750m in height (at Penelokan). Minor roads branch off of these major highways. 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.

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. The beach town of Padangbai in the south east has both[citation needed]. 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.

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 lives only on Bali. As few as six may exist in the wild as of 2001

 This section does not cite any references or sources. Please help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources. Unverifiable material may be challenged and removed. (October 2007)

Bali has around 280 species of birds, including the critically endangered Bali Starling. The only endemic high-level predator of the island, the Bali tiger, became extinct in the 1930s.

The Bali Barat National Park, located on the north western side of the island, is a refuge for wildlife such as the Sunda Pangolin, Indian Muntjac, Mouse-deer, Leopard Cat, Black Giant Squirrel, and several species of macaque and leaf monkey.

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Denpasar at a glimpse

December 18, 2008 at 8:03 am (News)
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Denpasar at a glimpse

As the Capital City of Bali, Denpasar has many places of interest that are worth seen. As usual, we would like to warn you to be careful while crossing are street in Denpasar. Motorist and riders prefers to blow their horns rather than put on their brakes! Therefore, we advise you to rise and wave your hand while cross the street confidently rather than doubtful.

By doing this, you will force the motorist to give you a chance to cross the street. Besides being known as an administration and business center, Denpasar is also known as an educational center. There are at least 16 univercities available in the city as well as hundreds of school such as kindergartens, elementary, and high schools. For tour of Denpasar, you’d better started from Puputan Badung Square, at the center of the city. The garden square is usually crowded in the afternoon when families bring their children to play around. At the east of the square is a Hindu temple called Pura Agung Jaganatha which is visited by Hindu followers on special occasions such as on the night of the full moon and new moon. Next to the temple there is the Bali Museum, which has the most comprehensive collection to artifacts and record of Balinese history from the prehistoric to the Second World War.

The museum displays ancients weapons such as Keris (traditional daggers) and other traditional weapons, clothes, ceramics and other historical artifacts. The museum opens from 08.00 AM – 03.00 PM, is closed on Saturday and public holidays. In the eastern part of the city you will find the Bali Arts Center and ISI (the Fine Arts Institute), a center for art education including dancing and the ‘karawitan’ (music or gamelan). To the far is of Denpasar is Sanur and Padanggalak beach which is often visited by people and students during the holidays season. For those who like shopping in Denpasar shopping center both for traditional markets and modern supermarkets that are easily found in the city are recommended. The Badung and Kumbasari markets open around the clock. Early in the morning you can witness farmers selling their harvest to market stall owners.

These transactions started at about midnight and run to four in the morning; then from 04.00-08.00 AM the trader s sell fruits, vegetables and other produce to local customers. From 08.00 AM to 02.00 PM the clothes and home appliances shops open, while in the evening you can enjoy the night market or pasar senggol which sell all kinds of delicious dishes until midnight. Beside these two market, you can go to another night market called pasar senggol Angsoka Kreneng. Denpasar has also several royal palaces (puri). The original Puri Denpasar was destroyed by the Dutch in 1906, it’s at the north of Puputan Badung square and is currently used as the State House for the Governor of Bali – it is called the Jaya Sabha building.

The remaining palaces of the Kingdom of Denpasar are: Puri Satria (Jl. Veteran, 200m northern of Puputan Badung Square), Puri Pemecutan (Jl. Thamrin, 200m western Denpasar), Puri Kesiman (Jl. WR. Supratman, 2km eastern Denpasar) and Puri Jero Kuta (on Jl. Dr. Sutomo 500m north-west). While you are in Denpasar, you can rent a dokar (a traditional horse-drawn buggy). You pay around Rp. 50.000 and the dokar driver will take you around the city to the Bali Museum and traditional market. Dokars which can carry 2 or 3 adult passengers attract many tourist. However, be careful if you are about to get off. The horse might move around a bit as to load lightens.

You can easily find on accommodation restaurant, bar entertainment, and Spa in Denpasar. Have a nice holiday in Denpasar.

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Eco Tourism International Training on Green Globe 21

December 18, 2008 at 8:02 am (Journal)
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Eco Tourism International Training on Green Globe 21

Nusa Dua- Melia Bali Villas and Spa Resorts and BTDC Nusa Dua hosted two days international training on International Travel and Tourism Certification, Green Globe 21 (GG21), from April 12-13 2003. Twelve participants took part from the hotel industry, tourist resort, Udayana University and NGO’s. They used Melia Bali Villas and Spa Resorts as a site for case study as Melia Bali Nusa Dua has been certified by Green Globe 21. Ms Cathy Parsons, Global Manager GG21 and CEO of Green Globe Asia Pacific, DR. Agung Suryawan, the Director of BAli Greenary and Ir. A.A. G. RAka Dalem, MSc. (Hons) were resource persons on the training. Raka Dalem, the ezecutive secretary of Bali Greenary, is the only certified facilitator for Green Globe 21 in Indonesia.

Bird Watching Training

Nusa Dua- Twenty-five staff from Bali Tourism Development Corporation(BTDC) Nusa Dua took eco-tourism bird watching training around the Nusa Dua lagoon complex, in the first and second weeks of April 2003. The training is expected to improve the staff’s understanding about birds, bird conservation and the potential for bird watching in the area. The training was led by Anak Agung Gde Raka Dalem, an Eco-tourism and environmental management researcher from the REesearch Center for Culture and Tourism at Udayana University. Nusa Dua lagoon has great potential to be developed as a bird watching site, because it has a high diversity and number of birds, and is very close to premier tourist destinations in Bali such as Nusa Dua, SAnur, and Kuta. In addition toendemic and migrant species as well as spectacular egret have attracted bird watchers to the complex.

Bali Barat National Park
 Bali has a conservation area with the 750 square km in wide. It covers savannahs, rainforest, mangrove swamps, coral reefs and Pulau Menjangan (Deer Island), a small island of the north coast. The park actually is a reflection of heaven for various animals and birds, in particular, the endangered Bali Starling. Moreover, the area actually is open for the visitors. The deer island, a home for the rare of Java deer, is also open for the visitors. Therefore, to find out about the information on the area as well as the island you will be guided with an official guide.

Bali Bird Park
 Bali Bird Park is situated in Singapadu, near Batubulan. The park has 1000 different kinds of birds, including the species from Indonesia. The purpose of building the Bali Bird Park is to breed endangered species in captivity, including the indigenous Bali Mynah. Visiting in the Park, you will be impressed by the two hectares of tropical gardens and walk-in rain forest.

Image
 Sangeh Monkey Forrest
 It is located near the village of Sangeh and has 6 hectares in wide. The forest has the hordes of Balinese monkeys that inhabit both of trees and the temple, Pura Bukit Sari which is situated in the center of the forest. In this area, the visitors should be careful to bring the shiny objects since the monkeys are interested in them.

Bali Butterfly Park
 The park is located on Batukaru street, Sandan Wanasari, Tabanan Regency. The Bali Butterfly Park is the only park in Indonesia. The park is very useful for the research for science and also as a place for preserving many kinds of butterflies from all over Indonesia.

Botanical Gardens
 The Botanical Gardens were established in 1959 and have covered 120 hectares on the slopes of Gunung Pohon (Tree Mountain). The gardens themselves have a giant collection of trees, 500 varieties of orchid and are very rich in bird life. Moreover, the gardens are also a center for study of local plaints as well as places for library and a herbarium.

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CAPTIVE BREEDING OF GREEN JUNGLE FOWL (Gallus varius) in the TMII Bird Park

October 16, 2008 at 2:10 am (Journal)
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CAPTIVE BREEDING OF GREEN JUNGLE FOWL (Gallus varius) in the TMII Bird Park

M. S. Prana, E.B. Utami, W. Prahara , E. Suwito, and H. R. Kuswardhani

ABSTRACT

Green Jungle Fowl (Gallus varius) a species of the family Galliformes, native to Indonesia, has become increasingly important during the last two decades. It is used as the male parent for producing the hybrid fowl which is popularly known as the “Bekisar”.

Bekisar contest is held every now and then in various parts of Java and perhaps also Bali. “Bekisar” has also been designated the mascot of the East Java Province. To promote the mascot, the local authority has made it compulsory for every hotel and restaurant in the province to display “Bekisar”. Hence Bekisar industry has become an important business in Indonesia today.

As such the Green Jungle Fowl are in great demand in the market. The male Green Jungle Fowls were mostly caught from the wild populations in Java, Madura and surrounding islands and Bali. Meanwhile not much has been achieved in the captive breeding of the fowl. Genetic or population erosion has become unavoidable and the existence of the species is threatened.

As part of its main mission, the TMII Bird Park has made an effort to breed this unique species through several ways. The fowl has no problem breeding in the giant walk-in aviary, however due to various factors (attacked by other birds, pests, etc.) the mortality rate in the aviary was rather high. Isolation and hand-rearing of the chicks gave better results at the initial stage (up to 8 – 12 weeks) but then most of them died due to various health problem (diseases, trauma etc.). Keeping pairs in the exhibition cage (within the giant aviary) discourage them from breeding, apparently due to continuous disturbances from visitors. Other alternative has been tried recently i.e. by keeping several pairs of the fowl in a special breeding cage. The result is now being observed and evaluated. Read the rest of this entry »

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Tropical Fruits of Indonesia

October 16, 2008 at 1:47 am (News)
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Tropical Fruits of Indonesia

Mango

mix fruits

mix fruits

East Java has earned the reputation of being the nation’s fruit bowl. It is particularly known for its apples and mangoes which are now being exported if there is an abundant yield. Mangos, however, are a very popular fruit and this counts for the whole nation. Topping the list of a great variety here is the famous Mangga Arum Manis which grows very well on East Java soil. Whole areas around Probolinggo and Pasuruan, have been converted into mango plantations. When in season, which falls mostly in the hottest and driest period of the year, Arum Manis is transported by trainload to destinations scattered over the entire island of Java. But the bulk is still going to the capital, Jakarta, which, with a population of more than 8 million, is still the largest consumer.

Arum Manis is a dark green mango even when ripe. Its flesh is at times lemon and in another variety deep orange. The Arum Manis flavor, however, is unmistakable in character which other mango varieties have not been able to equal. Its sweetness sometimes borders on nectar without a cloying after taste. There are three popular mango varieties in this country. The Golek is the largest mango variety whose sweetness does not come up to par with that of Arum Manis and Manalagi. Even so, the fruit is economically a winner because of its fleshy contents. Although the mango has been around for centuries in Indonesia, the fruit was originally from India. From the folklore stories still told to this day, one may safely assume that the fruit made its entry during the Hindu period. The legend about the mango in the region of Pasuruan was undoubtedly born in those days, a tale persisting in the belief that the fruit is a reincarnation of the deity Prajapati.

Improvement in the local horticultural techniques benefited the East Java fruit growers who saw their crop yields growing each year. 1983 went down in the annals of the Regional Government as a lucky year for mango export. Most of the fruit export is destined for Singapore where it is then distributed to other places around the globe. One of the stumbling blocks in the tropical fruit export is packaging. Tropical fruit needs careful packing since many fruit varieties spoil and bruise easily.

Mangoes of lesser varieties are legion in the country. Some of these varieties are, Egg Mango (mangga telur), Mango Indramayu, Mango Kwini, but far too many to be named here. The most dominating feature of these mangoes are that its flesh incorporates a network of fibrous strings which are in the habit of getting stuck in one’s teeth. These mangoes are also quite cheap. One type, known as Mango Kwini in the province of North Sulawesi, and the southern part of the province of North Sumatera spreads a penetrating and stifling odor when it is ripe. This variety almost always gives itself away in households who have a few in stock. Apart from the appalling odor it emits, Mango Kwini’s flavor is actually quite pleasant to the taste. The fruit is rather large and round and the skin is a dirty green speckled with black spots. The fruit grows on all islands of the archipelago. The Egg Mango is an attractive looking fruit. When it is ripe, the fruit turns bright orange. The Egg Mango, so called because it is shaped like an egg, is smallish in size but It is one of the most reasonably priced mangos available.

Apples (Males Sylvestris)
Apples are grown in this part of the world. To be more precise, they are grown in East Java in the mountain region of Malang and Batu. The first apple tree sprouted up decades ago when a Dutchman with a green thumb tried to grow a four season plant in a totally different climate and soil. Malang seems to have the right temperature for apple growing. Situated on a level of 700-800 meter above sea level, the first trees were doing surprisingly well despite the tropical climate. There was a large difference though between the European apple and his Malang grown sister, which became all too apparent when the first fruits were harvested. The apples were reportedly too sour for consumption. For a while people in Malang regarded the apple tree as a decorative shrub to have in the garden. The fruits usually went to waste as they were declared as quite inedible. In several instances it was reported that apple trees in other parts of the region were not even bearing fruit.

After World War 2 and after the country had gained independence from the Dutch more people became interested in apple cultivation. Growth expanded considerably compared with the few shrubs that existed before the war. But the Malang apple remained a very unpopular fruit among Indonesians who clamored for the imported fruit which was sweet and juicy. In time apple farmers were introduced to newer agricultural techniques which transformed the sour Malang apple into a fruit of refreshing taste and of a crunchy consistency. The people of Malang were delighted. Soon more apple orchards were developed, not only in Malang but in other areas. Orchards began appearing in the village of Batu and more followed soon after in the uplands of Pasuruan, Mojokerto, Probolinggo, Ponorogo, Nganjuk, Magetan and even further away in Madiun.

Malang still produces the largest yields with an annual crop averaging 203,000 tons. A ministerial decree banning the import of foreign fruits that was issued in the early years reportedly drove up the apple crop in East Java. Apples from East Java are now in great demand with juice producers, bakeries, and the general population since the homegrown fruit has more reasonable price tags. With local apple consumption ever on the upswing, present crop yields are never enough to boost the country’s export figures of local apples.

Avocado (Persea Americana Milll)
Avocado, once a fruit that came to the attention of the local people because of its availability, now ranks in an exalted state because of its value to both the sophisticated tastes and those of simpler tastes. Avocado, used in international cuisines, is growing rapidly growing in popularity among affluent Indonesian householders, which has elevated this once lowly fruit to its present level. Before international lunching and dining became the activity that it is today, the avocado was merely regarded as a cheap but nice fruit to make juice from. In Minahasa, North Sulawesi, where the majority of the population is of Christian faith, more abuse is inflicted on this easily grown fruit with many possibilities. Pig farmers were known to feed avocado to their pigs since the fruit never fetched a price worth mentioning at the market. Trees were not actually planted then. They jut happened to grow by nature. Nowadays, Avacado are specially raised for export in East Java. The bulk of the crop is reportedly destined for Singapore.

Citrus Varieties (Citrus Reticulata Blanco)
A great variety of the citrus family is represented in East Java and, to a lesser degree, in West Java. Called ‘jeruk keprok’, meaning in the region’s jargon “bashed in lemon. This type of mandarin with crumpled skin has been a household word in East Java for centuries. The mandarins are a very close copy of the Chinese mandarins on sale in Hong Kong around Chinese New Year. One can only assume this was their place of origin. The East Java Mandarin has undergone several cross pollinations which has improved its outer skin. Instead of the puckered, crumpled skin, the fruit now has a smooth peel that no longer turns orange when the fruit ripens on the tree. Instead, the skin retains its luscious green color right through the ripening process. Besides the mandarin, there is “Jeruk manis”, a relative of the Spanish orange and much the same flavor, but a little less sweet. It is in season at the same time as the mandarins when, during the hot weather, its juice flavors most drinks in restaurants. In West Java this variety has a sister known as ‘jeruk Garut’ (orange from Garut). Garut is a small place in the highlands of West Java which grows several citrus varieties including this green orange. Unlike the imported oranges, the Garut orange remains freshly green on the outside as do several other citrus varieties in Indonesia.

The lemon family in Indonesia follows an interesting line. The most used is the ‘jeruk nipis’, a close relative of the western lemon which is three times larger in size and colored pale lemon. The local lemon is of a very round shape whose skin does not undergo any change in the ripening process. The difference in outer looks notwithstanding, its flavor is the same as that of the western lemon. One citrus variety which is used for medicinal purposed, and quite unfit for consumption, is a pear shaped lemon with a rough skin going by the name of ‘lemon suangi’. The fruit is used to ward off the “evil eye” in the northern region of the island Sulawesi. Its leaves often become the main ingredient in a traditional potion that is supposed to heal all kinds of ailments. The medicine is said to do wonders for stomach problems. This lemon variety, however, is now on the list of endangered plant species because of excessive use by the local populations in isolated regions of the island. The ‘lemon suangi’ used to grow in the wild and nobody really cultivated the plant and it had always been there when it was needed by medicine men. Now, the Lemon suangi’ has become a rare species which is difficult to find. Another variety of the same citrus family is found only in the most northern area of Sulawesi and it is a very tiny orange, known as the ‘lemon chui’.

Thorny Fruit (Dunio Zibethinus Murr)
Some of the tropical fruit varieties are shielded by a thorny skin. Among these are the Durian (Durio Zibethinus Murr), Jackfruit and to some extent, Soursop. Of these three the thorns of Durian are the sharpest. To get to the contents of the fruit one has to have an adroitness for opening the spiked skin. Durian is not skinned like other fruits. It is squeezed open by putting pressure upon the whole fruit. Using this method, the durian will easily fall apart into four or five segments when the fruit is ripe.

Controversy surrounds the Durian’s heavy, unpleasant odor. The pros and cons for the durian are more in favor with the majority of the population regarding it as the king of all fruits. Newcomers from non-tropical countries usually react strongly on their first encounter with the fruit as they try to grapple with the appalling odor emitted by the durian. There is no way to really define the aroma of the durian. Some people take it rather well, but some take offense from the odor which is of a persistent and penetrating quality. Some newcomers liken the taste to something close to heavenly while others comment on it briefly with disgust or a four-letter word. Europeans who learn to enjoy the fruit say that one definitely has to acquire a taste for durian. it usually takes several tries before an acquired taste for the fruit is established.

Jackfruit (Arthocarpus Heterophyllus Syn. Artocarpus Integra)
The jackfruit, a real giant in size, also has a thorny appearance. The thorns are not as sharp as that of the durian. Nangka, or in English, Jackfruit, is a seasonal fruit. The seeds are enclosed in yellow flesh, which is a great delicacy for most people. Jackfruit is also used as a local vegetable before the fruit ripens. It then becomes the main ingredient in a vegetable dish made with coconut milk called ‘gudeg’. Unlike Durian, Jackfruit emits a pleasant aroma when ripe. It’s flesh is of a golden color and quite sweet.

Soursop (Annona Muricata)
The last of the thorny fruit varieties is the Soursop (Anona Muricata L.), so called because of its immensely sour taste. Strange as it may sound, the fruit is in the habit of attracting black ants of the variety that are usually attracted to closed bowls of sugar. Soursop has to be prepared with sugar or sweeteners when it becomes a very refreshing fruit drink. Unlike the thorns of Durian and Jackfruit, the Soursop’s skin is a pliable covering scattered with soft thorns. Soursop fruit is now cultivated in large quantities for the supply of fruit juice manufacturing. Soursop is an easy fruit to cultivate as the tree does not require special soil. It is able to grow in coastal areas as well as on higher ground unlike Jackfruit which needs to grow on higher levels of about 700 metres.

Snake Fruit (Salacca edulis Reeinw)
Locally known as Salak (Salacca edulis Reinw) the skin of this fruit has a dried look a lot like a snake skin. Snake fruit plants are a relative of the palm tree, but grows close to the ground. The fruit nestles in clusters a little above the root of the tree on a bed of long, thin thorns. Except for the thorns on the main spines of the leaves, the tree is often mistaken for the sago palm. Salak palms thrive best on dry, sandy soil. The fruit has a sweet, acid like flavor and is totally dry. Juice from the snake fruit (salak) is entirely non-existent. The best snake fruit in the country is cultivated on the island of Bali. Bali Salak is the sweetest of all salak’s with only a slight trace of acid on the tongue. The season for the Salak is near the end of the year or at the start of a new year.

Pineapple (Ananas Comosut)
Another fruit available throughout the year is Ananas (Ananas comasut (L) Merr.) or pineapple. The pineapple tree is an agave like plant with pink leaves which grows without difficulty on all the islands of the Indonesian Archipelago. Originally pineapple was only grown for local consumption. Ananas growing has expanded greatly since the introduction of canned fruit manufacture was introduced in the country. Now there are fresh Ananas as well as canned pineapple available which is mostly earmarked for export. The best of this fruit is grown in Palembang on Sumatra which earned its reputation back in colonial days. The Palembang pineapple is nothing much to look at. It is small compared with others grown in other parts of the country with a scrawny look about it. But its content is very rich in juice and glucose. The taste of Ananas from Palembang is just like nectar and honey which cannot be said of some of the other pineapple varieties available. Some pineapples, despite the luscious golden color, can be quite sour.

Technology brought more than agricultural knowledge. It added industrial know how to pineapple planters who discovered that pineapple leaves is not only a basic ingredient in cable manufacturing, but the fibers of the leaves also makes a good base for cloth. This kind of cloth has not yet been developed to the the level that it is in the Philippines and it is still looked upon as an unusual novelty. Other preservation techniques, besides pineapple canning, is converting Ananas into pineapple jam. This fruit jam is very popular with the majority of the population. Not only is it made as a spread on bread, it is also used as a filling in small butter pies known in the country’s language as ‘nastar.’ Ananas jam used to be a homemade product. In our mothers’ and grandmothers’ days, housewives prided themselves with having the best recipe for pineapple jam. Pineapple jam bubbling on the stove emits a tantalizingly pleasant aroma of the fruit mixed with cinnamon and a few dried cloves. Nowadays, pineapple jam is mostly a mass produced product prepared and bottled in factories which seem to be sprouting with unbelievable speed in industrial areas throughout the country.

Rambutan and Dukuh (Nephellium Lapaceum L. and Lansium domesticum Corr)
Two fruit varieties that will always be winners with the fruit loving people of Indonesia, are Rambutan and Dukuh when they are in season. The season of Rambutan follows closely after the Durian season, and almost simultaneously with that of Dukuh. Rambutan is a special fruit, in that, it is a fruit covered with a hairy peel in red and pink colors. Its fleshy fruit is white and sweet. It should be noted that of all tropical fruit Rambutan has won over many non-tropical fruit consumers because of its exotic flavor and unusual appearance. This fruit has become a most sought after delicacy among the Japanese who are reportedly, going for exotic fruit in a big way and which they import from the States. Next to Japan, the United States have acquired a taste for tropical fruit. So much so, that tropical vegetable gardens and orchards were developed to satisfy growing demands. According to reports, in California one can get all the tropical fruit and vegetables one could wish for. Henceforth, rambutan will be readily available when the season arrives.

In Indonesia, the rambutan cultivations have received a boost with the expansion of the canning industry more than a decade ago. Superfluous Rambutan do not rot away and go to waste as in the past. The fruit is being supplied to factories where they are conserved in syrup prior to canning. Dukuh, or Lansa in East Indonesia, is a round fruit with yellowish skin that sometimes show dirty spots on them. The variety of East Indonesia, Lansa, has a much more clearer skin of a spotless golden color. Dukuh is perfectly round and Lansa is of an oval shape. With regard to taste, many share the opinion that Dukuh is much sweeter than Lansa. In spite of the fruit’s popularity, many people refrain from eating too much of it because Dukuh juice has been found to cause an irritation in the throat. Doctors have reported that during the Dukuh season, sore throats and coughs are sharply increased. The fruit, when in season, is sold in clusters like grapes mostly at roadside stalls and in traditional markets.

Jambu Air (Sizygium Aquem Merr & L.M. Perry)
A very pretty fruit is Jambu Air which comes in three colors. Red, white and pink. Before a Jambu Air tree starts to bear fruit, pink blossoms all but cover the whole crown of the tree. A few Jambu Air trees in bloom will spread a light fragrance thtroughout the garden. Jambu Air grows quickly and easily. Once the seedling has sprouted roots it needs very little attention except for regulr watering. Jambu Air is a very juicy fruit, though it is not exactly sweet or sour. The white variety, which is less ‘mushy’, is found to be sweeter than its colored sisters. Jambu Air is used in the local local salad called “Rujak.”

Mangosteen (Garcinia Mangostana)
The mangosteen grows under the dense foliage of a medium-size tree and is quite hard to see unless one is directly beneath it. One tree does not produce more than a few ripe fruit at a time and the tree is hard to propagate. There are no mangosteen plantations. The card-red husk encloses six or seven symmetrical segments. Splitting the rind is tricky because it is hard and tends to crumble, but once open, the segments separate easily. There is often considerable variation in the degree of maturity of each segment. The larger, mature segments usually have a seed while the others have an embryonic seed so small and soft it may go unnoticed. The taste is delicate, subtle and deliciously sweet. Mangosteens are easily found in the markets and fruit stalls starting in September. Hotels serve them regularly, usually in a mixed fruit basket.

Sapodilla (Sapota Zaspotilla)
Sapodilla grows on a small, unpretentious tree found all over the archipelago. The fruit looks like a small, brown potato with smooth skin. The flesh is a rich brown color with a vague radial structure of a lighter color, and contains one to five large seeds. The sapodilla has a very sweet, sugary taste, which hints at maple sugar. It is soft, though not juicy. The texture is very slightly gritty, but not objectionably so. The fruit can be broken open and the flesh easily eaten without consuming, either the seeds or the skin. Sapodilla must be eaten ripe, however, because the fruit contains tannin and a milky latex when unripe.

Pomegranate (Punica Granatum)
The pomegranate is a native of the Middle East but was cultivated in India and Indonesia in ancient times. It grows on a large shrub or small tree which has brilliant reddish-orange flowers. About the size of an orange, the dull red pomegranate has a tough, leathery skin which allows the fruit to travel well. The skin encases six paper-thin sepsums, each containing seeds that are individually encased within a transparent, pulpy capsule. The fruit and the rind are an effective anti-bacterial agent, and the dried rind is often used for the relief of dysentery.

Starfruit (Averrhoa Carambola)
Starfruit grows abundantly on a small tree that is found just about everywhere in the low and medium elevations of Indonesia. The fruit has not been highly bred so there are a number of local varieties, differing in size and sweetness. Only a fraction of the fruit finds its way to the local markets. The translucent skin of the golden-yellow fruit is so thin it can be easily punctured with a fingernail. The crisp and juicy pulp is fragrant and has a tart taste. The fruit is firm when ripe and can be eaten raw, skin and all, once the tough edges of the five ridges are cut off. Despite the slightly acidic taste, starfruit does not contain tannin and so is not astringent. The tree and the fruit are considered to have several uses varying from removing cloth stains to curing hangovers. It is also very high in vitamin C.

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Bali’s wild side

October 16, 2008 at 1:42 am (News)
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Managing conservation, tourism and the needs of local communities in Bali Barat National Park

Louise O’Flynn

oflynn-1.jpg
The Bali starling
Wikimedia Commons

For many, Bali represents paradise, a slice of heaven on earth. Visitors are overwhelmed by the beauty of the black volcanic sand beaches, the enchanting Hindu culture, and the intricately sculpted rice terraces. Few visitors to Bali are aware that just beyond the hustle and bustle of the main tourist attractions there is a natural paradise of astounding beauty protected by the Bali Barat National Park and Marine Reserve (Bali Barat).

The national park is a sanctuary for Bali’s diverse native flora and fauna, designated to protect Bali’s unique biodiversity from the impacts of development. Bali Barat was first established as a game reserve in 1947, extended in 1978 and given national park status in 1982. This signalled the Indonesian government’s decision to protect this part of the island for nature preservation, with watershed conservation for irrigation and nurseries for commercial fisheries as added benefits. Twenty-five years on, Bali Barat is recognised for its social and economic value, with the park’s future plans directed toward environmental education, research and tourism.

Protecting natural diversity

Situated in Bali’s northwest corner and spanning the districts of Buleleng and Negara, Bali Barat covers 19,558 hectares which represents around 10 per cent of Bali’s total land area. A majority of the national park is zoned for wilderness and allows for only limited visitor use. All visitors must pay an entry fee and be accompanied by an official guide. Much of the park remains off limits. Eight wild rivers flow through the park; like arteries they support a profusion of plant and animal species. Many are endemic to Bali, especially the endangered Bali starling (Lecuopsar rotschildi).

Five distinct yet interconnected vegetation habitats flourish along Bali Barat’s north and west coasts, including tropical savanna, lush rainforest, seasonal forest and coastal forest, fringed by mangroves. One of the park’s major regional conservation achievements is the protection of over 3000 hectares of mangrove forest, particularly important in Indonesia, where mangroves are often cleared to make way for agriculture, fish and prawn farms, and urban development. Bali Barat’s marine reserve protects some of the world’s most colourful coral reefs and tropical fish, making it a global attraction for snorkellers and divers. Protected coastal wildlife also includes migratory sea and shore birds and their roosting and nesting grounds.

National park status has buffered Bali Barat from human impact to some extent. But park managers still struggle against budgetary constraints and pressures to commercialise access to the park . Hunting and firewood collection continue within the park even though both are illegal.

Conservation challenges

When the park was first established, local communities were very hostile. They felt they were being denied access to resource-rich land and fish-stocked reefs and illegal fishing and hunting continue despite the park’s protected status. The use of explosives and cyanides to catch fish has long been a problem within the marine reserve. Ironically, people come to fish in the reserve because other regional fish stocks and coral reefs have been depleted or destroyed due to the very same fishing practices.

Even in the absence of these illegal activities, the marine reserve is under great pressure. Managers realise that climate change will dramatically increase the severity and frequency of coral bleaching over the coming years, possibly surpassing the devastation of the 1997-1998 coral bleaching event associated with El Niño, which affected 75 to 100 per cent of corals at Bali Barat.

Conservation of the Bali starling is another major focus at Bali Barat. The white bird with its graceful long crest, bare blue skin framing the eyes, and an enchanting call is endangered. In 2001 it was estimated that only 13 wild individuals remained in the national park. The Bali starling is a status symbol pet for many wealthy Indonesians and poaching has been big business in the past. Since the 1980s, park managers have worked tirelessly with international conservation groups to save the species from extinction. Captive breeding programs exist in Indonesia and abroad. However, when the birds are released into the wild, many are killed by falcons or stolen by poachers.

The increasing popularity of ecotourism risks pitting park managers against local communities. Tourism provides employment to locals whose traditional fishing and forest-based livelihoods were curtailed when the park was established. Tourism also boosts regional revenues. But poor tourism planning within the park and in its surrounds has led to local resource degradation, water pollution, sprawl, competition for space between hotel developers and fishing families, and the demise of distinctive local culture.

Ecotourism is often idealised as benefiting tourists, local people, and the natural attractions that are its objects. Visitors have the opportunity to experience the raw beauty of the park’s wildlife while staying in ‘eco friendly’ accommodation with a touch of local culture. Tourism operators are required to contribute financially to the conservation of the national park. Yet park managers are very much aware that over-use by seasonal influxes of tourists can lead to the demise of the park’s overall conservation values.

The tourism industry also affects communities in areas around the park. Many local residents have abandoned traditional rural occupations – whether compelled to do so by park rules, or attracted by higher incomes in new hospitality and construction occupations that cater to the tourism industry. Coastal villagers have sold land to developers for tourist accommodation. Land along Bali’s northwest coast that is available for local residents’ use is now extremely limited and prohibitively expensive. Local communities must also compete with tourist development for limited fresh water. These communities have become increasingly dependent on tourism for their livelihoods – and at the same time more vulnerable to sudden down-turns in tourism.

Managing visitors and the demands they place on the park and its staff are problematic at Bali Barat. Infrastructure catering to visitors must be maintained, and new demands anticipated. Some 65 rangers working at Bali Barat could be adequate. Ironically, in part due to limited revenue because of tight controls on tourist visits, rangers are poorly equipped and finding resources for holistic park management is difficult.

No simple solution

Bali Barat managers recognise that there are no simple solutions to the environmental dilemmas and the impacts of tourism upon the park and its local community. Their experience demonstrates that innovative community-based management is essential to overcome obstacles to long term conservation. It is crucial to offset the potential loss of local income from the park’s conservation status and to foster a sense of pride and ownership of the park within neighbouring communities. But limited funds restrict what park staff alone can achieve.

Partnerships with international conservation groups and local communities help. In 2003, Bali Barat managers joined with WWF to establish the Friends of the Reef Project. The project encouraged local people to become involved in coral monitoring and boat patrols for illegal fishing activity within the marine reserve. Through this project, community involvement has fostered a sense of ownership, pride and personal protection over the national park. It has also seen reduced illegal fishing within the marine reserve.

The success of conservation efforts requires local communities to seek livelihoods that do not rely on harvesting or degrading natural resources within the park. Providing sustainable employment alternatives to fishing, hunting and logging is critical. Seaweed cultivation is one tool used at Bali Barat to involve the community in conservation work that presents direct economic benefits. It is about community empowerment and providing local people with alternative employment opportunities that support Bali Barat’s conservation objective.

It is timely to recognise and celebrate the conservation work and dedication of park managers, international conservation groups, and local communities in Bali Barat National Park’s silver jubilee year. After 25 years, Bali Barat remains largely rugged and wild, with its myriad of lush tropical landscapes and crystal clear seascape, its rare bird species and vibrant coral fish. Bali Barat truly is a paradise, and has become not only a nature sanctuary, but a source of economic and social benefits for the western end of Bali.     ii

Louise O’Flynn (oflynn_louise@yahoo.com.au) is an environmental planner who works for the NSW National Parks and Wildlife Service. She is a regular visitor to the island of Bali.

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Bali

May 24, 2008 at 3:38 am (Journal)
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Bali is an Indonesian island located at 8°25′23″S, 115°14′55″ECoordinates: 8°25′23″S, 115°14′55″E, the western most 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.

Bali

With a population recorded as 3,151,000 in 2005, the island is home to the vast majority of Indonesia’s small Hindu minority. 93.18% of Bali’s population adheres 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 dance, sculpture, painting, leather, metalworking and music.

History
Temple offering in predominantly Hindu Bali island.

Bali was inhabited by Austronesian peoples by about 2,000, who migrated originally from Taiwan through Maritime Southeast Asia. Culturally and linguistically, the Balinese are thus closely related to the peoples of the Indonesian archipelago, the Philippines, and Oceania. Stone tools dating from this time have been found near the village of Cekik in the island’s west. Read the rest of this entry »

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Abstract Thesis

November 13, 2007 at 12:00 am (Journal)
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Abstract

Links to Journal Agrotourism

Summary, Chapter 1, Chapter 2, Chapter 3, Chapter 4, Chapter 5, Project Research, Authors

This study discusses the general preview of tourism and agriculture in Bali, the opportunities and barriers of agrotourism development in Bali, stakeholders’ opinions concerning the development of agrotourism in Bali, agrotourism contributions toward economy and social situation improvements of the local communities, and contributions of agrotourism toward contribute for sustainable tourism development.
This data collected through survey method using questionnaires distributed to 60 respondents from four groups of farmers comprise: Bayung Gede, Candikuning, Blimbingsari, and Pelaga Villages as samples. This study also used 35 expert respondents who come from each local community, universities, NGOs, and local governments. The data are descriptively and statistically analysed using SWOT analysis.
This study finds that (1) the most potential opportunity of agrotourism is increasing family, followed by employee involvement, generating tourism income and increasing value of the village; (2) the hardest barriers of agrotourism development in Bali is inadequate infrastructures, other barriers are limited public facilities, imperfect human resource skills, scarce investments, and insufficient government supports; (3) the ecological resources particularly lakes, social life especially farmers and their lives, and cultural resources such as unique traditions are the strength factors of agrotourism development in Bali; (4) lacks of government support, investment, infrastructures, and human skills are weakness factors; (5) generating related tourism businesses are the most potential opportunity of agrotourism development in Bali. Other opportunities generated from agrotourism are providing local employments, increasing family incomes, and increasing value of the village; (6) degradation of natural resources regarded as the riskiest threat of agrotourism development in Bali. The second most serious matter is land using problems. Other threats are pollutions, host attitude changes, increasing criminalities, and tradition commercializations; (7) agrotourism contributes lots in improving the economy of the local communities. The contributions are on agricultural product improvements and stimulations of related tourism enterprises; (8) agrotourism helps improving the social situations particularly poverty alleviation, decreasing unemployment, and declining urbanization; (9) nature conservation is the greatest contribution toward sustainable tourism development in Bali. Other contributions are visitor increase and generating economic income.
Based on the findings, the recommendations are formulated as follows: (1) promote the uniqueness of each village to strengthen the destination by combining with other related activities to reach the goals of agrotourism. (2) propose agrotourism to the provincial government and national government. (3) develop agrotourism using the local indigenous and uniqueness and apply the principles of sustainable tourism development. (4) government empowerment, investment in agricultural sectors, infrastructure development, human skill improvement, public facilities development, and local communities empowerment and involvement need to be immediately committed to apply an ideal agrotourism in Bali.

Keywords: uniqueness, opportunities, barriers, stakeholders, farmers

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Executive summary

November 12, 2007 at 6:05 am (Journal)
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    Executive summary

    Links to Journal Agrotourism

    Summary, Chapter 1, Chapter 2, Chapter 3, Chapter 4, Chapter 5, Project Research, Authors

    This dissertation entitles “Agrotourism as an Alternative Form of Tourism in Bali”. The introduction describes the background, problem statement, research questions, and purposes of the research. The problem statement is how could agrotourism contribute innovation upon the tourism sector and improve the economy, social and environmental situations of local communities in Bali? The study is aimed at formulating the best strategies to develop agrotourism in Bali. The research problems are formulated as follows; how is the current situation of tourism and agriculture in Bali? What opportunities are available to develop agrotourism in Bali? What barriers are found in developing agrotourism in Bali? What are the tourism stakeholders’ opinions toward agrotourism development in Bali? How could agrotourism improve of the economy of local communities in Bali? How could agrotourism improve the social situation of local communities in Bali? How could agrotourism sustain the tourism development in Bali?

    Chapter two discusses definitions and theories of agrotourism and rural tourism, identification of main relevant theories and concepts as well as their relationships, main claims, and main arguments. The literature reviews comprise agriculture, tourism, and agrotourism. The reviews comprise tourism as an interdisciplinary, sustainable tourism development, rural tourism, agriculture and rural areas in Indonesia, potencies of agrotourism in Indonesia, definition of agrotourism, history of and trends in agrotourism, philosophy of agrotourism, contribution of agrotourism to tourism, factors relate to agrotourism development, impacts of agrotourism, chances and trends of agrotourism in the world, chances of agrotourism in Indonesia and Bali, agrotourism and Balinese-Hindu philosophy, quality and sustainability of agrotourism, and the roles of tourism stakeholders.

    Chapter 3 converses the research framework applied in this study. The research design figures out the method and process of analysis to draw conclusions. Two types of researches qualitative and quantitative researches are used. The selected case studies are focused in Bali Province since it is the icon of tourism in Indonesia. Bali has developed a number of agrotourism objects in potential villages, however only four case studies selected in this research, they are; (1) Bayung Gede Village, Kintamani District in Bangli Regency is promoted as rural tourism especially for orange agrotourism and unique tradition. (2) Candi Kuning Village, Baturiti District in Tabanan Regency is promoted as an agrotourism especially for strawberry and vegetables farms collaborated with beautiful panorama. (3) Blimbingsari Village, Melaya District in Jembrana Regency is promoted as rural tourism especially for coconut and cacao farms. (4) Pelaga Village, Petang District in Badung Regency is promoted as Pelaga Agrotourism particularly for vegetables and organic farming. The data collected through survey method using questionnaires questioned to sixty farmers from Bayung Gede, Candikuning, Blimbingsari, and Pelaga Villages. Besides, it also used thirty five expert respondents who come from each local community, universities, NGOs, and local governments. The data are descriptively and statistically analyzed using SWOT analysis.

    The findings are descriptively and clearly discussed in Chapter 4. This study found that (1) agrotourism development in Bali has a number of opportunities such as increasing family incomes, creating working fields for the local communities, generating related tourism businesses, and increasing value of the village. Family income increases are considered to be the most potential opportunity compare to others. (2) Agrotourism development in Bali has a number of opportunities such as increasing family incomes, creating working fields for the local communities, generating related tourism businesses, and increasing value of the village. (3) The stakeholders predominantly agree that ecological and cultural resources are the strength factors of agrotourism development in Bali (4) The weaknesses of agrotourism development are lack government support, lack of investment, lack of infrastructures, and lack of human skills. Meanwhile, incomplete public facilities are not considered as weaknesses factors (5) Establishments of related tourism businesses are the most potential opportunity of agrotourism development in Bali. Other opportunities are; providing local employments, increasing family incomes, and increasing value of the village. (6) Degradation of natural resources supposed to be the riskiest threat of agrotourism development in Bali. The second most serious matter is land using problems. Other threats such as pollutions (including air, water, and land pollutions), host attitude changes, increasing criminalities, as well as commercialization of traditions are also supposed to be threats. (7) Agrotourism contributes lots of things in improving the economy of the local communities. The contributions are in the forms of agricultural product improvements, and stimulations of other related tourism enterprises such as handicraft shops, restaurants, and accommodations. (8) Agrotourism plays roles in improving the social situations of the local communities particularly poverty alleviation, decreasing unemployment as well as declining urbanization. (9) Nature conservation as one the sustainable tourism development indicators is contributed by agrotourism development in Bali. Other contributions such as international tourist arrival increase and generating economic incomes are the roles of agrotourism in applying the sustainable tourism development in Bali.
    Chapter 5 elaborates the conclusion and four strategies recommended for agrotourism development in Bali which formulated from the identified strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats in the case studies.

    (1) SO strategy, is a strategy which uses the strengths to take advantages of the opportunities. The ecological resources such as lakes, rice fields, plantations and farms as well as forests; the social and cultural resources such as existing farmers, unique traditions, agricultural organizations, events, agricultural ceremonies, organizations linkages, human resources, agriculture regulations, information systems, heritages should be well developed, and promoted since these strength factors are able to generate potencies for other tourism business establishments, employment opportunities, enhance the family income and value of the village. The uniqueness of each village should be well promoted and described to position strong images of the villages, indeed to combine agrotourism with the local indigenous and uniqueness.
    • The main attractions of Bayung Gede Village are “Kuburan Ari-ari” (placenta grave) which used as the icon of the village and orange farm shall be used as the icon of agricultural products.
    • The foremost attractions of Candi Kuning Village are organic farm and beautiful panorama of Beratan Lake and Eka Karya Bali Botanical Garden. They should be promoted as the icon of agrotourism of this village.
    • The primary attractions of Blimbingsari Village are the unique tradition of Christian communities; Balinese-style church, and story of the village becoming a Christian village in Bali should be promoted as icon of pluralism and harmonic situation in Bali. Meanwhile the coconut and cacao farms should be used as the icon of agricultural products of this village.
    • The core attractions offered at Pelaga Village are beautiful panorama of mountain, rice fields, and organic farms. They are used as the icon of the village.

    The programs which should be formulated such as entire cooperation with tourism operators, packaging events in the village, and provide village information system.

    (2) WO strategy, is a strategy which overcomes the weaknesses by taking advantages of opportunities. Government support, investment in agricultural sector, development of village infrastructures, human resource skills, and public facilities are identified as the weakness factors of agrotourism development in Bali, therefore the local “village” government and all stakeholders should propose agrotourism development to the provincial government and central government to play more roles in order to apply the agrotourism concepts and reach the primary goals of rural economic empowerment. The programs which should be formulated are provide accessibilities for the agricultural investors to invest in the village to rise up the numbers of local SMEs “Small and Medium Entrepreneurs”, providing regulations, developing infrastructures and public facilities, as well as giving training and certain kinds of live-skills to the local communities in order to master tourism skills particularly agribusiness skills

    (3) ST strategy, is a strategy which use the strengths to avoid threats. Local uniqueness and indigenous used as tourism attractions shall be well managed and controlled to avoid the matters such as degradation of natural resources, land using problems such land for non agricultural sector, pollution, host attitude changes, criminalities, and commercialization of traditions. The programs which should be formulated are providing environment controller system, provide business related agribusiness, and promote organic farms system.

    (4) WT strategy, is a strategy which minimizes the weaknesses and avoids threats. The weaknesses such as lack of government support, investment in agricultural sector, development of village infrastructures, human skills, and public facilities shall me immediately improved to develop agrotourism well. Furthermore the local communities should be actively involved in policy and planning makings. The programs which should be formulated are involving the local communities as controller in many levels of organizations, issuing policy, using bottom-up planning system, enlarge cooperation with investors to develop agrotourism.

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    CHAPTER 1: Introduction

    November 10, 2007 at 12:00 am (Journal)
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    CHAPTER 1
    Agrotourism as an Alternative Form of Tourism in Bali
    (Case Studies: Bayung Gede, Candi Kuning, Blimbingsari, and Pelaga Villages)

    Links to Journal Agrotourism

    Summary, Chapter 1, Chapter 2, Chapter 3, Chapter 4, Chapter 5, Project Research, Authors

    1. Introduction

    1.1. Background

    Before the 1998 economic crisis, Indonesia belonged to a new Asian Tiger simultaneously with Malaysia and Thailand and was a model to other developing countries for the achievements on rapid and sustainable economic growth and rapid structural change (Tambunan, 2006).

    The Indonesian economy has undergone a massive structural transformation from an economy where the agriculture sector plays a dominant role in the country. Presently, approximately 45% of the total Indonesian workers are engaged on agriculture, which accounted for 17% of GDP in 2001. Some 31 million ha (76.6 million acres) are under cultivation, with 35% to 40% of the cultivated land devoted to the production of export crops. Some 60% of the country’s cultivated land is located in Java (Indonesian Agriculture Department, 2002).

    The agriculture sector includes food crops, horticulture, plantation, forestry, fishery, and animal husbandry. Since of various factors such as housing development, industries development, etc, the contribution of agriculture sector to Gross Domestic Product (GDP) becomes much less important replaced by secondary and tertiary sectors such as manufacturing industry as a new leading sector, for instance, West Java was leaded by manufacture industries, Bali by tourism sector, and Jakarta by retailing industries.

    As the population increases rapidly, the government seeks to achieve food self-sufficiency through expansion of arable acreage and improve the farming techniques especially the use of fertilizers and seeds, and extension of irrigation facilities, as well as expanding training for farmers. Production of rice and the staple food have increased gradually therefore rice production almost comes close to meet domestic requirements.

    On the other hand, the tourism sector in Indonesia has expanded as a prospective contributor to earning of a number of local governments. Nowadays, the tourism sector is not only potential in Bali but also probable in all parts of Indonesia. The International Ecotourism Society states that Indonesia has been identified as a prospective country to develop tourism especially ecotourism. In addition, Indonesia has lots of wildlife flora and fauna as well as cultural diversities, black and white sand beaches, natural landscape, marines, mountains, etc. The tourism sector becomes a more prospective sector in Indonesia as illustrated in the growing number of international tourist arrivals shown in Chart 1.

    Chart 1, The Growth of Foreign Tourists Visiting Indonesia period 1989 to 2005. Source: Statistic Agency of Indonesia, 2006

    The chart 1 above illustrates that tourist arrivals grew inconsistently although tourism sector in Indonesia had grown a lot with mean value of approximately four millions visitors per year. The mean also indicated clearly that the tourism sector is prospective for the future.
    The gradual increase tourist arrivals for the period of 1989 to 1997 were the growth stage of tourism in Indonesia. Since 1969, the government of Indonesia had been engaged into account of tourism development on national policy and planning called “Pelita I” the first step of five periods of development policy and planning. Unlikely, by the end of 1997, the economic crisis in Asia particularly Indonesia had broken down the tourism sectors and other sectors which then declined the number of arrivals in 1997 to 1999 which caused by internal and external factors. The internal factors were not only caused by economy crisis, but also by other factors such as politic, disaster, etcetera. The decline in 2001 to 2003 was caused by external factors such as terrorist attack destroyed World Trade Center (WTC) in United States of America and Bali bombing tragedy in Legian, Kuta-Bali.
    Tourism has played an important role and essential source of earning. It can be evidently seen that almost all of economic activities in Bali were depended on and leaded by tourism sector. According to Pitana (2005), tourism sector is an incredible contributor to Product Domestic Regional Bruto (PDRB) for Bali. The tourism sector contributed 12.95% by 1970, 17.98% by 1990, 30.50% by 1997, 30.49% by 1998, 31.26% by 1999, and 33.19% by 2000. Examining further to the great contributions generated by tourism, therefore tourism sector in Bali is considered as an awaiting sector for now and upcoming year.
    Furthermore, the prospective of tourism in Bali can be seen in Chart 2 that describes the number of international visitors and the growth of arrivals to Bali for periods 1969 to 2005.

    Chart. 2, Number of direct international visitors to Bali for periods 1969 to 2005

    Source: Bali Tourism Board, 2006

    Chart 2 also indicates that the growth of international tourists visiting Bali since 1969 to 2005 fluctuated by mean of 559,356 visitors per year. The numbers of tourists’ fluctuations were caused by internal and external factors as well, such as terrorist attack occurred in September 2001 in World Trade Center.
    At the same time, new competitors in South East Asia such as Malaysia, Thailand, Vietnam, and Philippines confronted Bali. Inauspiciously, global issues like terrorism as Indonesia is predominantly a Moslem country also affected the inconsistency of the tourist arrivals to Bali. The decline occurred in 1998 was caused by economic crisis. Meanwhile the sharp decrease in 2001 to 2003 caused by terrorism issues and by the end of 2005 by disaster issues.
    Even though, the tourism sector was growing inconsistency but it’s still as important sector in Bali. The development of tourism sector should be continued sustainability because the infrastructures such as international and local hotels, restaurants, travel agencies and others local business were growing in Bali.

    1.2 Tourism Development Stages

    According to Butler (1980), quoted by Gilbert (1990), the stages of tourism development comprises four stages such as discovery, launch, stagnation, and decline stages where the stages of tourism development in Bali are illustrated in the Graph 1 below.


    Graph 1 Bali Tourism life cycle. Source: http://geographyfieldwork.com

    Discovery Stage
    The early 1900s brought a different type of invasion and tourism began to rise. Bali’s exotic beauty and culture as well as Balinese people’s hospitality began to draw foreigners to the island. Some, including German painter named Walter Spies, whose home now formed as a part of Hotel Tjampuhan Ubud, decided to settle down there. Spies and other foreign artists helped to stimulate the growth of Balinese arts which were originally produced mainly to decorate temples and palaces (http://uk.holidaysguide.yahoo.com).

    Launch Stage
    The second president of Indonesia, Soeharto, saw Bali as one of potential tourism destinations and reopened it to tourism in the late 1960s. One of the first big hotels built was Inna the Grand Bali Beach Sanur. The host communities respond and welcome it respectively to increase the number of tourist visits by providing facilities. Businesses remain family based and the visitor-resident relationship is still harmonious. Later in this stage, the numbers of tourists increased dramatically and the local communities involved in certain tourism industries.
    The tourism was launched for both domestic and international tourists. For the purpose of supporting the tourism sector, the government, investors, private sectors, and small-local enterprises working together by providing infrastructures such as hotels, restaurants, travel agencies, tourism objects such as beaches, retailing, roads, airport etcetera. On the other hands, the superstructures such as supporting tourism organizations for instance BTDC (Bali Tourism Development Centre), BTB (Bali Tourism Board), PHRI (Indonesian Hotels and Restaurants Association), and Tourism and Hotel Colleges are established professionally.
    Stagnation Stage
    Nowadays, the growth of tourism Bali is indicated as stagnation stage, while tourism sector has been developed in such contemporary way nevertheless the growth of tourist visit is still stagnant even though a number of promotions are continuously and intensively conducted. Furthermore, there are lots gaps between sectors, for instance: degradation of natural resources, overland using to build hotels and tourism infrastructures, air and water pollution; gap between rural and urban area, etcetera.

    Presently, modern tourism development in Bali continues to attract all kinds of tourists. Some of international industries such as international-chain hotels and resorts lie on alongside the island. Its people continue to struggle over the choice between modernization and tourism, and their rich tradition. Although it has suffered some adverse social and environmental effects as a result of rapid tourism developments, Bali’s cultural heritages have withstood the test of time and remained slight changes today.

    The stagnation stage has been identified since 2001 up to present, where the number of international arrivals is stagnant of approximately one million visitors per year. The developments of Bali really depend on tourism sector even though dominantly the populations of Bali are still working in agriculture sector. The stagnation stage is caused by internal and external factors. Internal factors consist of urbanisation problem, un-ecological development, unequal spatial where tourism development was focused southern part of Bali for instance Sanur, Kuta, and Nusa Dua without design guidelines. Meanwhile the external factors contributed to stagnation are terrorism issues, Irak war II, SARS disaster in Asia, new tourism destinations, etcetera (Pujaastawa, et al, 2005).
    Additionally, according to Butler (1980), quoted by Gilbert (1990), the stagnation stage should be seen as a signal to innovate and find out alternatives to avoid the declining stage and to refine the growth of tourism. The tourism sector in Bali shall be immediately innovated and continuously developed based on sustainable tourism development concept.
    According to Pitana (2005), the vision and planning development of tourism in Bali shall be based on Balinese culture as it is the only island which dominated by Hindus worshipers in Indonesia. Furthermore, Bali has a number of man-made tourism attractions and natural attractions such as lakes, mountains, beaches, and agriculture areas which should be persistently managed.
    The goal of tourism development in Bali is to realize the sustainability of cultural-based tourism which developed in accordance with Tri Hita Karana concept as well as both the global market competition and improving quality of life of local communities. Tri Hita Karana is the philosophy of Balinese-Hindu which comprises three main elements namely harmonious relationship among the human being, between human and environment, and human and the Almighty God (WTO, 2003).

    One of the visions of tourism development in Bali is to develop rural tourism based on local indigenous. It means whereas the tourism shall be developed in accordance with sustainable development principles by equality of people, profit, and planet. Without sustainable development, tourism will fail definitely to achieve the authentic goal of its development. One of the failure factors of tourism development identified by Subadra (2006) is that tourism is un-ecologically developed. In the similar study by McIntosh, et al. (1984) quoted by Subadra (2006) describes that the development of tourism is not always successful even though developed in an ecotourism model. Yet it sometimes fails to achieve the authentic objective of development since it also causes many negative impacts such as; solid waste generation, habitant disturbance, and forest degradation which is caused by the path erosion. Therefore, tourism may not be overdeveloped and rural destinations should not be visited by many tourists at the same time. Moreover it sometimes fails to give economic benefits while the profit generated from tourism development is not directly accepted by the local communities. In many cases, local communities are frequently left out since they normally do not have adequate knowledge, skill, and attitude to involve in tourism.
    Furthermore, United Nation (UNEP, 2003) mentions that development of tourism should be based on the guidelines of sustainable tourism principles and agrotourism was identified as a tourism development model which is based on environment, nature, and biodiversity. In a similar study conducted by Sudibya (2002) explains whereas the international tourists particularly the educated tourists prefer visiting the destinations which concern much on environment sustainability and nature conservation to destinations which serve modern developments.
    Conversely, Pitana (2005) mentioned that the agriculture sector in 1970 contributed 55.99% for Product Domestic Bruto of Bali Province, 32.53% by 1990, 19.33% by 1997, 23.31% by 1998, 22.10% by 1999, and 20.61% by 2000. These data illustrate that the agriculture sector is the second important sector after the tourism sector. While the current situation, the tourism sector in Bali is capitalistically and unequally developed since the development dominated in Southern part of Bali Island only. There is a gap between Northern and Southern part of Bali especially development of tourism sector (Pujaastawa, 2006). The great potencies of agriculture resources in Western, Middle, Eastern, and Northern parts of Bali Island have not been well developed and collaborated with tourism sector.
    In this study, the research is focussed on economic, social and environmental benefits of agrotourism for the local communities and the demand of agrotourism among the tourists. The study is aimed at formulating the best strategies to innovate and develop agrotourism in Bali.

    1.3 Problem Statement and Research Questions:
    1.3.1 Problem Statement
    How could agrotourism contribute innovation to the tourism sector and improve the economic, social, and environmental situations of local communities in Bali?

    1.3.2 Research Questions
    The questions of this research are formulated as follows:
    1. How is the current situation of agrotourism in Bali?
    2. What opportunities are available to develop agrotourism in Bali?
    3. What barriers are found in developing agrotourism in Bali?
    4. What are the tourism stakeholders’ opinions toward agrotourism development in Bali?
    5. How could agrotourism improve of the economy of local communities in Bali?
    6. How could agrotourism improve the social situation of local communities in Bali?
    7. How could agrotourism sustain the tourism development in Bali?

    1.4 Research Aims
    The research is aimed at exploring the potencies of agrotourism in contributing innovation on tourism sector and to improve the economic, social and environmental situations of the local communities in Bali. Furthermore, the purposes can be detailed as follows:
    1. Obtaining information concerning the current situation of agrotourism in Bali from general perspectives.
    2. Identifying the opportunities to develop agrotourism from Balinese farmers’ opinions.
    3. Identifying the barriers in developing agrotourism from Balinese farmers’ opinions.
    4. Understanding the tourism stakeholders’ opinions concerning the agrotourism development in Bali from many perspectives such as entrepreneurs, government, tourism industries, NGOs, universities, local communities, and tourists.
    5. Identifying the contributions of agrotourism in improving the economy of local communities from stakeholders’ opinions.
    6. Identifying the contributions of agrotourism in improving the social situation of local communities from stakeholders’ opinions.
    7. Identifying the contributions of agrotourism in sustaining tourism development from stakeholders’ opinions.

    1.5 Overview of the report
    Chapter 1: Introduction
    This chapter comprises introduction to agriculture and tourism situation in Indonesia and Bali as well as the background, problem statement and research questions, research aims, and overview of the report.

    Chapter 2: Literature Review
    This chapter describes the main and relevant theories as well as concepts on agriculture, tourism, and agrotourism; main claims; and main arguments.

    Chapter 3: Methodology
    In this chapter comprises conceptual framework, research design, sampling technique, type of data, and analysis technique will be used to analysis of the research finding. The case studies determined by purposive method comprise Bayung Gede, Candi Kuning, Blimbingsari, and Pelaga Villages, as representatives of agrotourism in Bali Island. This study uses qualitative research design in which the data collected through questioners distributed to the respondents using Likert-scale interval. The respondents are determined by using purposive sampling. The data are descriptively analysed using SWOT analysis.

    Chapter 4: Finding and Analysis
    The analysis and interpretation will be used to acquire information about the current situation of tourism and agriculture in Bali by case studies comprise Bayung Gede, Candi Kuning, Blimbingsari, and Pelaga Villages, as representatives of agrotourism in Bali Island. The opportunities and barriers of developing agrotourism from Balinese farmers’ opinions will be descriptively and clearly described this chapter. The tourism stakeholders’ opinions toward the agrotourism development in Bali exactly from entrepreneurs, government, tourism industries, NGOs, universities, local communities, and tourists will also be discussed. The contribution of agrotourism in improving the economy and social situations of the local communities as well as sustainable tourism development will be collected and described as a part of this chapter.

    Chapter 5: Conclusions
    This chapter will conclude the finding of the study by using SWOT analysis and identify which factors belong to the strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats factors.

    Chapter 6: Recommendations
    The recommendation of this study is formulated from the result of SWOT analysis. This chapter deals with the strategy of agrotourism development in each place as described in Chapter 3.

    Bibliography
    The lists of bibliographies comprise books, journals, url/internets, and others publications are quoted in this part.

    Appendix
    This part will be used to determine the findings of research that do not include in the discussion chapters for instance list of respondents, pictures, etcetera.

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