Bali Island Geographic and History

Bali Island

Bali is the name of one of the provinces in Indonesia and also the name of the largest island that is part of the province. In addition consists of the island of Bali, Bali Province region also consists of islands smaller in the vicinity, namely the island of Nusa Penida, Nusa Lembongan Island, Island and Island Ceningan attack.

Bali lies between Java and Lombok. Denpasar is the capital of the province which is located in the southern part of the island. The majority of the population of Bali is Hindu. In the world famous Bali as a tourist destination with a unique variety of art-culture, especially for the Japanese and Australian. Bali is also known as the Island of Gods and Island of Thousand Temples. Bali is mostly famous for it's beautiful scenery and the amazing culture of their people.

Bali's Geographic

The island of Bali is part of the Lesser Sunda Islands along the 153 km and 112 km wide approximately 3.2 km from the island of Java. Astronomically, Bali is located at 8 ° 25'23 "south latitude and 115 ° 14'55" East Longitude tropical climate that makes it like the rest of Indonesia.

Mount Agung is the highest point in Bali as high as 3,148 m. The volcano last erupted in March 1963. Gunung Batur is also one mountain in Bali. Around 30,000 years ago, Mount Batur erupted and produced a terrible disaster on earth. Unlike in the north, the southern part of Bali is irrigated lowland rivers.

Based on the relief and topography, in the middle of the island of Bali lies the mountains that extends from west to east and in between the mountains which are clusters of volcanic Mount Batur and Mount Agung and the mountains are not volcanoes, namely Mount Merbuk, Mount Patas, and Gunung Seraya. The existence of these mountains cause by Geographic Area Bali is divided into 2 (two) parts are not the same, namely North Bali with a narrow lowland and less sloping, and South Bali with a broad lowland and sloping. Bali slope consists of flat land (0-2%) covering an area of ​​122 652 hectares, undulating land (2-15%) covering an area of ​​118 339 ha, steep land (15-40%) and an area of ​​190 486 ha of land is very steep (40%) an area of ​​132 189 ha. Province of Bali has 4 (four) lakes located in mountainous areas, namely or Bedugul Lake Beratan, Buyan, Tamblingan, and Batur. Natural beautiful Balinese make the island famous as a tourist area.

The capital of Bali is Denpasar. Places Ubud Other important as the art center and resort, located in Gianyar regency. Nusa Lembongan is as one of the dive (diving), located in Klungkung regency. While Kuta, Seminyak, Jimbaran and Nusa Dua are some places that become major tourist destination, both tourist and beach resort, spa, etc., is located in Badung regency.

The total area of ​​Bali Province is 5636.66 km2 or 0.29% of the territory of the Republic of Indonesia. Administratively, the Province of Bali is divided into 8 districts, 1 municipality, 55 districts, and 701 villages / wards.

Bali's History

The first inhabitants of the island of Bali is expected to come in 3000-2500 BCE who migrated from Asia. Remains of the stone tools were found in the village Cekik located in the western part of the island. Prehistoric Period then ended with the arrival of Hinduism and written English Sanskrit of India in 100 BC.

Culture of Bali later gained strong influence of Indian culture that the process is getting faster after the 1st century AD. Name Balidwipa (island) began to be found in various inscriptions, including the inscription Blanjong issued by Sri Kesari Warmadewa in 913 AD and mentioning the word Walidwipa. It is estimated that around this time that Subak irrigation system for rice cultivation began to be developed. Some religious and cultural traditions also began to develop at that time. Majapahit Empire (1293-1500 AD) who are Hindus and centered on the island of Java, had founded the kingdom of subordinates in Bali around the year 1343 AD It was almost across the country are Hindus, but with the coming of Islam stood Islamic kingdoms in the archipelago which, among other cause the collapse of Majapahit. Many nobles, clergy, artists and other Hindu community when it withdrew from Java to Bali.

The Europeans who first discovered Bali is Cornelis de Houtman from the Netherlands in 1597, though a Portuguese ship had previously been stranded near the Bukit peninsula, Jimbaran, in 1585. Netherlands through the VOC also began to implement the occupation of the land of Bali, but continue to get resistance, so until end of the power of their position in Bali is not as solid as their position in the Java or the Moluccas. Starting from the northern region of Bali, since the 1840s the Netherlands has become a permanent presence which was originally done by pit-sheep of various rulers of Bali that mutual trust each other. Dutch major attack by sea and land against the Sanur area and was followed by the Denpasar area. Bali party who lost in numbers and armaments do not want to experience shame for surrender, thus causing the war to the death titk bellows or war involving all the people both men and women including the king. An estimated 4,000 people were killed in the incident, although the Netherlands has ordered them to surrender. Furthermore, the Dutch governors who ruled only a few gave its influence on the island, so that local control of religion and culture generally does not change.

Japan occupied Bali during World War II and then a military officer named I Gusti Ngurah Rai Bali forming forces 'freedom fighters'. Following the Japanese surrender in the Pacific in August 1945, the Dutch promptly returned to Indonesia (including Bali) to re-establish its colonial rule as a state before the war. This was opposed by the forces of resistance Bali who was using Japanese weapons.

On 20 November 1945, Bellows Margarana battles broke out happened in the village of Marga, Tabanan, Bali middle. Colonel I Gusti Ngurah Rai aged 29, led his troops from the eastern region of Bali to carry out attacks to death on the Dutch armed forces. All members of the battalion Bali killed everything and make it as a last Balinese military resistance.

In 1946 the Dutch made Bali as one of the 13 areas part of the State of East Indonesia was proclaimed, named as one of the rival state to the Republic of Indonesia which was proclaimed and headed by Sukarno and Hatta. Bali then also incorporated into the United States of Indonesia when the Netherlands recognized Indonesian independence on December 29, 1949. Years 1950, Bali officially leave the company with Dutch and legally became a province of the Republic of Indonesia.

Mount Agung eruption that occurred in 1963, had shaken the people's economy and led to many of the Balinese transmigrated to other areas in Indonesia.

In 1965, along with the failure by the G30S coup against the national government in Jakarta, Bali and many other areas there was a crackdown against members and sympathizers of the Indonesian Communist Party. In Bali, it is estimated that more than 100,000 people were killed or missing. Nevertheless, the events of the early days of the New Order until now has not succeeded disclosed by law.

Terrorist attacks have occurred on October 12, 2002, a bomb attack in the 2002 Bali Kuta Beach tourist area, causing as many as 202 people were killed and 209 others injured. Bali bomb attacks in 2005 also occurred three years later in Kuta and Jimbaran beach. These incidents received extensive international coverage because most of the victims were foreign tourists and causing Bali's tourism industry faces severe challenges in recent years.

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Balinese Religion: HINDU, The Way Of Life fo Balinese

The majority of Balinese believes Hindu as their spiritual religion and it has become their main identity until now.

Balinese Hinduism is deeply interwoven with art and ritual, and is less closely preoccupied with scripture, law, and belief than Islam in Indonesia. Balinese Hinduism lacks the traditional Hindu emphasis on cycles of rebirth and reincarnation, but instead is concerned with a myriad of local and ancestral spirits. As with kebatinan, these deities are thought to be capable of harm. Balinese place great emphasis on dramatic and aesthetically satisfying acts of ritual propitiation of these spirits at temple sites scattered throughout villages and in the countryside. Each of these temples has a more or less fixed membership; every Balinese belongs to a temple by virtue of descent, residence, or some mystical revelation of affiliation. Some temples are associated with the family house compound (also called banjar in Bali), others are associated with rice fields, and still others with key geographic sites. Ritualized states of self-control (or lack thereof) are a notable feature of religious expression among the people, who for this reason have become famous for their graceful and decorous behavior. One key ceremony at a village temple, for instance, features a special performance of a dance-drama (a battle between the mythical characters Rangda the witch (representing evil) and Barong the lion or dragon (representing good)), in which performers fall into a trance and attempt to stab themselves with sharp knives.

Rituals of the life cycle are also important occasions for religious expression and artistic display. Ceremonies at puberty, marriage, and, most notably, cremation at death provide opportunities for Balinese to communicate their ideas about community, status, and the afterlife. (The tourist industry has not only supported spectacular cremation ceremonies among Balinese of modest means, but also has created a greater demand for them.)

A priest is not affiliated with any temple but acts as a spiritual leader and adviser to individual families in various villages scattered over the island. These priests are consulted when ceremonies requiring holy water are conducted. On other occasions, folk healers or curers may be hired.

Balinese Priest

NYEPI: BALINESE RELIGIOUS CEREMONY

Nyepi is a Balinese "Day of Silence" that falls on Bali's Lunar New Year (March 26, 2009). It is a day of silence, fasting, and meditation. The day following Nyepi is also celebrated as New year Gudi Padva in Maharashtra and Ugadi in Andhra Pradesh and Karnataka in India

Observed from 6 a.m. until 6 a.m. the next morning, Nyepi is a day reserved for self-reflection and as such, anything that might interfere with that purpose is restricted. The main restrictions are: no lighting fires (and lights must be kept low); no working; no entertainment or pleasure; no traveling; and for some, no talking or eating at all. The effect of these prohibitions is that Bali’s usually bustling streets and roads are empty, there is little or no noise from TVs and radios, and few signs of activity are seen even inside homes. The only people to be seen outdoors are the Pecalang, traditional security men who patrol the streets to ensure the prohibitions are being followed.

Although Nyepi is primarily a Hindu holiday, non-Hindu residents of Bali observe the day of silence as well, out of respect for their fellow citizens. Even tourists are not exempt; although free to do as they wish inside their hotels, no one is allowed onto the beaches or streets, and the only airport in Bali remains closed for the entire day. The only exceptions granted are for emergency vehicles carrying those with life-threatening conditions and women about to give birth.

On the day after Nyepi, known as Ngembak Geni, social activity picks up again quickly, as families and friends gather to ask forgiveness from one another, and to perform certain religious rituals together.

* First, The Melasti Ritual is performed at the 3-4 previous day. It is dedicated to Sanghyang Widhi/Vishnu-Devas-Bataras and is performed at the beach to respect them as the owner of The Land and Sea.
* Second, The Bhuta Yajna Ritual is performed in order to vanquish the negative elements and create balance with God, Mankind, and Nature.
* Third, The Nyepi Rituals is performed with the following conditions:
o Amati Geni: No fire/light
o Amati Karya: No working
o Amati Lelunganan: No traveling
o Amati Lelanguan: Fasting and no revelry/self-entertainment
* Fourth, The Yoga/Brata Ritual starts at 6:00 AM March 26 and continues to 6:00 AM March 27 (24 hours, dates provided are for 2009).
* Fifth, The Ngebak Agni/Labuh Brata Ritual is performed for all Hindu's to forgive each other and to welcome the new days to come.
* Sixth and finally, The Dharma Shanti Rituals is performed as the Nyepi Day or "Day of Silence."

Balinese Ceremony in Temple (Pura)

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BALI: Introducing

Bali may be small in size – you can drive around the entire coast in one long day – but its prominence as a destination is huge, and rightfully so. Ask travellers what Bali means to them and you’ll get as many answers as there are flowers on a frangipani tree. Virescent rice terraces, pulse-pounding surf, enchanting temple ceremonies, mesmerising dance performances and ribbons of beaches are just some of the images people cherish.

Small obviously doesn’t mean limited. The manic whirl of Kuta segues into the luxury of Seminyak. The artistic swirl of Ubud is a counterpoint to misty treks amid the volcanoes. Mellow beach towns like Amed, Lovina and Pemuteran can be found right round the coast and just offshore is the laid-back idyll of Nusa Lembongan.

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BALI: The (Beautiful) Island of Gods

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 OF BALI

Bali was inhabited by Austronesian peoples by about 2000 BCE 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. Balinese culture was strongly influenced by Indian and Chinese, and particularly Hindu culture, in a process beginning around the 1st century AD. The name Balidwipa 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 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. Dutch colonial control was expanded across the Indonesian archipelago in the nineteenth century. 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. 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. 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, I 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. 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. 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. With no Islamic forces involved as in Java and Sumatra, upper-caste PNI landlords led the extermination of PKI members.
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. 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.

Bali blast monument.

BALI GEOGRAPHICS

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.

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.

Three decades ago, the Balinese economy was largely agriculture-based in terms of both output and employment. Tourism is now the largest single industry; and as a result, Bali is one of Indonesia’s wealthiest regions. The economy, however, has suffered significantly as a result of the terrorist bombings of 2002 and 2005.

Although in terms of output, tourism is the economy’s largest industry, agriculture is still the island’s biggest employer[citation needed], most notably rice cultivation. Crops grown in smaller amounts include fruit, vegetables, Coffea arabica and other cash and subsistence crops.[citation needed] A significant number of Balinese are also fishermen. Bali is also famous for its artisans who produce batik and ikat cloth and clothing, wooden carvings, stone carvings and silverware.

The Arabica coffee production region is the highland region of Kintamani near Mount Batur. Generally, Balinese coffee is processed using the wet method. This results in a sweet, soft coffee with good consistency. Typical flavors include lemon and other citrus notes.[9] Many coffee farmers in Kintamani are members of a traditional farming system called Subak Abian, which is based on the Hindu philosophy of "Tri Hita Karana”. According to this philosophy, the three causes of happiness are good relations with God, other people and the environment. The Subak Abian system is ideally suited to the production of fair trade and organic coffee production. Arabica coffee from Kintamani is the first product in Indonesia to request a Geographical Indication. [10]

BALI DEMOGRAPHIC, CULTURE, AND TOURISM

Although significant tourism exists in the north, centre and east of the island, the tourist industry is overwhelmingly focused in the south. The main tourist locations are the town of Kuta (with its beach), and its outer suburbs (which were once independent townships) of Legian and Seminyak, Sanur, Jimbaran, Ubud, and the newer development of Nusa Dua. The Ngurah Rai International Airport is located near Jimbaran, on the isthmus joining the southernmost part of the island to the main part of the island. Another increasingly important source of income for Bali is what is called "Congress Tourism" from the frequent international conferences held on the island, especially after the terrorist bombings of 2002; ostensibly to resurrect Bali's damaged tourism industry as well as its tarnished image.

An offshoot of the tourism business is the growing real estate industry in Bali. Bali real estate has been rapidly developing in the main tourist districts of Kuta, Legian, Seminyak and Oberoi. Most recently, high end 5 star developments are taking place on the Bukit peninsula on the south side of the island. Villas in the million dollar category are springing up along the cliff sides of south Bali, commanding panoramic ocean views.

Unlike most of Muslim-majority Indonesia, about 93.18% of Bali's population adheres to Balinese Hinduism, formed as a combination of existing local beliefs and Hindu influences from mainland Southeast Asia and South Asia. Minority religions include Islam (4.79%), Christianity (1.38%), and Buddhism (0.64%). These figures do not include immigrants from other parts of Indonesia.

Balinese Hinduism is a heterogeneous amalgam in which gods and demigods are worshipped together with Buddhist heroes, the spirits of ancestors, indigenous agricultural deities and also with places considered sacred. Religion as it is practiced in Bali is a composite belief system that embraces not only theology, philosophy, and mythology, but ancestor worship, animism and magic. It pervades nearly every aspect of traditional life.

Balinese Hinduism has roots in Indian Hinduism and in Buddhism, and adopted the animistic traditions of the indigenous people, who inhabited the island around the first millennium BCE. This influence strengthened the belief that the gods and goddesses are present in all things. Every element of nature, therefore, possesses its own power, which reflects the power of the gods. A rock, tree, dagger, or woven cloth is a potential home for spirits whose energy can be directed for good or evil. Balinese Hinduism is deeply interwoven with art and ritual, and is less closely preoccupied with scripture, law, and belief than Islam in Indonesia. Ritualizing states of self-control are a notable feature of religious expression among the people, who for this reason have become famous for their graceful and decorous behavior.

Balinese and Indonesian are the most widely spoken languages in Bali, and most Indonesians, the vast majority of Balinese people are bilingual or trilingual. There are several indigenous Balinese languages, but most Balinese can also use the most widely spoken option: modern common Balinese. The usage of different Balinese languages was traditionally determined by the Balinese caste system and by clan membership, but this tradition is diminishing.

English is a common third language (and the primary foreign language) of many Balinese, owing to the requirements of the tourism industry.

Bali is renowned for its diverse and sophisticated art forms, such as painting, sculpture, woodcarving, handcrafts, and performing arts. Balinese percussion orchestra music, known as gamelan, is highly developed and varied. Balinese dances portray stories from Hindu epics such as the Ramayana but with heavy Balinese influence. Famous Balinese dances include pendet, legong, baris, topeng, barong, and kecak (the monkey dance).

The Hindu New Year, Nyepi, is celebrated in the spring by a day of silence. On this day everyone stays at home and tourists are encouraged to remain in their hotels. But the day before that large, colorful sculptures of ogoh-ogoh monsters are paraded and finally burned in the evening to drive away evil spirits. Other festivals throughout the year are specified by the Balinese pawukon calendrical system.

National education programs, mass media and tourism continue to change Balinese culture. Immigration from other parts of Indonesia, especially Java, is changing the ethnic composition of Bali's population.

The Balinese eat with their right hand, as the left is impure, a common belief throughout Indonesia. The Balinese do not hand or receive things with their left hand and would not wave at anyone with their left hand.

*source: Wikipedia

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BALI Public Transportation: A Little Difficult To Find But Easy To Rent

Getting Around

The main forms of public transport on Bali are the cheap buses, minibuses and bemos that run on somewhat set routes within or between towns. Having your own transport can be arranged; there are bemos, cars, motorbikes, and bicycles for rent. Tourist shuttle buses that run between major tourist centers are more expensive than public transport but are definitely more comfortable and convenient. If you are using a travel agent, they will always provide you transportation to anywhere you like. But if you come by yourself, then you need to find the best transports that will suit you in Bali.

Bemo

This is a generic term for any vehicle that is used as a public transport, which is normally a minibus or van with a row of low seats on each side. It is a great way to meet the locals, even though it is hot, dusty and full of diesel exhaust. The exciting part is that you do not have to get to a bemo stop to board a bemo, just extend your arm and flag one down! The fares may be cheap but beware of pickpockets.

Chartering A Bemo

It is easy to charter a bemo or minivan in Bali, and it is an excellent way to travel anywhere with a group or family. The benefits of chartering a bemo are: there is no worry about having a license or insurance, the driver can be a real asset especially in Denpasar or larger towns where they speak English, and you do not have to worry about the horrific traffic. The chartered bemos with yellow plates are the only ones allowed to carry passengers anywhere around Bali. This type of bemo usually has conventional seats rather than benches and is often air-conditioned. They are more expensive than common bemos but are more convenient and comfortable. You would only have to listen for the frequent offers of 'transport' in the streets around the tourist centers or ask hotel staff; everyone knows someone who runs a bemo service.

Car/Motorcycle/Bicycle Rental

Renting a car is simple in Bali but do consider the drawbacks. Firstly, you are removed from the people and the countryside, and you wouldn't want to stop too long in one place, no matter how appealing the place is as you are paying Rp. 100,000 to Rp 400.000,- (you can find a small minibus with US$ 10/day or a more larger vehicle for US$ 25 - 40/day) or more on a daily basis. Secondly, driving in Bali is potentially hazardous and the consequences of an accident can be quite serious. Lastly, its effects on the environment are obvious and severe. Of course, you must be in possession of a valid Indonesian or international driver's license. Petrol is not included in the price and it is advisable to buy extra insurance. Test drive the car before paying in advance.

Motorcycles

Motorcycles are popular means to get around Bali, but several tourists are killed in motorbike accidents each year, and many spend time in hospitals. There is no denying the dangers of riding a motorcycle in Bali and the island is no place for beginners to learn motorcycle riding. If you decide to rent one, drive slowly and very defensively. This is a convenient and inexpensive way to get around the island, helmets are required by law, and the ones provided by rental agencies are not much help when it comes to protection. Bring your own helmet from home if you know that you'll be using a motorcycle in Bali. The major advantage of traveling on a motorbike is the enormous flexibility. It is easy to stop wherever you want and recommence your journey whenever you choose. You do not really require motorbikes that are more than 200 cc as the distances are short and the roads are rarely suitable for traveling fast.

The cost of hiring a motorcycle is negotiable in Bali and varies according to the condition of the machine, length of rental, and time of year. They are could be rented for US$ 4 to US$ 10 on average. With US$ 10, you will get a nice motorcycle. Buying insurance is a good idea to avoid being responsible for damages, but be sure to test drive the vehicle to see that everything is in good working order. A valid International Driving Permit should be in possession or else spend a morning at the Denpasar Police Office to obtain a temporary permit, which lasts for three months, but the process can be a huge hassle. It would be wise to get an International Driving Permit in your own country.

Bicycles


Seeing Bali by pushbikes has become increasingly popular in recent years and the quality of rental bikes have improved. More visitors have been bringing their bicycles with them and there has been an increase in rental outlets. Some airlines will even carry your bike in for free. The most common ones offered are mountain bikes as their low gear ratios and softer tyres are better suited to Bali. Do make sure that the wheels are aligned properly, the brakes are working well, and that the bicycle has a light.

On Foot

The most pleasant way to see Bali is by foot as it is a small island. It would be possible to traverse the entire island by foot and many people do day hikes in and around Danau Batur, Danau Bratan, West Bali National Park, and around Ubud.

So have your holiday in Bali as fun as it can be by choosing the best transportation way for you. Bubye..!

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