Kuta Baywatch: “Reduce Water Activities”
The Kuta Baywatch team has warned visitors to reduce their water activity, following the recent tsunami storm in Aceh. According to I Gusti Ngurah Tresna, head of the team, the weather at the Kuta Beach is not friendly, and strong wind has been appearing at the beach these past few weeks. Nevertheless visitors appear carefree and keep on doing their normal beach activities. (Nusa December 30)
Australian Mugged
A 35-year-old Australian, Andriani Ana Maria, was mugged while riding a motorbike with her husband at Sari Wijaya Street, near Panorama, Kuta. Andriana, who was staying at Hotel Jayakarta, lost a Sony DVD camera, A$ 400 and Rp. 600,000, all totaling Rp. 13 million. The case has been reported to the Kuta police; unfortunately Andriani did not remember what the culprit looked like. (Denpost December 31)
New Year, New Quake for Aceh
Entering the new year, last Saturday (January 1) Aceh was still experiencing more earthquakes. This last quake made people panic and run away from their homes. Daily activities were still far from appearing, although 75 percent of power and telephone connection in Banda Aceh is now functional. Meanwhile, according to the earthquake information centre in the USA, the quake measured 6.5 Richter Scale and happened at 7.45 at the main center of the Nikobar Island in India. (Bali Post January 2)
Kant Withdrawn Report
42-year-old Dutch lady, Roelien Kant, who previously reported Kafe Lawas’ Manager, I Gusti Lanang Pandia, has withdrawn her report and agreed that it was all just a misunderstanding, such is the report obtained from police station in Karangasem, last Monday (January 3). The café was sold to a new person, along with the contents, which were finally be returned to Lanang Pandia. (Nusa January 4)
33 Countries Offer Help
Thousands of boxes of instant noodles, mineral drinking water and rice which are to be sent to victims of tsunami in Aceh, are still stocked in the storage room at Tanjung Priok harbor in Jakarta. International help for the victims are flowing. Until now, 33 countries and several international humanitarian organizations have committed that they will help in providing transportation, rescue teams, necessary tools and hospital boats. Half of the donations were already sent to Aceh, such as donation from the Australian Government - four Hercules and one hospital plane. (Nusa January 4)
Villa in Padang Sambian Robbed
Several robbers entered Villa Cuskandi at Padang Sambian last Sunday (January 2), carrying away a bag belonging to a 59-year-old citizen of Switzerland. The victim reported a loss of Rp. 21 million. According to the information obtained by Denpost, the entrance door was unlocked when the robbers arrived, and so they could easily take away the bag. Still according to the report, the bag contained US$ 2,000 and a mobile phone. (Denpost January 4)
Thai’s Loss is Our Gain
Recent tsunami in several countries, including Thailand, has turned out to be a blessing in disguise for Bali. Thailand has been known to be a major rival for Bali, and as the tsunami happened, visitors who planned to visit Thailand cancelled and went to Bali instead. According to recent data at the tourism department office in Bali, during 2004, 1.4 million people visited the island, and in average stayed for 3 to 3.5 days. (Nusa January 5)
Bali Needs New Investment Policy
In the future, Bali needs to issue a new investment policy which will give more opportunity to locals in share ownership in each investment, said a tourism industry player who is also the head of the Association of Indonesia Tour and Travel Agency in Bali, Bagus Sudibya. He said this movement is important to eliminate jealousy towards non-locals or newcomers. A similar thought was voiced by the owner of Puri Kelapa Garden Cottages, Nyoman Suwidjana, who claimed that so far Balinese are only minority shareholders. (Nusa January 5)
Crash, Two Bule at Hospital
Niat Dorren S.Moyle, a 36-year-old Australian and Kestin Frank, a 36-year-old German crashed with a car while riding a bike. Both are now in the Sanglah Hospital. Kestin and Dorren both stayed at a bungalow in Sanur. Intending to sightsee Bali, Dorren took Kristen by motorbike to Raya Kuta Street, where the accident happened. Both suffered from broken bones. According to police information, both wereunder alcohol influence when riding the motorbike. (Denpost January 7)
Nicole Kidman to Visit Aceh
Australian-origin star Nicole Kidman, who is now based in Hollywood, is reported to plan to come to Aceh to see the condition over there. She was reported to have planned to come at the end of January this year, together with her sister Antonia. She promised to help in raising funds for the tsunami victims in Aceh in particular, and in Asia in general. Nicole is known to be a philanthropist, and she was awarded UN Citizen of the Year last year. (Bali Post January 10)
Kuta Beach Drownings
In 2004, 14 people lost their lives through drowning on Kuta Beach. The number of drowning deaths were evenly split between foreign and Indonesian swimmers. (Antara)
Australian Tourists Visit Bali the Most
According to a recent report by Bank Indonesia, 93 percent of all the visitors who visited Bali in 2004 are Australians. Despite the travel warnings issued by the Australian Government, still many Australians consider Bali as the main destination overseas. Following Australians are Japanese and Taiwanese. Fourth and fifth positions are taken by South Koreans and Germans. (Nusa January 10)
AWAIR’s First Flight Jakarta-Denpasar
AWAIR has added another Boeing 737-300 recently, ready to fly from Jakarta to Denpasar and return. According to the President Director Sendjaja Widjaja, ever since the sales counters were opened on January 6 in Denpasar, Surabaya and Jakarta, people are enthusiastic about cheap flights. The airline offered a promotional rate of Rp. 49,000 and Rp. 129,000 for normal rate. (Bali Post January 10)
Unud and Japan Analyze Potential Tsunami in Bali
The University of Udayana (Unud) will work together with Japan to analyze the possibility of tsunami ever occurring in Bali. This is done due to the current tsunami in Aceh. According to Prof Dr Ir I Gede Wirawan, there will be a replay from the Aceh’s tsunami, along with a discussion of wave’s height, speed of wind and undersea plate which causes the tsunami. Based on a satellite mapping, Bali and the surroundings are potential tsunami areas. (Nusa January 10)
