Bali Echo Visitor's Guide

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February/March, 1998
No. 033/VI/98

cover story

Galleries Galore
The boom in
contemporary Balinese
art

A Matter of Taste
Why bourgeois Balinese
are collecting art

beyond
bali

From Toraja to the
Togians
Sulawesi's most seductive
parts

Treading Lightly in
Lombok
Tips to being a green
tourist

regular
features

Weekender
The Saltmakers of Amed

Home Grown
Legian's Legend,
Made Kasim

Health and Beauty
The Ubud-based
Bali Utama Spice

Books
The search for the Great
Bali Novel continues

Cuisine
Bumbu Bali cooking
school

Fiction
Marni's Ride by
K. Landras Syaelendra

Jungle Drums

advertising index for
Bali Echo web site

BALI ECHO EXPANDS INTO CYBERSPACE
The monetary crisis you are experiencing has failed to hinder Bali Echo in our promotion of Bali and beyond. In fact, in 1998 we are stepping up our efforts to ensure that the magazine, and the up-to-date information contained within it, is disseminated as far and wide as possible. At Bali Echo, we marked our entrance into the new year with the launching of the our new web site. So, while the magazine continues to go out to all corners of the globe in hard copy as always - thanks to the kind assistance of our airline sponsors - our entry into cyberspace makes Bali Echo's international distribution even more complete. Now, potential visitors to the island can read our stories and view sponsors' messages from the comfort of their lounge room before they even book their ticket.
The format we have settled on for the site is the product of almost a year of deliberations about how to transpose a magazine onto the screen, and maintain a format that is interesting, quick and easy to read. One of the most important considerations was the issue of how to ensure that all our sponsors could appear on the site in a manner in keeping with their various levels of support. For the product which you can now call up on your screen at will, Bali Echo would like to thank Access Bali Online, who were responsible for installation, design, artwork and Site Publicity and ongoing maintenance of the site. Have a look for yourself! http://baliwww.com/baliechomagazine.

SPA SEASON!
1998 is a great year for spa lovers, with four new spas - each uniquely individual - to be opened on the island by the end of the year. In November 1997, The Four Seasons Resort, Jimbaran extended their existing spa facilities to include nine treatment rooms, and a full range of services including rejuvination treatments, relaxation techniques, state-of-the-art exercise equipment and Chef Kenji Salz's trademark great-tasting, healthy spa menus. If you are a Bali resident who is seeking that perfect weekend getaway in close proximity, the new spa at the Four Seasons in Jimbaran makes the resort exactly that (Tel. 701010) The Tjampuhan Hotel Spa, set on the banks of the Tjampuhan River and part of the same family of management as the famous in-house Pita Maha spas, is set to open in March (Tel. 975 368). Also in March the Esthetic House Spa and Salon will open in Sanur (Tel. 286 545). And finally, at the end of the year, the Hawaii-based Aston Hotels and Resorts is set to open their Bali Resort and Spa in Tanjung Benoa in late 1998. The Resort and Spa, Aston's first foray into Asia, is to be a 180-room luxury beachfront resort designed in a U-shape to provide rooms with both ocean and courtyard views. (Tel. 773 577).

WINGS OF IRIAN JAYA
Pigeons the size of turkeys, brilliant-coloured fruit doves, massive cassowaries, nectar-feeding parrots, golden mynas, spectacular birds of paradise - all these birds and many more originate from the island of New Guinea, the Indonesian half of which is called Irian Jaya. Virtually everyone has heard of the Amazon jungle and is aware of both its rich ecological diversity and critical situation facing it due to habitat destruction, but far less is commonly known of the nearly as ecologically rich and certainly as fascinating Irian Jaya.
Taman Burung - Bali Bird Park have recently dedicated a large section of the park exclusively to the birds of Irian Jaya. It is hoped by doing so, they will be able to educate visitors about this remarkable part of the world and its equally remarkable bird life. This is the first time that an exhibit of this size and quantity of species has ever been dedicated solely to birds from this region. Besides merely displaying the birds, the enclosures are designed to provide optimum breeding conditions for their inhabitants. For this reason, some species are housed singly while other compatible species are mixed together. A major highlight of the exhibit is to be in the Irian Jaya Walk-In Aviary. The recent construction of the new 3000-meter square Rainforest Walk-In Aviary has provided a new home for the many birds previously housed in the original aviary and now allows them to specialise in the enclosure. In addition to birds, visitors will encountner native plants and authentic primitive art work, particularly the famous Asmat Woodcarvings.

For more information, Tel. (62)(361) 299352 or Fax. (62)(361) 299614