Taman Budaya or Bali Art Centre is a prime example of how traditional art forms should to be preserved. Built in traditional Balinese architecture this is a centre of learning and also a centre of excellent performances. It motivates young Balinese people to learn all the forms of traditional Balinese performing arts. Bali Art Center grooms young ones in traditional Balinese arts- dance, theatre, music, painting and lot more. A beautiful complex run by public money is a very sincere attempt to preserve the traditional forms of art. Interestingly, all these classes are completely free of cost for the children. Such art centres encourage them to learn and perform and thus keep the traditional art forms alive by transferring them to the next generation... A way to learn for all suc...
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It is not yet five years old, as it was opened only in September 2013, but it certainly leaves tourists coming to Bali in an awe. Almost 13 km in length stretching across the Gulf of Benoa, the Bali Mandara sea link is often referred to as pride of Indonesia. This beautiful sea link runs over sea and some part of it through protected mangrove forests, making it a beautiful experience to drive. It gives wonderful views from the road and the sea as well! It is claimed to be one of the “most beautiful” road stretches in Indonesia. The name Mandara is an acronym for Indonesian words — maju (move forward), aman (safe), damai (peaceful) and sejahtera (prosperous). Bali Mandara Toll Road or Nusa Dua-Ngurah Rai-Benoa Toll Road is a toll road carried by a bridge 12.7 km in length. ...
Read MoreIt is indeed one of the most adorable and loved fishes of silver screen and also of aquariums thereafter. Orange Clownfish Nemo has been craze of kids world over after that landmark film - Finding Nemo. Hence watching Nemo in its natural habitat in the sea is indeed filled with a lot of excitement. But of course, this is not about Nemo, it is about walking under the sea and feeling the nature's bounty around you. Sea Walking is a gem of an adventure for all those who don't want to go in nitty-gritty of diving. And there can be perhaps no better place for sea walking than beautiful waters of Bali in Indonesia. Sea walkers are the latest craze for the under water adventure seekers and what a place can be better than Bali to do this. Tanjung Benoa in South Kuta district of Badung Rege
Read MoreWell, Mercure Legian Bali hotel is located in the area, where heart of Bali beats. When we were in Nusa Dua area, we were in a sort of exclusive zone with all sort of luxury and privacy. But this hotel lies in an area, where as soon as you step out of the hotel, you find yourself in the hustle & bustle of a busy tourist destination like Bali. Hotel is just a five minutes walk from the beach. Hotel is close to Legian, Seminyak and Kuta areas. Mercure has two hotels in the area. There another property Mercure Kuta Bali is located right on the Kuta beach and is slightly away from the, what few people may call as, chaos of Legian area. Hotel is located on a busy intersection on Legian street. Running parallel to a long coastline this street is just a five minutes walk from famous Legian
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Bali itself is a dream destination and staying in Melia Bali adds zing to this dream! Its an ultimate Balinese hospitality and captures all the aura & beauty that can be associated with this beautiful island. It is a big beach resort and actually staying here is itself a complete holiday with there being a private beach and all sort of activities. Also read: Bali is the top destination in the world Hotel is in Nusa Dua area, which itself is a calm and secluded area reserved for top class hotels, quite far from tourist frenzy at Kuta or what is like in Ubud. That might not be of liking to all, but certainly favourite for those who love to be in calm and serene place. Also read: Bali from the sky - few captures Once you enter the hotel, you will feel how it is like to be in a high end
Read MoreBali in Indonesia is the top destination in world favoured by the travellers. This is what TripAdvisor’s Travellers’ Choice Awards for the year 2017 show. Surprisingly (or not) there is no Indian destination in this top 25 list. List has some notable evergreen gems and some equally notable misses. There is no destination in the list from China or Australia or Japan or South & Central Africa, not even Mauritius or Reunion islands. Besides India, Asia also has notable misses like Singapore, Hong Kong, Macao or even Maldives. Probably, travellers always search for newer shores. But what can be said for sure is that more and more people are now travelling to beach destinations. This list of 25 destinations is actually beach heavy with only seven destinations have no access to sea, or are n...
Read MoreIts fun to be on window seat of a plane, provided you are interested in capturing images. And if images are from a beautiful beach resort like Bali, then you just can’t stop clicking. How different it is to see a place from the top, then being there! A lot perhaps. Lot changes with the change of the angle and perspective. Eye angle is more wide than ever. The view and the perspective, both become more holistic. Hence the idea of beauty also changes! So here starts the fun- Plane looks like walking right into the sea! ... or along it! Is it quite close for comfort or just thrilling!! It looks more normal now- Quite different to see a beach resort from up in the sky! ... but it still looks amazing with all those boats and yachts lined up! The three s...
Read MoreBali is know for its culture and beaches. But it is also a hot spot for adventure. A classic two hour visually spectacular rafting trip on the Ayung river in Ubud region of Bali is a mix of excitement, fun & breathtaking views. Carving through some of Bali's most fantastic landscape, Class II & III rapids wind through deep valleys, cascading waterfalls, dense tropical rainforest and towering cliffs. An adventure worth an experience while in Bali. There are a few rafting operators in and around Ubud and Sobek is one of them which was our operator for the trip. Rafting is a thrill and it helps when the instructors are lively and engaging. The base is just a few kilometres from Ubud town in the forest area. Rafters get into gear at the base and then trek downhill amidst deep fo...
Read MoreThere were many revelations for us in Bali - an island of Hindu culture in Islamic Indonesia. And many of them came to us in the Bali Art Centre. I will be talking about the Bali Art Centre in a later post, but this is about something we witnessed there. Pre-wedding photo-shoots are not uncommon world over. Even Bali is famous globally as a wedding and honeymoon destination. But here I am talking about pre-wedding photo-shoots of local Hindu Balinese couples. Its grown into a tradition now and is extremely popular. Its quite unlike hindu traditions in India where to be bride and groom are not supposed to meet openly before the marriage and a planned, open and detailed photo-shoot is out of question. But here, to be couples get the photo-shoot at all type of exotic, traditional, hist...
Read MoreIn an earlier post I had showcased some Sunset silhouettes from the Kuta beach in Bali. But I haven't included the actual sunset photos in the post and saved them for later. Here they come, few of the selected ones. Well, sunsets are never enough. For me, going to a beach destination essentially means to watch the sunset. But then so has for any other destination as well. Sunrises and sunsets always catch your imagination. As I said in the earlier post, sunset at the Kuta beach in Bali was the only second sunset of the whole trip that I was able to capture. First, one being the sunset at Prambanan Temple near Yogyakarta. Although we landed in Bali in the late morning but it was only in the evening when we managed to check in our hotel close to Kuta Beach. Having left with ve
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