Bali Personal Drivers - Kuta is a former fishing village in the south of Bali, Indonesia, about 11 KM south of Denpasar. Kuta is Bali region which has a very rapid development of tourism, and it makes Kuta as one of the major tourist destination both for Bali and Indonesia.
Kuta History
Kuta is a tranquil fisherman countryside in the past. On the three hundred years ago, in this place been established a Konco (Buddhist Temple) located beside Tukad Mati (Dead River). In 1834, a merchant named Mads Lange landed on the island of Lombok. Mads Lange was the man from Denmark who was born on 18 September 1807. He did spice trading business. A war between the Kingdom of Karangasem with Mataram causing trading business he managed decline and then went bankrupt.
Armed with the rest of the capital he had, Mads Lange went to the island of Bali. Mads Lange landed in Kuta through the Tukad Mati, which at that time can still be used for sailing. In addition to expert in trade, Mads Lange was also known to be very good at adjusting to local people, so he readily accepted by the fishing community in Kuta. Mads Lange became intermediaries trade between the kings in Bali with merchants from abroad, even the King of Kesiman give power to Mads Lange to export spices. His skill in trading have an impact on trade in Kuta, Kuta making the center a very crowded trade. Mads Longe has mysteriously died and his grave is located in the Konco right on the banks of the Tukad Mati. Name Mads Lange later memorialized be one of the street names in Kuta.
In 1931, there came an American woman who writes about the art and beauty of Bali in a book called "Island of Bali". Since then Kuta increasingly popular among foreign tourists.
Hugh Mahbett has also published a book entitled "Praise to Kuta" which contains an invitation to the local community to preparing tourist accommodation facilities. The aim is to anticipate the explosion of tourists visiting Bali. The book was later inspired many people to build tourist facilities such as hotels, restaurants and entertainment venues.
Kuta is a tranquil fisherman countryside in the past, but now has turned into a major city for tourism in Bali and Indonesia and even the world. Kuta is now equipped with a post office, police station, market, pharmacy, photo center, shops and tourist facilities such as hotels, restaurants and entertainment venues.
What is interesting here ...?
Tourism in Bali began and centered in Kuta. Kuta is the main tourist area for every tourist who come to Bali. Kuta is the center of tourist activity so that all forms of tourist facilities and the need to be in this place. Until today, Kuta is the best place to enjoy a holiday on this island and not been replaced by other tourist attractions in Bali. In Kuta you can find many hotels from luxury class hotels until low budget hotels are available here. Here you can also find plenty of restaurants with international cuisine such as European cuisine, Asian cuisine, Balinese cuisine, and others.
The streets in the Kuta area is a paradise for those who love to shop. You will see a variety of shops, from traditional art shops, accessories shops, food shops, mini markets, airplane ticket, to boutique clothes with famous brands like Billabong or Rip Curl. Goods are sold ranging from apparel, watches, handbags, and assorted souvenirs typical of Bali. Type of clothing that is sold is also a wide variety, ranging from Balinese shirt, shirt, jeans, dresses, bikinis until weaving of Bali. If you want to shop with a traditional atmosphere, you can visit the Kuta Art Market is located at Jalan Kartika Plaza. As the art market, this place offers a variety of souvenirs such as shirts, t-shirts, bags, pants, silver craft, craft carvings, paintings and so forth.
And of course the main attraction of this area is a very famous beach, The Kuta Beach. It is well known since the early 1970's as Sunset Beach, as opposed to Sunrise Beach, another name for the beach Sanur Beach. Witnessing sunset at Kuta Beach is a moment that will not be forgotten. The scenery displays its exceptional charm when afternoon.
Kuta beach has a fairly hot weather during the day, so it is suitable for you who want to sunbathe on the beach. Enjoy the fresh coastal air is really fun, besides sunbathing you can also do other activities such as swimming, playing ball, flying kites and others. You can also try the massage services, hair ponytail, and a temporary tattoo.
Kuta Beach is also famous for its good waves, so it is often used as a surfing tournament sites, both for internasioanal or domistik level. There are some surf schools along Kuta Beach. If you are interested, you can register yourself at one of these schools. The trainer was very experienced, and you'll always be supervised when you start touching the water.
One more thing that special from Kuta Beach is that the formerly this beach is a turtle habitat, many people do not know this. These turtles are still often flock to Kuta Beach to proliferate. To prevent things that are not desirable, The Kuta Beach Organizer has made the preservation of sea turtles. All species of sea turtles are highly protected in Indonesia with the release of Government Regulation No. 7 of 1999, that concerning The Preservation of Flora and Fauna. As for the international level, all species of sea turtles are protected by the World Conservation Union (IUCN).
Since 2010, The Kuta Beach Organizer held a release "Tukik" (the sea turtle babies that newly hatched a few days) to the open sea. This event is a sustainable action from "Bali Beach Clean Up Program". The tourists who happened to be visiting the beach at the time the event was held, usually invited to participate in this event. They get allotments to remove one Tukik into the open sea. If you are lucky you can see this activity and maybe participate by releasing a Tukik into the open sea.
Bali Bombing Monument
There is a different tourism entity in Kuta built in the center of this place called "The Bali Bombing Monument" to commemorate the Bomb Bali Tragedy on 12 October 2002. Bomb which burst at Sari Club and also Paddy ' S club have killed 202 persons. After the first Bali Bombing in 2002 at Kuta, a permanent memorial was built on the site of the destroyed Paddy ' s Pub on Legian Way.
The memorial is made of intricately carved stone, set with a great marble plaque, which bears the names and nationalities of each of those killed. It is flanked by the national flags of the victims. The monument is great - maintained and illuminated at dark hours.
The monument was dedicated on 12 October 2004, the second anniversary of the attack. The dedication included a Balinese Hindu ceremony and the opportunity for mourners to lay flowers and other offerings. The Australian ambassador and Indonesian officials attended the ceremony as most of the victims were Australians. The Balinese mark their commitment in a nine-day long event.
After major cleansing ceremonies, establishing a memorial for the lost lives, and paying respect to those who left loved ones behind, the people of Kuta look forward to restoring Bali’s image through an event named "Kuta Karnival — A Celebration of Life”. The community event consists of traditional art performances such as Balinese Sunset Dances, sports on the beach as well as in the water for young and old plus rows and rows of culinary displays along the one kilometre of sandy beach. In line with the return of tourism to Kuta, Kuta Karnival has grown into a tourism promotional thing with major coverage from television and newspapers from across the globe.
Kuta is the one stop spot that offers many options for you and make this place a great place for you to visit when you vacation in Bali.
Reference : wikimedia.org, wisatadewata.com
Photo : wikimedia.org
