Bali Updates

Om Swastiastu ...


Sincere thanks to all who wrote to wish us luck on the 12th anniversary of Bali Update last week, There's a sampling of letters on that and other subjects in this week's installment of "We Get Mail."

Hot news this week is the rumor of a possible imminent visit by U.S. President Barack Obama. We try to track down the various sources from the White House to local contacts in Bali to determine if Barry is indeed Bali bound.

Other leading news stories include the death yesterday of Bali's former governor Ida Bagus Oka at age 75; more deaths in the latest wave of local wine contamination; a fire at the Spa of a leading Ubud resort; the euthanizing of smuggled dogs at Bali's border in the fight against rabies and a report that says Bali is oversupplied with accommodation by more than 100%.

Meanwhile, the head of Bali's ASITA chapter is calling for stronger control over the distribution systems for travel in Bali by closing down unlicensed travel agents and websites selling Bali travel.

News from the Hotel and Restaurant sector include a major exhibition for the travel industry in Bali March 11-13th; key food and beverage appointments at two Bali hotels; a hotel and travel distribution summit in Bali scheduled for March 24-25th; and news of a record-breaking hamburger recently cooked by a Kuta restaurant.

East of Bali there's the recommendation by Indonesia's former Vice-President, Jusuf Kalla, to emulate Singapore in developing tourism projects and the launch of "Flores Update" – a newsletter to keep you informed of tourism happenings from one of Indonesia's most beautiful islands.

Feel like singing the blues? Catch one of two concerts by Carlton J. Smith – a famous blues and soul singer on March 31st and April 3rd at the Anantara Resort Seminyak. And, while Carlton may not enjoy you singing along, you're always welcome to do so at the Tuesday gatherings of the Bali Community Choir. Details of both musical events in this week's Bali Update.

There's also information on the Balinese holidays of Saraswati, Pagerwesi and Hari Nyepi. Nyepi happens on Tuesday, March 16th - but remember, "mum's the word."

Read the full report at: http://www.balidiscovery.com/update/update704.asp


Om Çanti Çanti Çanti Om ...
J.M. Daniels - Bali Update
Bali Discovery Tours