Het Land der Duizend Tempels (The Land of the Thousand Temples) A Guidebook and Souvenir of BALI. In the previous blog I wrote that the booklet advises on sightseeing trips the tourists can make: the ones for those staying at least six days, and also a compressed version for a 3-day programme. Although the latter version is included, the writer wonders why anybody would want to "see" the island in three days. One would need to race from north to south and from south to east, neither having time to ask questions nor to let the impressions sink in, and ultimately not seeing anything. The writer recommends a minimum stay of one week.
In the old days Bali could be reached in two ways: the comfortable easy way by KPM ship from Surabaya, Makassar, Semarang, Palembang, Jakarta (Batavia)and even Singapore to Buleleng. The second route was far less comfortable and also a tad dangerous—by train to Banyuwangi and from there crossing the Bali Strait by outrigger prahu to Penginuman, a few km south of Gilimanuk, or alternatively to the more distant fisher village of Candicusuma. If a rental car had been arranged beforehand, Denpasar could be reached in several hours through a dusty, barren and nearly deserted landscape without any interesting features or sights.
Quite clearly Tanah Lot became a tourist site only later. Imagine the writer, von Faber, accidentally stumbling across the site. Why didn't you tell me about this? Why do I have to find this because we were looking for a secluded beach? He is exasperated and looks like he wants to strangle his guide. You never asked, is the impassive reply.
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Tanah Lot
The adventurous and less comfortable option, the crossing by outrigger prahu, was, however, the preferred one for those coming to Bali to hunt. You read that correctly, to hunt…! And what's more, to hunt big game! That sounds like tigers. And yes it was! Wikipedia gives the following information on the Bali tiger.
The Bali Tiger (Panthera tigris balica), harimau Bali in Indonesian, or referred to as samong in archaic Balinese language, was a subspecies of Tiger which was found solely on the small Indonesian island of Bali. This was one of three sub-species of tiger found in Indonesia, together with the Javan Tiger, which is also extinct, and the critically endangered Sumatran Tiger. It was the smallest of the Tiger subspecies. The sub-species became extinct because of habitat loss and hunting. Given the small size of the island, and limited forest cover, the original population could never have been large.
In Balinese culture, the tiger had a special place in folk tales and traditional arts, like in the Kamasan paintings of Klungkung kingdom. However, they were perceived as a destructive force and culling efforts were encouraged all the way to the time of extinction.
A final blow to the island's already low tiger population came during the Dutch colonial period, when hunting trips were conducted by European sportsmen coming from Java, armed with high powered rifles and a romantic but disastrous Victorian hunting mentality. Surabayan gun maker E. Munaut is confirmed to have killed over twenty Bali tigers in only a few years.
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The comfortable crossing was to Buleleng, the harbour of Singaraja where the Official Association for Tourism in the Netherlands Indies (Officiele Vereniging voor Toeristenverkeer in Nederlandsch-Indië) had an office. Tourists were advised to visit the office of the Association before setting off, as the latest information on special events and cremations would be available there. The office would also assist in reserving rooms in the hotels and guesthouses along the way.
To be continued…
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