Tablanusu, Tourism Village in Papua

Papua is one of the biggest island in the world. Located on the east of Indonesia, most of this island is covered by tropical Forrest with million kinds of flora and fauna. This island has a very rich natural resources, beside its flora, fauna - especially birds, its also rich with minerals such as gold, copper, iron ore, coal, quartz sand, marble, granite, Nickel and chrome. And this is the only place in the equator where you can find snow ! the snow lies on the top of the highest mountain in Indonesia called Jayawijaya Mountain (4884m above sea level).



The natives of Papua are divided into many tribes with different characteristics, culture, social system and tradition. Some of them live on the beach, some live in a valley, some of them choose to live in the jungle, and some enjoy their life by the riverside. Most of these natives still maintain their primitive way of life, it reminds us of primitive tribes in Africa that still exist today. The tourists from abroad often visit these tribes to take a closer look at their daily activities or during a traditional / religious event held by a tribe. But of course visiting these tribes in a very isolated place sometimes can be hard for tourists who use to live in the city with sufficient public facilities. You won't find a restaurant in these places no public telephone when your cellphone is unable to receive signals, no electricity, you won't even find a public toilet. For those reasons the local authority decided to develop a "Tourism Village" which would give more comfort to the tourists during their visit. They choose a beautiful village by the beach for this project called Tablanusu Village.

Tablanusu Village is located in Depapre District, Jayapura, which is one of the big cities in Papua. About 45 km from the village there's Sentani Airport, so it shouldn't be so hard to visit the village. From Sentani Airport you should continue your journey through the land which will take about 30 minutes to Depapre and then continue the journey by boat that will take you to Tablanusu in about 10 minutes. During your journey on the way to Tablanusu you shall pass a historical place, a landing harbor of the allied force during world war II.

Tablanusu also has amazing natural resources, the beach on the edge of the village naturally shaped like a small gulf that makes it a perfect object for natural photographers. There is also a natural black rock, and two unoccupied islands which is said to be formed a long time ago after a Tsunami hit this area. There are millions of orchid in these islands that become their own interest point, and in the afternoon just before the sunset many kinds of bird will come to these islands and stand on tree branches creating an unforgettable view during the sunset.

This village population is about 402 people devided in 10 tribes, Sumile, Danya, Suwae, Serantow, Wambena, Somisu, Yakarimlen, Apaserai, Yufuwai and Selli. These people are also still practicing their ancient culture and tradition although modernization have come to their village. Every year this village is participating in a cultural festival called "The Sentani Lake Festival" which is held by the local authority in mid June every year.

But of course if you're more attracted with a real adventure in a real primitive tribe' village in Papua, they will always there waiting for you.

* If you wish to visit Indonesia, please go to Indonesia travel tips page.

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Cafe/Restaurant for Sale in Kuta-Bali

Another nice investment for you, this cafe/restaurant is offered for sale with a lease contract until 10 September 2012, located at one of the three main road lead to the famous Kuta Beach in Bali Indonesia. This is the beach that never sleeps, always crowded with domestic and international tourists. in this area there also many shops and hotels, the guests that want to go to the beach surely will pass this place.

Kuta Beach is famous among surfers, and since it's located only 50 m from the beach the owner of this Cafe/Restaurant used to give free lockers and bath for the surfers. other business places around this area use to open at night, so the street will still be crowdy until night.

If you decided to make your investment in this cafe/restaurant, here is what you're gonna get :

- 160 m2 ready to use building
- 14,500 Watt of electricity
- All the inventory and equipment you need to run a cafe/restaurant
- 15 tables, 60 chairs and 10 easy armchairs
- A bar in a good condition
- Audio, video equipment and WiFi internet equipment
- Large kitchen with 10 refrigerators, freezer, stainless steel table and sink,
and all cooking and serving tools

The offering price for this cafe/restaurant is 650.000.000 IDR or - according to today's rate is equal to 64.805 USD or 45.557 EUR.

For further information please click on this link below :

http://www.bali-property-indonesia.com/cms/lang/en/product/10741/categorie/beachfront/KT-L-349CR.htm&currency=EUR

* If you wish to visit Bali, please go to Bali travel tips and Indonesia travel tips pages.
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Bunaken

Welcome to Indonesia's number one snorkeling and diving spot. If you are a diver or you are just an underwater life lover this is just the place where you must spend your vacation, Bunaken offers you an underwater sensation you will never forget.



This 89.000 ha sea conservation area consists of five islands, Bunaken Island, Siladen Island, Mantehage Island, Manado Tua Island and Nain Island. The diving spots spread around the beaches on those islands. There are about 20 diving spots with the depths up to 1.344 m. among the the other islands the most popular diving spots are located in Bunaken Island, there are 12 spots for diving in this area. In this Island you can find underwater great walls or also called hanging walls. These walls are actually giant coral cliffs that stand vertically in the water which become the food source for thousands of fish in this water.

According to Indonesia's Forestry Department there are 13 generas of coral reef live in this water, dominated by edge coral reefs and barrier coral reefs. But the most interesting of all of course the vertical coral walls in Bunaken that I've wrote earlier. there are also at least 91 kinds of fish you can find like kuda gusumi (Hippocampus Kuda), white oci (seriola rivoliana), yellow tail lolosi (lutjanus kasmira), goropa (ephinephelus spilotoceps and pseudanthias hypselosoma), ila gasi (scolopsis bilineatus, and many more tropical fish such as trigger fish, gobi and shrimp gobi fish, barracuda, sword fish, angel fish, bat fish, sweet lips, and there also sea reptiles like sea snakes and turtles.

Beside the underwater scenery you can also enjoy the beauty of the tropical islands in this area where you can also find accommodations such as hotels and restaurants. You can also rent a speedboat, yacht, wooden boat or a jet ski to some rental boat facilities in the islands, you can also ask for a diving instructor that can guide you to a safe and beautiful diving spots.

This amazing underwater beauty is located in North Sulawesi, the good news is it's still part of Manado - the capital of the province where there is an international airport so it's not so hard to reach this place. from Sam Ratulangi Airport it's 30 minutes ride to Marina Harbor where you charter a tourist ship that will take you straight to Bunaken in about 1 hour ride.

* If you wish ti visit Indonesia, please go to Indonesia travel tips page.

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Kelimutu

Now this is the scenery that you won't find anywhere else in the world. Kelimutu, a beautiful tropical mountain which is the habitat of many unique flora and fauna. But the magical part of this mountain lies on the top, you'll see three colorful lakes that keep changing their colors through out the years. these lakes once was stated as one of the seven wonders of the world. some of the experts say that the color replacement could be the effect of the mineral contents inside the lake and some other say some kind of weed that grows inside the lake is the one that effects it, but until now nobody really sure what causes that color changing. At the beginning, after the eruption in 1886 which finally formed those lakes, the colors of these lakes are red, white and blue. Throughout the years they keep changing their colors, and today the colors are green, dark blue and dark brown.



As for the natives, they really believe that these are the magical lakes with every myths that's been told from generation to generation. They believe that Kelimutu lakes are actually the sanctuaries of the spirits of the dead. The green lake is considered to be the place for teen spirits, the dark blue lake which is located side by side with the teen spirits lake is believed to be the place for witches or bad people, and the dark brown lake is believed to be the sanctuary of the elder or old people spirits.

The best time to watch Kelimutu lakes is in the morning, during the day or in the afternoon, these lakes are covered by thick fog so you wouldn't be able to see it clearly. That's why the tourists use to spend a night in Moni village at the feet of the mountain and continue their journey at dawn. This journey will take about 45 minutes to get to the lakes for 13 Km walk.

This amazing place is located in East Nusa Tenggara Island, not very far from the famous Komodo Island. To get to this place you can take a plane from Denpasar to Maumere, from Maumere you can take a bus or car charter to take you to Moni Village, it will take about 3 hours journey from Maumere to Moni Village.

There are many cozy cottages and homestays in Moni Village that you can rent with very low prices from $2.00 - $8.00 a night before you continue your journey to Kelimutu.

* If you wish to visit Indonesia, please go to Indonesia travel tips page.

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Komodo Island

This exotic island is located on the west edge of Nusa Tenggara Timur Province-to the East from Bali/Lombok, Indonesia. Since 1980 this island has become a national park and then later in 1986 UNESCO declared Komodo Island as the world's heritage.



What's so special about this island is as you can see from the name of this island, it is the natural habitat and in fact Komodo island is the only habitat for a pre-historical species called Komodo (Varanus Komodoensis), the natives use to call it "Ora". Komodo is a giant lizard with 2-3 meters long and could reach the weight up to 70-100 Kg.It loves hot and dry places in the Savannah or in a low ground tropical forest. During the night they would nest in a hole in the ground about 1-3 meters depth to maintain their body heat. Komodo is a carnivore, they eat goat, deer, wild boar and birds. But in certain condition they can turn into a cannibalistic animal by eating other komodos. Using its tongue as a smelling sense a komodo can smell its prey's carcass from 9 km away. The main weapon they use to hunt is their bite which is a very deadly bite since it contains poison and deadly bacteria, beside that they also have sharp claws and don't forget about their tail which can be used to hit the prey. Komodo also can run for 20 km / hour in a short distance, they can climb up a tree, swim and even dive.Like other reptiles, komodo regenerate by spawning. But a research had proven that there is another way for a komodo to breed, that is by parthenogenesis way. This way makes it possible for the female to produce eggs without being fertilized by male, and this unique way of breeding is believed to be the reason why komodo can survive all this long from the pre-historical time, they are truly amazing creatures.

The tourists are allowed to go and see komodos from a close range, but they have to be extra careful and there must be a ranger to accompany them, after all komodos are wild carnivore animals and one single bite from them could be very fatal.

But komodo is not the only attraction in this island, beside komodos this island has a beautiful beach and amazing coral and underwater beauty. you can find so many diving spots in this area with its natural beauty you wouldn't believe.

As one of the main tourism objects in Indonesia Komodo Island has many resorts from simple cottages to luxurious hotels and other tourist facilities. To get to this island you can take a plane from Jakarta / Denpasar to Kupang and then change plane to go to Ende in Flores Island, Then you shall continue your journey with a shuttle to Labuhanbajo (this trip would take about 10 hours) and then you take a speed boat that will take you straight to Komodo Island within 2 hours.

* If you wish to visit Indonesia, please go to Indonesia travel tips page

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Lake Toba

With 100 Km long and 30 Km wide Lake Toba is the biggest lake in South East Asia. This lake is formed as the cause of the eruption of Mount Toba which is consider to be one of the biggest eruption throughout the history of the world. This lake is located in North Sumatra - Indonesia and has become the favorite tourist destination in this province for many years.



The eruption was not only formed lake Toba, it also formed an island in the middle of the lake called Samosir. This beautiful fertile island is occupied by the natives called the Batak people who still maintain their traditional way of life.Visiting this place you will find a beautiful scenery, amazingly fresh air and of course friendly natives.

While for you action seekers, this place has a wonderful spot for paragliding and there is also a mountain bike track on Samosir Island, sometimes the local government held paragliding or mountain bike championship whether it is held in local scoop or International.

As for the accommodation you don’t have to worry, there so many hotels around the lake and if you want something with a natural touch you can stay on wooden cottages on Samosir.To get to this place take a plane to Medan (the capital of North Sumatra) and then you can continue through the land, if you charter a taxi the journey is approximately 4 hours from Medan to Lake Toba, but if you take a bus it would take about 6 hours.

* If you wish to visit Indonesia, please go to Indonesia travel tips page.

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Kampung Naga

Kampung Naga or "The Dragon Village" is a settlement occupied by the people who strongly hold their ancestor’s traditions and customs for centuries. The people of Kampung Naga live in a certain order which is formed in a homely condition and a close traditional wisdom environment. We almost can’t find the trace of a modern life in this place, this is because their tradition forbids the modern life instruments to enter their village, so we won’t hear the sound of radio or television in this village we can’t event find electricity in here. This village lies in a fertile valley surrounded by the ‘sacred wood – a place where their ancestors were buried.



Every house in this village is stage shaped and made out of bamboo and wood including the floor, while the roof usually made out of reeds. The houses are not allowed be painted, they can only colored the houses by using camphor. The people of Kampung Naga are also forbidden to held an art show which comes from outside the village even though it is also a traditional art such as wayang (puppet show), pencak silat (Sundanese martial art), and some musical instruments from outside the village. But the people are allowed to see the show if it’s held outside the village.

Beyond its uniqueness, this village is also best known for their hospitality in serving guests who come to their village and this is part or their customs. All of the people confess that they are Moslems but they are also still very strongly hold the faith according to their customs and their ancestor’s thoughts.

Kampung Naga is located not too far away from a highway connecting Garut and Tasikmalaya, two modern cities in west Java Province. To get to this place you can take a plane to Bandung (the capital of West Java) and then you can take a bus to Tasikmalaya and I suggest that you better get a tour guide to take you to the village because there are so many forbidden things to do etc. anyway from the highway of Garut-Tasikmalaya go down through a stairway until you meet the river of Ciwulan, with slope level of 45 degrees and distance about 500m, then you just follow the river until you find the village. But believe me though it's waste a lot of energy to get there it is really worth it considering what you will find in Kampung Naga.

* If you wish to visit Indonesia, please go to Indonesia travel tips page.

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Pasola, Battle Of The Savannah

Pasola is a unique tradition of Sumbanese people of Sumba Island - Indonesia, the island that covered by large savannahs. This Island lies on the east of Lombok, to get to this island you can take a plane from Denpasar-Bali which serves daily flightsto Waingapu East Sumba, but the schedule oftenly change due to the limited number of aircrafts.



Pasola is an ancient ritual of war festival. Two groups of Sumbanese men gather in a savanna riding their colourful decorated horses and carrying wooden spears. As the war begins they would spur their horses towards the other group and throwing their wooden spears at them. This ritual sometimes cause bad injuries or even death, but there is no animosity in Pasola or after the war is over even if it causes death. The people believe if there is death in Pasola it means that the victim is punished by the gods because he has done some mistakes.

Pasola, battle of the Savannah is held at the end of February or early March every year, Pasola is actually the end of a ritual series held by the Sumbanese. This series of ritual begins during the full moon the people will wait for the “Nyale” to come out, Nyale is a unique sea warm which believed to be the incarnation of the beautiful princes. As the first nyale found the “Rato” (leader of the tribe) will decide to held the ritual, without the appearance of the nyale Pasola will never be held. Those series of rituals are meant to bring prosperity to the people and hope to get a good harvest.

* If you wish to visit Indonesia, please go to Indonesia travel tips page.

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Dive Shop & Resort Padang Bai Bali Indonesia

While I was wandering around the net I found this great offering and seems very much promising for your future investment. A dive resort in Indonesia’s most visited island of Bali.





This resort is located in Padang Bai, a small port on the eastern part of Bali Island and about 54 km east of Denpasar-the capital of Bali province which is one of the best spot for surfing in Bali Indonesia. This port is also used as a ferry dock to take people/tourists to Lombok or any other Islands on the east of Bali.

The resort is well known in Asia and 70% of the customers are from these countries. It also has Australia, Canadian, American, German and Dutch guests. The percentage of returning guests is close to 80%.
This Dive Shop & Resort is built on a leased lot. Remaining lease is 24 years with a 10 year extension. PRICE IS NOT INCLUDING PAYMENT OF 10 YEARS. The asking price is US $1 500 000

Facilities that you can get:

There are 24 deluxe style rooms all with
* Air conditioning
* European Bathrooms
* Hot shower
* Satellite TV
* DVD player
* Minni Safe
* All new furnishing
* Indonesian timber crafting
* Complete Diving SSI Instructor Training facility
* Update to date audio visual classroom
* Air conditioned
* Seating capacity 18 students
* Custom build diver training pool

Click here for further information: http://www.absolutescubabali.com/dive_resorts_for_sale_asia_Bali.htm

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Mentawai Islands

Here is one of the best spot for wave riders in Indonesia and probably in the world. Warm water, incredible scenery, and perfect waves make this Island a paradise for surfers. It offers various waves such as E-Bay, Nipussi, Pit Stops, Bankvaults, Kanduis, Scarecrows, Telescopes, Iceland, Bintangs, Lances Left, Hollow Trees, Maccaroni's, KFC’s, and Thunders.


Mentawai is actually a group of islands consist of 4 main islands Siberut, Sipura, North Pagai and South Pagai, these main islands surrounded by many small islands and coral reefs. It’s located about 150 km on the west coast of Sumatra Island – Indonesia, The position of these islands makes them an outstanding location for surfing. Siberut is the biggest island among the others, many surfers choose this island as a place to stay during their surfing days.

Mentawai Islands are covered by rain forest occupied by the natives called the Mentawai people who maintain their tradition with primitive way of living, it’s one of the most enthralling and best-preserved indigenous cultures of the world.

To get to Mentawai first you should take a plane to Padang (the capital of West Sumatra, from here the only way to get to Mentawai is to take a boat which will take about 10 hours journey.

* If you wish to visit Indonesia, please go to Indonesia travel tips page.

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Mount Bromo

This unique mountain is located in East Java, though it’s not the highest mountain in Java (2.392m above sea level) but it’s probably the most famous mountain in the island. Bromo is a mountain surrounded by mountains ; Mount Batok ; Mount Penanjakan ; and also the highest mountain in Java Mount Semeru (3.676m above sea level).


What’s so special about this mountain ? Bromo has a very large crater as the entire top has been blown off and the crater constantly belches white sulphurous smoke. Almost every part of the mountain from top to bottom are covered by a caldera. This caldera which is called Laut Pasir (The sea of sand) by the natives, coated with fine volcanic sand and it’s a very contrast view when we see the green landscape far away around the mountain, there is also a Hindu temple at the foot of Mount Bromo, and every year there is a unique ritual ceremony held by the friendly natives (The Tengger People) at the edge of the crater to honour their Gods.

There are several access point to start your journey to the crater of Mount Bromo, but we recommend to access it from Cemoro Lawang the main access to the mountain, because in this access there are lots of facilities that you might need for your journey. There are restaurants, places to rest, jeeps and ponies to hire, and if you don’t bring a jacket you can also hire it there. The best time to start hiking the mountain is about 3.30 AM since the sun rises about 5.30 AM to go on foot it will only take about 1.5 hours (about 3 Km walk), but you can hire a jeep (about US$ 4 / Person) or a pony (about US$ 5 / person) to bring you up and drop you off right under the stair-case that will take you straight to the crater.

The temperature of mount Bromo is refreshingly cool during the day though you still have to be aware of the sunburn, but it could get extremely cold at night usually the temperature can drop to 0°C during the summer and rarely can reach above 5°C in winter.

There’s one important thing you should remember when visiting this object, no matter how beautiful this mountain is it’s still an active volcano. This mountain continuously erupted throughout the centuries, and when the last time it was erupted in 2004 two tourists were killed as the mountain spit molten rocks out of its crater. So just pay attention to the geologist who can tell you the state and the danger level of the volcano.

The nearest big town from this mountain is Probolinggo, but if you’re taking an aeroplane you’re going to have to land on Juanda International Airport in Surabaya and then you have to take a car or a bus to Probolinggo (about 3 hours journey), from Probolinggo to Cemoro Lawang would take about 1.5 hour.
You won’t find a luxurious 5 stars hotel around mount Bromo area, but you will find nice cottages with nice facilities including cafes for reasonable prices with a mountain view. There are also several fine restaurants serving local food, Chinese food and even European food.

* If you wish to visit Indonesia, please go to Indonesia travel tips page.

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Senggigi Beach

If you’d like to getaway to a beach resort then you should try this one. Senggigi Beach is one of the beautiful and amazing beaches in the world, the beach is so clean with fantastic scenery of the north west coast of Lombok. Yes, it is located in Lombok - the Island which lies to the east of the famous Bali Island. Many people say that beaches in Lombok are actually more beautiful than the beaches in Bali, only they’re just less known than the beaches in Bali Indonesia.


So many activities you can do to spend your time on this beautiful beach, since the waves are not too strong it’s very save to swim or to do some snorkeling to see the amazing natural coral under the water or you can just simply wait to see the fantastic sunset.

There are so many ways to get to this resort, you can take an aeroplane from Denpasar (Bali Indonesia) to Mataram – this city is 20 minutes away from Senggigi, or you can take a ferry from Padang Bai Harbour in Bali which will take about 5-6 hours.

You don’t have to worry about the accommodations and public facilities in this resort, because Senggigi is the most developed area for tourists in Lombok, it has many hotels with various facilities with the rates around US$ 25 – 350, plenty of restaurants and cafes serving Indonesian food, asian food and European food, Health institutions, Post Office, supermarket, souvenir stores, Banks, Drug stores they have it all.

So for you who loves the natural, clean, and not too crowdie beach resorts, Senggigi Beach should be a very nice choice for you

* If you wish to visit Indonesia, please go to Indonesia travel tips page.

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