JEMBRANA REGENCY
Jembrana Regency , west coast Bali
If you hear the sound of gamelan made from Bamboo,
with deep resonating sounds in high sophisticated rhythmic patterns,
you are hearing the art of traditional music called the Jegog. The
instruments made from bamboo have become characteristics of the
regency of Jembrana, located on the west side of the island of Bali.
It can be said that the music in the other regions of Bali share
similarities, but the Jegog of Jembaran has a very different nuance,
which gives a strong impression to the ears.
Jembrana is where the Bali begins for those who come to Bali from
Java by using ferry or inland way. Bali and Java mere 4kms in distance
or about threty minutes by using ferry. Within Negara as its capital,
Jembrana is Bali's westernmost district and where some of Bali's
oldest remains of prehistoric humans have been found.
Jembrana also happens to be Bali's most sparsely populated district.
A ruling family related to the Gelgel house was established here
in the mid 1400s, but a dispute among its two founders led to civil
war and a destruction of the court. For a while the area was considered
to be a marginal part of the Badung kingdom, but when a prince from
Sulawesi set himself up as ruler of Jembrana in the seventeenth
century, he did so with little difficulty. Karangasem nearly took
Jembrana in the late 1800s, but was pipped at the post by the Dutch,
to whom Jembrana surrendered peacefully even before any of the other
kingdoms were subdued.
If the traditional art forms of Jembrana are known for anything,
it is their size. Bigger is better, it seems, in Jembrana, which
boasts the huge bamboo xylophones of the gamelan jegog, the kendang
mebarung competitions of large oversized rums.
The makepung bull races festival is a traditional game to celebrate
harvest day. It consists of a race between two carts pulled by buffaloes
which is decorated very attractive and they run for 2 km long a
line which take place in the villages of Banyubiru and Dlod Brawah
in the dry season
PLACE OF INTEREST
* The West Bali
National Park
as a counterpoint to the cultural wealth of southern Bali, Jembrana’s
main point of interest is its West Bali National Park and reserve,
which encompasses the forests, mountains, and coasts of much of
the district. To enter the Park, visitors must obtain a permit at
Cekik, A good road provides a pretty, scenic drive from the Gilimanuk
end of the park, in the west, almost all the way to Lovina in Buleleng.
It is in the forest that hems this road that the long-extinct Balinese
tiger once roamed, and here also the rare white Balinese starling
may be sighted.
Some villages are ethnically mixed, Loloan village is populated
by Bugis descent with Islam as the main religion.
* Menjangan Island
is also a part of the National Park, and is renowned as harbouring
the best reefs in all of Bali for snorkling and diving. Boats leave
regularly to Menjangan from the port adjacent to the island in the
park, and diving trips to here can be arranged from Lovina and other
major tourist centres. As for surfing, go no further than Medewi
beach, on the southern coastal road leading from Kuta to Tabanan
and through to Negara.
* Delodbrawah Beach
is a beautiful beach with its magic black sandy beach and one of
holiday place for local people.
* Bunut Bolong
Located 9 km northeast the main road in Jembrana or can also be
reached from Pupuan by following the sign og ' Bunut Bolong"
to southwest. When you see a giant three standing above the road
than that is Bunut Bolong, a Bunut three that has a big hole in
the bottom to let the traffict passing through
* Gilimanuk
This ferry port at Bali's westernmost tip-88 km from Singaraja and
134 km from Denpasar-links Bali with East Java across a narrow strait,
Strait Bali. Except as an around-the-clock ferry terminus, Gilimanuk
has little to offer tourists. But with its basic no-frills services
and amenities, Gilimanuk is a friendly little town for stopovers,
for resting up. The strait itself less than three km wide with 60
meters in depth and takes only 30 minutes to cross.
* Medewi Beach
Medewi beach is known for its wave, one of good places in Bali for
surfing.
* Melaya Village
is inhabitant by Balinese Christians. This village is also the entrance
to the West Bali National Park where you can find wild Bali’s
Starling bird (Leucopsar Rotschildi).
* Rambut Siwi, Temple
Located on the north coast road that links Singaraja with Gilimanuk,
is without doubt the most renowned temple complex in Jembrana.
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