An interesting historical documentary about Bali. A history that has sometimes been far from idyllic - even deadly. It also touches on the impact that surfing and tourism has had on this small 'paradise' island.
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There's no surfing in this clip but it shows Bali during the 30s. Indonesia was first surfed in the late 1930s by an American from Los Angeles named Robert Koke. The story goes that he first learned to surf in Hawaii while working as a location still photographer for Hollywood’s Metro Golden Mayer. His first visit to the island of Bali was with his wife Louise in 1936. The couple feel in love with the place and returned, settled there and built a hotel in the Kuta Beach area. The hotel was aptly named The Kuta Beach Hotel. Koke’s surfing eye was drawn to Kuta’s consistent waves and their surfing potential. He arranged for two Waikiki style redwood surfboards to be shipped to Bali from Hawaii. During the end of 1938 he paddled out into the waves at Kuta and became the first person to surf in Indonesia. Apparently he mainly surfed up and down Kuta Beach; Kuta Reef and explored remote spots west of Kuta. Unfortunately, the Kuta Beach Hotel closed in 1941, just before the invasion of the Japanese during the Second World War. The thunder of war would end surfing in Indonesia until the late 1960s. The Indonesian Language
The official language of Indonesia is known as Bahasa Indonesia. This archipelago known as Indonesia is the 4th most populous country in the world, making Indonesian one of the most widely spoken languages in the world. Bahasa Indonesia is the Indonesian name for the language and literally means "the language of Indonesia". The number of speakers in Indonesia is approximately 197.7 million. Indonesian is the country's national language but most Indonesians also speak one of more than 700 indigenous languages alongside it. It is common as a first language in urban areas, and as a second language by those residing in more rural parts of Indonesia. In popular tourist areas such as Bali many people are comfortable with basic English. However, the language barrier can be difficult to overcome at times and cause misunderstandings. Outside of well known tourist areas knowledge of Indonesian is definitely a plus. Indonesian is an artificial language, so it is easy to build simple sentences, without having much knowledge of the grammar. It really only gets complicated as you move into the more formal side of the language. Bahasa Indonesia for Surfers No matter where you are from, if you have an interest in the language, you can generally gain basic Indonesian language skills pretty fast. A few words in Bahasa (many people drop the 'Indonesia' part) will certainly help you with your daily life or at least earn you a friendly smile and respect from the locals. If you travel on to places outside of Bali such as Java, Sumatra, Lombok or other parts of Indonesia, it will certainly help you a lot. For example: Asking for directions to a beach; getting transportation there or quizzing the locals about the conditions at a particular break etc. Language for surfing type questions can be pretty tricky at times with some of the technical language involved such as swell, tide etc. Being able to ask these questions (and respond) in Bahasa can be a real bonus. Some Indonesian surfing vocabulary to get you started: Time Periods morning (0:00 -11:59): pagi afternoon (12:00-15:00): siang evening (15:00-18:00): sore night (18:00-0:00): malam dry season: musim kering/kemarau wet season: musim hujan monsoon: pancaroba Moons crescent moon: bulan sabit full moon: bulan purnama/penuh half moon: bulan separuh new moon: bulan muda Surf Words and Phrases beach: pantai big wave: ombak besar boat: perahu good wave: ombak bagus high tide: air pasang left: kiri low tide: air surut ocean: samudra/lautan reef: terumbu karang/ batu karang right: kanan sea current: arus laut small wave: ombak kecil surf (verb): berselancar surfboard: papan selancar surfer: peselancar surfing: selancar surfing community: komunitas selancar swell: gelombang wave: ombak water: air wind: angin wind (light) : angin kecil wind (strong): angin kencang This Youtube clip explains really well the basics for choosing the right board to fit your needs. If you're a seasoned surfer it's not really for you. However, if you still get bamboozled by all the choice and different factors you need to take into account when buying a new stick - then it is very helpful.
Are you aware that the use of social media could make you a target of burglars. There are few feelings more violating than coming home from holiday to discover you’ve been burgled. But even worse is knowing that you’re partially responsible for it.
I stumbled across this video on YouTube. It's about a couple of Brazilians tucking into some secret left handers somewhere in Indonesia. It's only short and has sub-titles but the waves and quality are high. So if you like adventurous stuff with some nice tubes, it's a great watch.
Have you ever thought of checking out North Sumatra for waves - specifically Aceh? Apparently there are lots of waves and not many takers. It definitely seems to be worth a look, although as can be seen from the above video there has already been an international surfing comp there. That means that the most easily accessed breaks more than likely would have a descent crowd.
One thing to keep in mind, Aceh is very conservative and the only place in Indonesia where sharia law operates. That means no alcohol, parties, canings etc. Read more at Magic Seaweed. |
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