Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
North from Denpasar at Sibang Kaja,
The Green School
makes a fascinating excursion.
Opened in 2008 by John and Cynthia Hardy, owners of a successful jewellery business and
Bali residents for more than thirty years, the school was established to educate pupils (aged
3-17) in emotional, spiritual and environmental issues alongside the more traditional sub-
jects. Interesting from an
educational
point of view, the school is also fabulous architectur-
ally as it consists entirely of open-sided
bamboo structures
; the main bridge and multistorey
Heart of School are quite simply works of art.
Batubulan and around
Barely distinguishable from the northeastern suburbs of Denpasar,
BATUBULAN
is the cap-
ital's terminal for public transport heading east and northeast, the home of famous Barong
dance troupes
, and respected across the island for its
stonecarvers
. There's also a
bird park
and a
reptile park
here. The town is strung out over 3km along the main road, bound by the
bemo/bus station in the south and the huge
Barong statue
at the Singapadu/Celuk junction
in the north.
Roadsides throughout Batubulan are crowded with ranks of
stone statues
in front of dozens
of workshops and galleries. Most of these shops deal in a range of images and stone types.
Some sell carvings imported from Java, where much of the stone now originates, and most
also deal in cheaper, mass-produced artworks that are moulded (rather than carved) from
lava-stone “concrete”.
