Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
Both the Bali Bird Park and the neighbouring Bali Reptile Park (not to be confused with the
inferior reptile park in Mengwi) are great fun.
Home to some 250 species of mostly Indonesian birds, the
Bali Bird Park
is beautifully
landscaped around enormous aviaries. Highlights include birds of paradise, bright scarlet
egrets, the rhino hornbill and iridescent blue Javanese kingfishers. And you shouldn't miss
the severely endangered Bali starling, Bali's only endemic bird.
The highlights at the
Bali Reptile Park
include the green tree pit viper, which is very com-
mon in Bali, and very dangerous, and the astonishing 8m-long reticulated python, thought to
be the largest python in captivity in the world. There's also a Komodo dragon and visitors are
invited to cuddle up to one of the park's scaly green iguanas.
Putrawan Museum of Art
2km from Batubulan • Mon-Sat 9am-5pm, Sun noon-5pm • $3 • 0361 463737,
museumpuma.com
• The
museum is situated in the grounds of the Alam Puri Resort, about 3km north of Denpasar on the small road
through the village of Penatih; if you haven't got your own transport, a taxi from Denpasar is the easiest way to
get here
East of the main road to Ubud, more than 4km by road, the
Putrawan Museum of Art
, also
known as
PUMA
, is a remarkable, largely ignored, collection of sculpture from across In-
donesia including works from Flores, Nias, Kalimantan and Sumba, supplemented by jew-
ellery and other artefacts. The
ana deo
, ancestral figures from Flores, and
tau tau
, effigies of
the dead from Sulawesi, are especially compelling. Given that tourist shops are awash with
reproductions of these, this is a fabulous chance to see the real thing.
TRADITIONAL DANCE SHOWS IN BATUBULAN
The spectacular
Barong dance
, in which the lion-like Barong Ket is pitted against the
widow-witch Rangda, is performed for tourists at various venues around Batubulan (daily
9.30-10.30am; Rp100,000) including the stage next to Pura Puseh and the Denjulan
Barong and Kris stage, 300m south down the main Denpasar road from the Pura Puseh
junction. Both stages are served by Ubud-Batubulan bemos. Additionally, in the evenings,
there's a double bill of the
Kecak
and the
Fire Dance
(daily 6.30-7.30pm; Rp100,000;
sahadewabali.com
)
at the Barong Sahadewa stage on Jalan SMKI, signed off the main
road about 500m south of the Pura Puseh junction.
