Getting up close with dolphins at Lovina<\/p>\n
Moch. N. Kurniawan and Novan Iman Santosa, The Jakarta Post,
\nLovina, Bali<\/p>\n
It was 5 a.m. at Lovina Beach, Buleleng, north Bali, and it
\nwas still cold, the wind making it chilly enough to sleep under a
\nwarm blanket.<\/p>\n
The sun had not yet arisen but there was already a crowd of
\npeople waiting on the beach near dozens of small wooden boats.<\/p>\n
Those people were tourists who wanted to experience the much-
\ntalked-about dolphin watching at sea as well as witness the
\nsunrise.<\/p>\n
\"Ready to go Pak (Sir)?\" asked a local boatman, Komang, who
\nwas about to take us to see the dolphins and welcomed us aboard
\nhis boat at about 5:45 a.m.<\/p>\n
Dozens of four-seat traditional motorboats took the tourists
\nout to sea to view the dolphins.<\/p>\n
After about twenty minutes' cruising in Lovina bay, the boat
\nstopped, and we were silent for a while.<\/p>\n
\"Hey, look the sun is rising,\" a friend said while pointing to
\nthe east.<\/p>\n
Shortly after, three dolphins began to reveal themselves some
\ndistance away, jumping in and out of the water.<\/p>\n
\"Pak, Pak there are the dolphins,\" said Komang, while heading
\nhis motorboat toward them.<\/p>\n
The dolphins were quite shy, sometimes teasing us by jumping
\nnear to our boat, but then remaining submerged for quite some
\ntime, which left us wondering where they were heading.<\/p>\n
Suddenly, they revealed themselves again elsewhere, yet again
\ndrawing our guide to steer the boat to get closer to them.<\/p>\n
After dolphin watching, Komang took us to the nearby coral
\nreef where we could watch colorful fish swim around.<\/p>\n
Several other boats also headed directly to the coral reef
\nafter the dolphins cruised westward to Celukan Bawang.<\/p>\n
It took us some five minutes to reach the coral reef where we
\ncould really look down through the calm and clear waters.<\/p>\n
At first, it seemed there was no life there but suddenly
\ngroups of fish swam under our boat as if to prove that they
\nexisted.<\/p>\n
\"Wow, that fish is beautiful ... look, son, the fish are
\ngetting closer to my hands,\" a father of an Indonesian family in
\na nearby boat exclaimed when he spotted a group of bright red,
\nyellow and blue fish.<\/p>\n
The family fed the fish with bread crumbs, a good way of
\ndrawing them toward their outstretched hands.<\/p>\n
We tried the trick and it worked just fine. The fish did not
\neat the crumbs directly but as they gained more confidence, they
\nmade for the sinking crumbs in no time.<\/p>\n
Many foreign tourists preferred snorkeling to get a closer
\nlook. As the sun rose higher, the water became warmer, so that
\nthe tourists didn't have to be worry about the cold anymore.<\/p>\n
Benoit from France and Kate from Canada, who had just enjoyed
\nthe dolphin performance, told The Jakarta Post how much they
\nliked it.<\/p>\n
\"We seldom see such a show; we loved it. Although we had to
\nwake up very early, it didn't matter for us. We just wanted to
\nsee the dolphins,\" he said.<\/p>\n
Meanwhile, Kate said that she was captivated by the dolphins,
\nparticularly as they were in a group.<\/p>\n
\"But I didn't expect as many visitors as this,\" said Kate,
\nreferring to some 30 boats involved in the dolphin watching.<\/p>\n
Black sand Lovina beach is part of a 144-kilometer-long
\nstretch of sandy beach in Buleleng from west to east that does
\nnot have a rocky foreshore or other barrier.<\/p>\n
Not many beaches in the world are so long, without
\ninterruption.<\/p>\n
Lovina means the \"love\" that is contained \"in\" the heart of
\nall people. The name was given by the last Buleleng king, I Gusti
\nPutu Djelantik.<\/p>\n
At the area, visitors can enjoy not only the gorgeous Lovina
\nbeach but also good roads, plentiful electricity, cheap yet good
\nhotels and restaurants.<\/p>\n
Hotels close to the beach charge tourists only Rp 80,000
\n(US$9) to Rp 300,000 per night, which is much cheaper than at
\nKuta and Sanur, in southern Bali. Rooms charged at Rp 150,000 per
\nday, for example, included bed, hot water and air conditioning,
\nbut no telephone or television.<\/p>\n
Some critics say that Lovina beach is not really beautiful
\nbecause of its black sand, garbage problems and lack of telephone
\nlines.<\/p>\n
But not everyone fully agrees. \"The beach is much quieter than
\nthose in Kuta and Nusa Dua. We like it here better,\" said
\nFrenchman Marc Forgeau who was in Bali with his wife and two
\nsons.<\/p>\n
\"The problem is that there is too much garbage everywhere. It
\nwould be much nicer if the local administration could keep Lovina
\nclean.\"<\/p>\n
It may be true that black sand is not as beautiful as white;
\nnobody can change that, but Lovina has its own strengths.<\/p>\n
Tranquility, dolphin watching, coral reefs and long continuous
\nbeach views are an important attraction for tourists.<\/p>\n
Austrian sisters Barbara and Christina Held told the Post that
\nthey loved the atmosphere at Lovina beach, especially when
\ncompared with other beaches in Bali.<\/p>\n
\"Everything is quieter, friendlier and more natural here. I
\ndon't need too many creature comforts here,\" said Barbara.<\/p>\n
\"I just want to enjoy the sunset and black sand. I just want
\nto relax.\"<\/p>\n
Although this was their first visit to Lovina, the Held
\nsisters have visited Bali every year since 1995.<\/p>\n
Unfortunately, the uniqueness of the beach is often only known
\nabout via word-of-mouth recommendation rather than through
\nofficial promotion leaflets on Bali.<\/p>\n
Small wonder, then, that Lovina Beach has failed to draw as
\nmany tourists as Kuta and Sanur beaches in southern Bali.<\/p>",
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