Chinese-speaking guides needed

Chinese-speaking guides needed

SANUR, Bali: Due to a shortage of Chinese-speaking guides,
thousands of tourists from Taiwan and Hong Kong who flocked to
the resort island of Bali during the last two months received no
optimal service, a tourist industry official said.

Agung Prana, chairman of the Bali chapter of the Association
of Indonesian Tour and Travel Agents (Asita) admitted here on
Monday that the province is in need of Chinese-speaking guides.

Agung said there were some 600 Chinese-speaking guides in Bali
but after the Kuta bombing tragedy in October last year, more
than 50 percent of them left the island to their native homes in
Java and North Sumatra.

Since the guides were from outside Bali and had little
understanding of the local culture and traditions, they were
unable to render reasonable service to tourists from Chinese-
speaking countries, he said.

To overcome the shortcoming, Agung said, his side in
cooperation with the Bali regional tourist service, would in the
near future try to train more professional Chinese-speaking
guides who understand the ethics, culture and traditions of Bali.

Data from Ngurah Rai Immigration office showed that the number
of foreign tourists coming to Bali in July was recorded at
109,928, most of them were from Taiwan. --Antara