Makassar

Played a key role in Indonesian history, Makassar has become the primary port, airline hub of the eastern archipelago of Indonesia and also an entry point to an adventurous tour to Tanjung Bira, Selayar, Tana Toraja highlands and others tourist destination at South Sulawesi. Nowadays Makassar is a bustling city with multicultural inhabitants. Makassar is not only offers culture and heritage attractions, but also adventurous journey as it owns Samalona Island, Kodingareng Keke, etc, which are ideal for swimming, sunbathing, snorkeling or even diving.

For those who love historical journey, Makassar offers some interesting sites to visit such as Fort Rotterdam – the Old Dutch Fort built during the 1670’s, Paotere Harbor – where traditional Buginese sailing boats (phinisi) load and unload their cargo, Paotere Fish Market that is always interesting to see the local trade culture, and the Tomb of Sultan Hasanuddin – an Indonesian hero who has been famous for his exceptional bravery in his struggle against colonial encroachment.

Another best part of Makassar to explore is the culinary! Indulge your appetite with various tastes of delicious meals which can be found all over the city. Makassar is also a heaven for seafood lover. Your clients can have a chance to try some high-quality lobsters and crabs cooked in traditional recipes and enjoy the mouthwatering cuisine that cannot be found elsewhere.

Toraja

Has been famous about its tourism attractions, Toraja is actually an ethnic group indigenous to a mountainous region of South Sulawesi. The culture and rituals of this ethnic has grab world attention that make more and more people come to Tana Toraja nowadays. Tana Toraja offers an exotic adventure that performs the richness of its culture at off the beaten track. The uniqueness of this area is indeed so strong. There are so many authentic cultures and rituals of Toraja that your clients can see.

Tongkonan house is one of the most “must see” things in Toraja. The traditional Torajan ancestral houses which are stand high on wooden piles, topped with a layered split-bamboo roof and colored with red, blue and yellow painting. Some of these houses still beautifully decorated by buffalo horns in front the house. These ancient houses still well preserved by the local as they still use it for daily activities.

The funeral tradition in Toraja has been so much consuming tourist attention. Not only the burial ways but also the funeral ceremony is also so unique. In Toraja society, the funeral ritual is the most elaborate and expensive event. The death feast of a nobleman is usually attended by thousands and lasts for several days. A ceremonial site, called rante, is usually prepared in a large, grassy field where shelters for audiences, rice barns, and other ceremonial funeral structures. Flute music, funeral chants, songs and poems, and crying and wailing are traditional Toraja expressions of grief with the exceptions of funerals for young children, and poor, low-status adults. At this ceremony, there is a ritual of slaughtering water buffalo. Slaughtering tens of water buffalo and hundreds of pigs using a machete is the climax of the elaborate death feast, with dancing and music and young boys who catch spurting blood in long bamboo tubes. This ceremony is often held weeks, months, or years after the death. During the waiting period, the body of the deceased is wrapped in several layers of cloth and kept under the tongkonan. For the burial, Torajans has three methods of burial. First is the coffin  be laid in a cave, the second is in a carved stone grave and the third is hung on a cliff. These buried sites are also become a must visit for the tourist. What a dramatic ceremony!

Menhir stones as you ever seen at Asterix comic book can also be seen at Bori Kalimbuang Village. This Megalithic site has been so famous since more than a hundred stones (in many shapes) already found. Visit and feel the ancient atmosphere once you visit this area!

Toraja traditional ikat weaving is the main commodity that being livelihood for its people. The unique motifs in ikats generally represent ancestors or water buffaloes, but tend to be so abstract that the figurative can hardly be recognized. This dramatic design and the complexity of making this weaving make Ikat weaving quite expensive yet so beautiful. Nowadays, Ikat weaving has been used by world fashion designer as well as general people in so many forms of cloths.

As famous as its culture, Toraja Coffee is known as one of the tastiest coffee in Indonesia. To have a coffee journey, the tourist can visit Batutumong. This highland area offers beautiful landscape of 1.355 meters above sea level. Take time to have a light trekking in the country side through the paddy field and coffee plantations on foot will be a good option.  En-route people will also can enjoy and witness the old traditional houses and local people daily activities.

Throwback the Time When Bali Became So Classic (Ubud & Local People & Sidemen)

Sidemen, tranquil and beautiful place to relax. Consist of hectares of rice fields, agricultural land and an impressive view of Mount Agung, this part of Bali still holds its charm. Here, the local people still tend to their fields, prepare ceremonies at the temples and head to the rivers for bath.

More and more adventurous travelers are discovering this charming place. Trekking trails through rice fields, mountains, valleys, and coffee/cocoa plantations is a must thing to do in this area. Sidemen’s trekking path offers remarkable natural view, moreover at golden hours. Enjoy the enchanting combination of the green rice fields, feel the cool breeze of the wind, and witness the local daily activities, will absolutely make a meaningful journey for our clients!

Not only that, another interesting activity in sideman is the Ikat weaving that being done by the local. Here, your clients can try to make ikat demo and see how the home industries run their business.

Exceptional Rites in Bali (Ritual)

“No day without ceremony” some people say. If you follow all of the life cycle rituals and ceremony (baby, puberty, weddings, cremations, temple festivals), then that phrase is probably true. There are definitely certain times that “major ceremony” such as the full moons in April and October and Galungan being held. Besides that, there are also a lot of minor rituals that makes Bali always full of ceremonies.

These are some rituals that considered as minor ceremonies yet routines in Bali such as Odalan (temple ceremony) that usually lasts for three to eleven days, Purnama (full moon) in Bali that considered as a special day for ceremonies and festivities, and life cycle ceremony that already starts since the 8th month mother’s pregnant (counted more than 9 ceremonies for a life circle). Every village in Bali has at least three major temples (and often many more than that), so there is always some kind of community religious activity going on. The Balinese are honoring the deities that rule over the temple by giving them a myriad of offerings, performances of vocal music, dance and gamelan music.

For you who love to learn about Balisane ceremony cultures, this journey will be perfect. Go with us and join a series of ceremonial journey. Witness how the Balinese prepare the ceremony as well as the rituals. As a note, you need to know that Hindus in Bali apply strict rules regarding temples and ceremonies. These rules mainly concern dress requirements and conditions of ‘sebel’ (taboo) such as menstruation or open wounds, bringing food into the temple, being physically or mentally ill, being in a state of mourning (for the Balinese this lasts 42 days or one month + 7 days of Balinese calender), and having given birth within the past 42 days.

Enjoy the other side of Bali and get the extraordinary experiences!

Cycling Jatiluwih

As one of the World Heritage UNESCO lists, Jatiluwih offers the postcard-perfect pastoral landscapes. With peace, fresh, and tranquility, the atmosphere of this area is so peaceful. Jatiluwih becomes a choice for those who want to escape from the hustle of city. Jatiluwih is a stretch 636 hectares of paddy field which applied ‘subak’ for its irrigation system. As traditional culture,  Subak has a temple, which was built to dedicate to Goddess of Prosperity and Goddess of Fertility.

Cycling is the best way to explore this wide area. Along the route, your clients will cruising between farms, stopping to snap photos along the way and chatting with the guide about the work that goes into planting, tending, and harvesting to these thriving crops. Join this cycling tour which will take your clients into a different world, away from big buildings, traffic jam and modern life!

Mt. Batur Sunrise

There is a reason the sunrise trek to the summit of Mt.Batur (1717 meters) is so popular. Besides experiencing the awesome beauty of an active volcano, trekking in the cool, early morning darkness obscures the difficulty of the challenging hike. The dark also helps to focus walkers to do the one to two hour ascent making it feel less difficult. The bonus is arriving in time to witness a glorious sunrise and experience the stunning morning views of the surrounding crater and lake.

Not only have that, Sunrise Mount Batur Bali also promised an adventure yet fun and relaxing journey. On the way down, your clients will have a chance to to see various tropical plantations such as tea, vegetables and coffee. See how to make Balinese coffee in very traditional process, and taste a cup of it. Enjoy an unforgettable sunrise from the top of an active volcano as well as embrace the morning breeze within fresh air. Spectacular scenery, peaceful rural village’s atmosphere, and perfect weather will make your clients trekking such a perfect journey.

Ubud Walk in the Golden Hour

Ubud is the charming part of Bali to explore many things related to the arts and culture of Bali. An expanse of green rice field combined by the remarkable view of mountains, are a priceless natural picture to see. Join a free and easy trekking in the golden that presents an even more pristine outback to escape from the hectic routines. Have a relaxing journey in the fresh morning air while witness the stunning landscape combination of the swaying elephant and reed grass, the picture of coconut tree stand remarkably among the rice terrace, with Mt. Agung as the background and the sound of insects with gurgling river as the back sounds. What a picturesque hidden treasure!

Real Bali Eco Cycling

Bali is an island of attraction. There are so many ways to enjoy this perfect island. Real Bali Eco Cycling is one of the best adventurous yet enjoyable ways to explore Bali!

A short drive after breakfast and your clients will off to mountain bikes through the heartland of Bali, travelling downhill on non-tourist sites, secret back roads and minor village roads (with little traffic), experiencing typical Balinese daily life and enjoying the beautiful Balinese countryside to Ubud. Your clients then continue to ride through lush forested areas, plantations full of Balinese staples and cash crops (cloves, coffee, cocoa, vanilla, tapioca, taro, local vegetables and exotic tropical fruits), through timeless small villages and lush rice paddy panoramas. Many adorable Balinese children will be there calling out ‘hellos’ and wanting ‘high fives’ on the way down. If we chance upon a ceremony (and we often do) your clients will also be invited to witness the events and our guides will offer explanations.

This journey will get the unseen of Bali and explain this amazing culture and the relationship the Balinese have with their beautiful island. The cycling tour will include numerous stops on the way, a visit to a Balinese home/compound (where your client can get to see first-hand how the Balinese live outside the tourist areas), a Balinese plantation (where your client can learn of the medicinal and culturally important uses of local plants, the process of making coffee and see many of the spices that usually used in cooking and tropical fruits growing in their natural environment. Your client will also go for a short walk in the rice paddies to see villagers planting and harvesting rice (can also join in) and see traditional craftsmen at work en route.

Roemahkoe Heritage (Solo)

More han just a place to stay, Romahkoe heritage hotel is the quintessense of refined Javanese spirit life style. Discover an athmosphere of subtle sophistication and unique elegance inspired by many deep-rooted traditions that have defined the people of this area from the time ancient kingdoms flourished on the fertile island of Java.

Built in 1938 in the quiet city of solo by a wealthy batik merchant as a private family residence and later lovingly renovated into a heritage hotel in 2003, Romahkoe offers every guest an opportunity to immerse oneself into local culture and really get a feel for way people live and work in and around the small, yet very exciting batik village known as Laweyan. For hundreds of year, the residents of the area have been producing beautiful batik cloth through traditional methods by means of cottage industries that are still in operation today. Have a village walk or cycling around the village can be top choice to explore Laweyan village. Not only see, your client can also have some batik courses that will be taught by the local.

A visit to Roemahkoe will take you back to romantic period in time when life was simple and unhurried. As you walk through the breeze public areas perfectly designed for tropical living or enjoy a leisurely cup of afternoon tea while quietly noticing the singular art deco style architecture, Roemahkoe is a portal to the past. Sit back, unwind and let the hectic pace of modern living, with so much burden and stress, slowly melt away. Allow your imagination to run freely in this beautiful and venerable settling that is reminiscent of a peaceful and gentle by-gone era.

Village Walks In The Golden Hour

Has been struggling in the hectic routines of sprawling cities? Or facing pollution and noise in everyday life? Let’s take a break and have some relaxation. Enjoy the village walks which traverse paddy fields and picturesque villager’s activities in the golden hours. Along the road, you can stop to take pictures, closely observe farmers routines in the fields, or just simply look around and embrace earthy smell in the morning fresh air with subtle beauty of rural routines and remarkable natural scenery in the background.