*Pariwisata*

The wife and I became pariwisata's for a couple of days in Bali last week. Pariwisata is of course the local term used in Bali to identify tourists.

People have said that if you visit Bali, it is as good as visiting the entire Indonesia. White sandy beaches, nice corals, majestic scenery, awe-inspiring volcano's, classic and beautiful temples and great handicraft by the locals can all be found in Bali.

I've been privileged to travel to various tourist hot-spots around Asia and I must say that Malaysia still ranks way behind Thailand and Indonesia. If these countries had as much funding as we Malaysian's have to spend just on our tourism billboards, Malaysia won't even stand a chance in the tourism business.

With little or no help from the government, tourist attractions in Bali are in much better shape than most of the tourism spots in Malaysia. A bitter pill to swallow but it is the truth. They don't depend on the local authorities to clean up the place and are much better at treating tourists than we do.

Someone asked me which had the better beaches between Bali and Koh Samui or Koh Phangan. I would say it is an almost tie between the two. As for what Malaysia has that would even come close to competing with these two, I would say Redang Island (Lang Tengah specifically) would have a chance in my view.

Sadly we found out that 4 days in Bali was not enough. If you're photography freak like me, the scenery available in Bali alone would made you cringe and wished that you had bought that semi-SLR or for SLR camera that you had been yearning for.

Places to go in Bali besides the beach? There's just too many but one of my highlights during the trip was actually Kintamani. Having lunch on a ledge overlooking the valley with an active volcano in front of you just takes your breath away.

If you're a Muslim, halal food is not impossible to find as some have suggested in the past. Some tour operators have specific requirements that are offered for Muslim travelers or if you're looking for fast food restaurants, look for the "Majlis Ulama Indonesia" logo that would be similar to the "Halal" logo found in Malaysia.

We're already planning to go again to Bali, this time with a less hectic schedule and definitely a better camera. Until then, we'll have Bali fresh in our memories for sure :)

Cheers!!! :D