SINGARAJA
 From
the highest point on the mountain pass,
1,220 meters above sea level, a spectacular
descent brings you to the northern coast
at Singaraja, capital of Buieleng
regency. Buieleng is a strip of land that
stretches along the whole northern coast
of Bali-open to the sheltered waters of
the Java Sea, and bordering on most of the
other regencies. Archaic types of social
organization and antiquities are found in
many villages that are mentioned in inscriptions
dating from the 10th century onward. The
inscriptions also tell of pirate raids.
Through
out it's history Buleleng has been more open
than others in Bali to the influence of the
maritime world of the Indonesian Archipelago
and beyond. A province before and after Majapahit
conquest it rose to prominence at the end
of the 16th century under Raja Panji Sakti,
who added the conquest of the eastern tip
of Java to his other successes.. In 1 604
he built a new palace called Singaraja on
fields where men grew the grain known as buleleng.
Buleleng, gradually came to refer to the
whole northern coast. The official day of
Singaraja's foundation is 30 March 1 604,
and each year a festival is held to commemorate
it.
In
1814 a British military expedition stayed
several months in Singaraja when Raffles
was governor-general. The British went,
but the Dutch came, at first with demands
and later bearing arms, accusing the rajas
of raiding wrecked ships. The first
attempts of the Dutch ended in defeat or
stalemate. In 1 849 a reinforced expedition
captured the Buleleng stronghold of Jagaraga,
after a fierce weeklong battle. In 1 882
the Dutch imposed direct colonial rule upon
Buleleng and Jembrana. Singaraja became
their capital and chief port and remained
the seat of the colonial Indonesian government
for the old Nusa Tenggara province (the
Lesser Sunda Islands) until 1953.
Longer
exposed to European influence than other
parts of Bali, Singaraja has often been
in the forefront of changes in the arts,
fashion (wearing the kebaya began
here), and political and social movements.
As
an important shipping center, Singaraja
has a cosmopolitan flavor about it. The
population of 15,000 comprises many ethnic
and religious groups. It is not unusual
to see an Islamic procession pass before
a Chinese temple flanked by office buildings
of European design. Residential sections
of the town are named after such immigrant
groups as the Bugis of Sulawesi, the Javanese
and the Chinese. After the bustle of Denpasar,
Singaraja seems subdued, no longer a leader
amongst Balinese towns. A legacy from Dutch
times, however, is its continuing importance
as an educational center. The city also
houses a historical library, the gedong
Kirtya, which is the storehouse of Balinese
manuscripts, totally about 3,000.
Lontar books-leaves of the lontar
palm cut in strips and preserved between
two pieces of precious wood-!-contain literature,
mythology, historical chronicles and religious
treatises, some works relatively new, others
almost a millennium old. Miniature pictures,
incised on the leaves with an iron stylus,
are masterpieces in the art of illustration.
Prasastis, metal plates inscribed with
royal edicts of the early Pejeng-Bedulu
dynasty, are among the earliest written
documents found in Bali.
Buleleng
is the island's chief coffee growing area.
Freighters anchored off the harbor load
this cargo for export to Europe and the
Orient. The climate here is drier than in
the south. Rather than rice, the fields
yield Indian corn, oranges and crops of
dry agriculture. The following temples of
North Bali are located near Singaraja. If
there is time, a pleasant drive further
east between stately colonnades of trees
leads to Yeh Sanih, a shimmering pool of
blue green, flowing from underground springs.
The clear waters have been enclosed to make
a most refreshing place to swim. All along
the northern shore are sea temples. |
