Some remarks on the history and the idea of CBG

 by Rüdiger Krechel

It was in 1983 that I first visited Air Sanih – avoiding the southern part of the island because of its reputation as a tourist attraction, and actually being on my way from Java to Lombok – and simply stayed.  The beautiful coast and the friendship that developed with Cilik and his family were my reasons for staying.  I was working as a visiting lecturer at a state university in Bandung, Western Java,  and from that time returned every year, even while working in Thailand, China and then again in Germany.

a historic photo : the beach beside our property in Air Sanih 1983

My friendship with Cilik gave birth  to the plan to design a beautiful place together, in which the wishes and dreams of the Westerner  merged with Balinese traditions and dreams.  We built Cilik’s house (until 2005 the administrative unit of the compound) and Villa West,  which was the first house – and for many years the only one – that was rented out.  Slowly the garden was transformed into a well-groomed palm- and beach park. And by and by  the number of our guests increased,  among them Dr. Oldenbruch and his wife,  who, after several sojourns at our place  decided to join our ‘project of a beautiful place’.  That was when Villa East was built. And now economic considerations entered our project,  which before had been characterised by improvisation and spontaneity.

With a property twice the size,  a second villa  and our own Gamelan orchestra CBG continued to consolidate  and became known to insiders  as THE place to relax on the northern coast of Bali,  remarkable not only for its beauty, but also for the care and consideration with which it is looked after.  The Rough Guide to Bali  gave us the title  ‘The real gem in the area’, and the renowned  Fodor’s Guide to Bali and Lombok  mentions CBG in a small row of a few selected places of accommodation in Northern Bali (you will find further descriptions in The Lonely Planet;  in Footprint Handbook Bali  and in German in: Reise Know-how Bali und Lombok  by Peter Rump;  in Stefan Loose’s Bali und Lombok, in the APA Guide Bali; in The Online Travel Guide to Bali etc.  Since 2002 we are listed in the excellent Bali maps of Nelles Verlag Munich and of the Insight-guides).

Twice  the pattern repeated itself:  A guest  who had been visiting us for several years,  Inge Croè,  fell in love with the place (although it, like all earthly paradises, admittedly has its blemishes)  and decided likewise  to become a partner in our enterprise.  Two additional houses, the Octagon and the Lumbung,  were built on the adjacent property.  The ownership structure involves  another Balinese family as partner,  the architectural style of the houses  is similar,  and the service provided  is the same as that of the original villas. Several years later an American couple, Nancy and Tom Antoon, wished to join us in this undertaking, and so we built two more villas on an expansive beach property in Tejakula, 15 kms to the east of Air Sanih.  Since summer 2009  the Antoons manage and maintain their property for themselves.

You will sense very quickly  what is special about the place in Air Sanih.  Arriving at CBG, you first enter our ‘Balinese Kampung’, the area where our Balinese partners are living, working and from where the guest service is done.  Crossing the spacious and beautifully kept palm gardens you only then approach the individually designed and furnished guest villas and bungalows, and the very private and personal atmosphere of the place will tell you:  This is not one of the usual cottages for rent,  but a place that is as individual and specific as you yourself are,  and we sincerely hope  that you will enjoy this to the utmost – just as we do !

So,  in designing this complex  we have first of all  made our own dreams come true – we have created a place  that we love and hope  will be loved by others.  Moreover, we have attempted to realise  a concept of tourism  that takes the requirements and interests of the Balinese into consideration,  that minimises negative consequences of tourism,  that fosters sustainable development, and that,  besides offering rest and recreation, gives our guests the opportunity to experience an unknown culture from in-side.  Those goals will be elucidated by the following examples:

1. Protecting the environment

Our commitment to the protection of the environment  started well before the building of the compound,  when we joined  a group of villagers in their efforts  to preserve and protect the coast  which was seriously affected by the removal of sand  that had taken place over several years.  By means of setting up and practising more restrictive prohibitions on the commercial removal of sand,  by means of building a massive wall  to prevent further erosion,  and through a revival of traditional economic structures  (the agricultural use of coastal strips,  boat building,  cultivation of sea grass, fishing, salt production etc),  but also because a number of other private resorts have been built in the area,  it seems now possible to achieve an ecological equilibrium once more.  Apart from this  we also have been careful to save energy and to dispose of our waste  in an environmentally friendly fashion for years.

2. Aspects of social compatibility and integration

Our resort  is a cooperation  between by now three German, one Swiss and two Balinese families. The profits we gain are first of all used to ensure the economic safety of the Balinese families and the maintenance of the property.  In addition we provide a fixed salary and economic safety for twelve other Balinese families. The excess money  is then shared  in proportion to the original financial input. Thus not only the planning and realisation of the project have been a cooperative undertaking  in which Pak Cilik  had a decisive voice,  but even now we share the responsibility for the maintenance and possible developments of the compound  in an ongoing process of discussion and consultation.

Our model is therefore very different from the normal procedure,  which typically starts with a foreign investor  leasing a property, then taking on all responsibility for planning and management,  hiring local hands to carry out his orders and claiming all profits for himself.  When the lease runs out,  the proper-ty is once again taken possession of  by the local landowners,  who have no experience in managing and maintaining such a resort.  There are numerous examples of such compounds in Bali  that have been badly neglected and do no longer attract visitors.  We feel that our concept of cooperation and shared responsibility, the continuing dialogue between traditional Balinese ways of thinking  and our ideas and wishes  is clearly discernible in CBG,  and we hope  that it is a recommendation for our project.

In our efforts to achieve social integration and compatibility  we make a point of exclusively hiring people living in the village,  with whom we have formed a close network of cooperation. Thus the relationship between Pak Cilik’s family in Air Sanih and the villagers has not been impaired by the social changes effected by our project – on the contrary, it has become more intense.

Pak Cilik  became the head  of the ritual community  (Kelian Desa Adat)  in Air Sanih. This is a most honourable and responsible position,  that is usually only given to a meritorious older member of a village community. 

In one part of our palm garden, which is nearly 2 hectares large, the local Gamelan players  rehearse  their traditional Balinese music once a week  on instruments we have bought for them. Our outrigger is usually moored about 200 metres to the east,  together with those of the local fishermen.  You can meet and come into closer contact with members of the village community  in Pak Cilik’s house every day. You can watch Pak Cilik’s wife Cening and her neighbours creating artful sacrificial gifts. Pak Cilik’s father is a village priest; if you wish, Cilik will join you to his place or elsewhere  to witness sacrifices or purification rituals.

Although as a guest at CBG  you can enjoy calm and privacy in your house, the Balés, on your terraces and in your spacious secluded garden,  there are thus numerous possibilities of establishing contacts in individual encounters with the local people.  This may help to cross cultural boundaries and to take a look  at what is behind the cliché.

3. Fostering intercultural contacts

We believe that true cultural contacts and a deeper understanding are made possible by our efforts at social integration and the individual character of our compound. Since tourism is still comparatively rare in the Northeast of Bali, everyday life in this area is by now rather un-touched by distortions and mannerisms. Apart from experiencing genuine Balinese culture in CBG and nearby in witnessing sacrifices and the production of sacrificial gifts, participating in ceremonies of the family or the village, and watching rehearsals of the Gamelan orchestra and the local children’s dance troupe, an alternative is to leave the resort and village and visit the Dalang (a master of shadow play) in the village Tamblang and see one of his Wayang performances in their authentic ritual context of family or village ceremonies. You can also take a look at the production of traditional Bebali- and Ikat textiles, Wayang Kulit puppets or at local artists doing glass painting. Or visit the blacksmith in the village Sawan, where gongs and other traditional Gamelan instruments are made. In Tejakula you will even find silver smiths. If you like,  watch the production of palm sugar,  participate in a Odalan (temple anniversary) or a Ngaben (a cremation ceremony),  sometimes just next to our property in Tejakula, where you will not see any other tourist. Make the truly unique experience of a Wayang Wong performance with old masks and gowns which may not leave the temple of Tejakula. Observe the deep sea fishermen using the now rarely seen traditional method of kite-catching tuna …

To what extent you avail yourself of these opportunities or prefer a more secluded recreational holiday is of course entirely up to you.

We wanted  CBG to become a genuine synthesis  of Bali-Hindu traditions (with respect to the building, the location and orientation of the houses,  sacrificial places, integration of the compound  into ceremonial activities), stylistic elements typical of Balinese culture (structure, building materials, open construction, Balés, local dishes)  and the expectations and aesthetic requirements of the Westerner  (e.g. the spaciousness of house and garden, furniture, entertainment facilities etc).

Enjoy the habitual and open up to the unusual, the exotic – or even the strange. This will increase the sensitivity and receptiveness of your senses and turn a ‘merely’ exotic holiday  into a cultural tour de force for your senses and your intellect.