Negara town
Negara town is located 33 km southeast of Gilimanuk and about 100 km west of Denpasar.
During the revolution, Negara’s raja-puri was a center of fierce republicanism. The wide streets, the inhabitants’ faces, the wail of the mosques, the businesses all have an unmistakable feel of Java-Javanese and Buginese have settled here since the 19th century.
Lately, Negara has been spiffed up with a new civic center, a big Honda dealership, and new monuments as centerpieces to new roundabouts. Yet, Negara hasn’t lost its market town charm. It is perhaps best known for the mekepung (bull races) held between July and October, a sport introduced by Madurese agricultural migrants.
Negara’s population has a noticeably strong Javanese, Madurese, and Sulawesi element. Muslim Buginese settlers from southern Sulawesi founded the town of Loloan Timur in 1653. Here, the sea-faring Bugis culture is most obvious in the oblong two-level wooden dwellings built on high piles. This architecture is found in no other village on Bali.
Visit the busy fishing port of Pengambengan, 10 km southwest of Negara. Motorized ‘perahu’ pulled up on the beach, sardine canning facilities, prawn-breeding ponds. The secluded beach at Candikusuma, 12 km west of Negara, boasts excellent bathing and swimming.
Legend says a holy well here, marked by a triangular-shaped monument, was the bathing place of Nirantha’s wife. Another beach, Pantai Rening, 10 km west of Negara, features black sand, sea cliffs, and a dramatic view of the mountains of East Java.
Swim and windsurf at the beach in the village of Delod Brawah about four km south of Mendoyo, 11 km east of Negara. The sand is said to be of great benefit to those suffering from rheumatism. A good road to the beach brings you to a parking area, toilet, and ‘mekepung’ arena. Crowded on Sunday and holidays. Up the side of a mountain, 20-km inland from Negara at Asahduren, is a large clove plantation.
Getting there
Take a ‘bemo’ from Tabanan or from Denpasar’s Ubung station to travel on one of Bali’s busiest roads, through rolling paddy fields with mountains on the right and the sea on the left. If you want the journey to go faster, take a night bus. The downtown consists of two main parallel one-way streets.
Along the four-lane bypass road Jalan Surapati in the north are the government buildings and the telephone office. The southern street, Jalan Ngurah Rai, is home to a gas station, bus station, post office, market, and shophouses. The tourist office is located within the Pecangakan Civic Center, Jalan Setia Budhi 1, tel. 62365-41060.
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