Bali Airport showcases Indonesian culture amid shopping festival

INDONESIA. Bali Ngurah Rai International Airport has celebrated an annual gathering of the global economic and financial community on the island by hosting a shopping festival and other events.

The activities showcased Indonesian culture and also included interactive art installations and traditional music performances.

Photo opportunity: Delegates and passengers have been introduced to various elements of Indonesian culture.

Bali Airport’s aim was to welcome delegates attending the 2018 Annual Meetings of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and World Bank Group (WBG), which took place in Nusa Dua, Bali, between 8 and 14 October. The event was attended by some 36,000 delegates from 189 countries.

The airport’s ‘Eat Shop and Fly’ promotional event, which had been running since August, was rebranded to become the ‘Bali Airport Shopping Festival’ during the IMF/WBG event. It will continue until 21 October in both the domestic and international terminals.

With a minimum spend, delegates and passengers have been given instant shopping vouchers and the opportunity to enter a prize draw to win a trip to Bali.

Lucky dip: Passengers could redeem shopping vouchers and enter a prize draw (with minimum spend) as part of the festivities.

The airport also unveiled two interactive art installations. In domestic departures, a local mural artist drew a large canvas sketch with the theme ‘Culture of Indonesia’. Various aspects of traditional Indonesian culture were highlighted. These included: Balinese dances, the mythical Barong creature, traditional Javanese puppets, batik designs, Jakarta’s ‘Monas’ National Monument, and the vertical-lift Ampera Bridge in Palembang.

Delegates and passengers were invited to “express themselves” by colouring the interactive mural art sketches. The airport said many people “enthusiastically” participated, and had the chance to learn more about Indonesian culture.

Above and below: The airport unveiled two interactive art installations.

The second interactive art installation highlighted the dangers of plastic waste. In ‘Palm Tree Plastic Bottles’, in international departures, Bali Airport created a series of palm trees from recycled plastic bottles. Delegates and passengers were invited to stick pieces of batik patchwork on the installation in order to cover it, and received shopping vouchers in return for doing so.

Finally, a programme of entertainment in both terminals showcased Balinese hospitality and the richness of Indonesian culture. Traditional costume parades featured dresses from various regions in Indonesia, while live music performances combined Indonesian songs with jazz.

Live performance: The unlikely fusion of Indonesian songs with jazz has kept passengers entertained.
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