It is through the promotion of a country’s culture that their tourism industry may be consolidated. Without people, there is no culture. Often the bold statement of putting people at the center of development is aired for political mileage, but how many really believe that this is indeed a requirement?
Alain St. Ange of St. Ange tourism consulting talks about his recent trip to Indonesia.
In Kutai Kartanegara of Indonesia, Mrs Rita Widyasari, the Bupati or Premier of Kutai Kartanegara, invited me to not only witness the Indonesian pride of their culture, but also their participation in a series of ceremonies and events that showcased Wonderful Indonesia in all its diversity.
The International Folk Art Festival brings countries of the world together to showcase their music and dance alongside Indonesians. Musical Groups accompanied by dancers were present from Europe as well as Asia.
In the presence of the Premier Mrs Rita Widyasari, and alongside Dra Sri Wahyuni, the local Head of Tourism Department, I sat with different foreign Ambassadors accredited to Indonesia who were present to see their country’s group perform. Present were H.E. Maria Gustava, the Ambassador of Mozambique, H.E. Igor Kaczmarczyk, Ambassador of Poland and H.E. Alexandrina Guigova, the Acting Ambassador of Bulgaria.
One dance and music group present among many was the Folklorika Group from Bulgaria which was headed by Evelina Pavlova.