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| People pray during a ceremony dedicated to the Hindu deity Saraswati at Jagatnatha temple in Denpasar on the Indonesian resort island of Bali on Jul 4, 2020. (Photo by=AFP/Sonny Tumbelaka) |
[아시아뉴스통신=레악카나 기자] Bali conducted mass prayers on Sunday (Jul 5) as the Indonesian resort island prepares to reopen to tourists shut out due to the COVID-19 pandemic. More than a thousand people attended a prayer at Besakih Hindu temple in the town of Karangasem, expressing gratitude for the handling of the new coronavirus on the island and seeking blessings for the start of a "new normal". "What I hope is the best for Bali and ... all the tourists will come to Bali and everybody will be happy and healthy again," Robin Tesselar, a Dutch citizen staying in Bali, told Reuters after attending the Besakih prayers.
The idyllic Southeast Asian island will gradually reopen this month for domestic tourists, while maintaining a "strict health protocol" to prevent the spread of the virus that causes COVID-19, Bali provincial secretary Dewa Made Indra told reporters.The local government expects to reopen Bali to foreign arrivals in September. Tourism is Bali's main source of income.
Travel restrictions due to the pandemic have hammered the local economy. Tourism-related businesses are preparing for the reopening by implementing the health protocols, aiming to improve them until Bali reopens for international tourists, said hospitality executive Yoga Iswara.
