Volunteer Bali: Semarapura

Semarapura (also known as Klungkung) is the capital of the Klungkung regency, the smallest regency of Bali. The city is located on the island’s east coast and is famous for its classic Balinese paintings. The regency also includes the islands of Nusa Penida and Nusa Lembongan.

Semarapura used to be the capital of the Balinese kingdom and still retains its huge court and a number of other govenment buildings from that period. The city itself is really calm and relaxed and not frequented by many tourists offering an ideal place to volunteer and to explore the Balinese culture and lifestyle. The surroundings of the city are marked by black sanded beaches and rice terraces with a backdrop of mountains and volcanoes.

Volunteers stay in the Panti Asuhan Kristen Orphanage near the city center. The fishing village Padangbai, famous for its diving and snorkeling, is only a short drive away. The beach of Lebih is around 25 minutes away, the main tourist district of Kuta and the Balinese capital Denpasar with a bemo (mini van). Klungkung city contains all the main facilities you'd expect from a city such as food markets, supermarkets, ATM's, internet cafes, laundry places and pharmacies.

Photo Gallery: Klungkung

More Klungkung images.

Volunteer Projects in Semarapura

SMAN 2 Semarapura

This Senior High School is located a few minutes outside of the city center of Semarapura and educates around 500 students aged between 15 and 17. This school is running a governmental pilot project to receive a permanent international standard title. Volunteers will teach together with a local teacher and beside teaching the students we are running English classes to teach the teachers and administration staff of this school. Furthermore the school is having Gambelan (traditional balinese orchesta) classes and traditional dance classes and volunteers are welcome to participate in these classes.

General Semarapura Info

Where Will I Stay?

Our volunteers stay in a small house, which is on the school grounds. The house has a living room, two bedrooms, a western style bathroom and basic kitchen facilities. There is security guard that patrols the school so due to the houses location, it is very safe.

The fishing village Padangbai, famous for its diving and snorkeling, is only a short drive away. The beach of Lebih is around 25 minutes away from the main tourist district of Kuta and the Balinese capital Denpasar by a bemo (mini van). Klungkung city contains all the main facilities you'd expect from a city such as food markets, supermarkets, ATM's, internet cafes, laundry places and pharmacies.

Food

The city center is within walking distance of the Volunteer accommodation and there are plenty of markets, restaurants, and food stalls. A typical Balinese meal costs from $1 - $3 US dollars. There are no western restaurants in Semarapura but there are some in Padangbai which is only a short drive away.

Weather

Bali has two seasons, dry and wet, although temperatures remain consistently hot, averaging around 31°C throughout the year. The wet season runs from October to April with most of the rain coming between December and February. Rain is not uncommon outside of the wet season, although most of it comes at night or in the very early morning.

Free Time

Semarapura is around 25 minutes from black sand Lebih beach, where volunteers can go surfing. Although Lebih and Semarapura (Klungkung) are very un-touristic, the volunteer accommodation is only 25 minutes away from the famous fishing village of Padangbai - known for it’s diving and snorkeling. Bali's main tourist center, beaches and bars are in Kuta which is around one and half hours away and volunteers can easily spend the weekend there and there are guest houses for as little as $4 US dollars..

Where Is?/ Getting To Semarapura

Volunteers will be met at the international airport in Denpasar. A number of international airlines fly either directly to Bali, or via Bangkok, Kuala Lumpar or Singapore. These include Singapore Airlines, Quantas, Air France, Thai Airways and Cathay Pacific. The Singapore based airline Air Asia also fly cheaply to Bali from Kuala Lumpar and Singapore. There are also a number of Indonesian based budget carriers, although some of these have less that impressive safety records so are probably best avoided.

Once in Klungkung the main form of transport for volunteers is the bicycle and the schools and the city center of Semarapura (Klungkung) are just a few bike ride minutes of the Volunteer Accomondation. Some volunteers choose to rent motorbikes (around 2-3 Euros per day), however the roads of Bali can be chaotic and are far from an ideal place to learn how to ride a motorbike for the first time.

For travel further afield the main form of transport is a bemo (mini van). These run from the center of Klungkung to numerous places throughout the island. Furthermore we have a driver who can be booked for day trips or weekend tours.