Sunday, April 17, 2011

Indonesia Travel "Rob Rambini Proudly Welcomed in Bali After Sailding Solo fro California"

Posted by pahpoh 2:03 AM, under ,,,, | No comments

After sailing solo for over 10,000 miles across the Pacific Ocean, Rob ”Rama” Rambini  finally arrived at the Balima Pier,Tanjung Benoa Port, Bali at 01.30 am. Western Indonesia Time on Saturday, April 2nd 2011. The Italian born Indonesian citizen began this long voyage from Oakland, California, United States of America on May 8th  2010. The journey, which took 10 months and 27 days, landed Rob in the pages of the Indonesian Museum of Records (MURI) as the first Indonesian ever to sail solo from California to Bali.  

The MURI certificate of recognition no. 4810/R.MURI/IV/2011 was handed by MURI representative attended by DR. Sapta Nirwandar,  Director General for Tourism Marketing of the Ministry of Culture and Tourism of the Republic of Indonesia at the Serambi Mariana, Tanjung Benoa Port, Bali.

Upon arrival, the tired and shabby looking sailor was immediately hugged by his mother, KRAY Tri Sutijikamal. “I want to say thank you to the government and everyone involved in this. I want to meet my mom, whom I have not seen for quite a while. It’s been 30 years since my last visit to Indonesia. I almost fell asleep on my way to Bali, everything feels new here”, said Rob as reported by antaranews.com. He also stated that in his younger years he often traveled to many parts of the world in search of new experiences. “My intention to come to Indonesia is because I have been longing to see my mother; that is my motivation”, he added.

The 53 year-old veteran sailor set sail in a 30 feet (10 meters) Jensen Marine Cal 30 sailboat named Kona. Rob self funded the voyage that cost him no less than 250 million rupiahs. Detikcom reported that Rob carried 7 sails, with two broken sails and 2 other patched sails. “This is a small boat for a long voyage”, he said. Rob sailed out from California to Hawaii, then down to the Solomon Islands and Vanuatu, later to Port Moresby, Papua New Guinea before finally reaching Bali.

He almost forfeited his voyage when a 12 meters high wave hit him just three days off the coast of San Francisco. “My sail was torn, making it difficult to sail. There are only two options; head back or continue sailing into the nearest island in Hawaii. Fighting desperation, I decided to go on with the journey”, said Rob as reported by detiknews.com.

Sapta Nirwandar stated that Rob Rambini’s quest gave a positive value for Indonesia's tourism promotion. Rob has shown to the world that Indonesia as an archipelagic nation is potential to be developed as a world class sailing and marine tourism destination.

“We ought to be justly proud of Rob Rambini, who has managed to sail across the Pacific Ocean all on his own. This can be used as a motivation and to encourage the spirit of the youth. Rob Rambini’s accomplishment is also solid proof that we are still great seafarers today, as were our ancestors” added Sapta.


Article Source : antaranews.com ; detiknews.com

0 comments:

Post a Comment