Indonesia Fascination

Jakarta, The Capital Of Indonesia

2009-03-25T22:55:00.000-07:00

Jakarta, also Djakarta, formerly Batavia, capital and largest city of the Republic of Indonesia, centrally located within the country on the northwest coast of Java Island at the mouth of the Liwung River. Batavia, as the city was called by the Dutch, was the capital of the Netherlands Indies for most of the 17th through early 20th centuries. Jakarta dominates Indonesia's administrative, economic, and cultural activities, and is a major commercial and transportation hub within Asia. The climate is hot and humid year-round. Rainfall occurs throughout the year, although it is heaviest from November to May. The average annual precipitation in Jakarta is 1,790 mm (71 in). The city lies on a flat, low alluvial plain and is prone to flooding during periods of heavy rainfall. There is little seasonal variation in temperature; the average high in January is 29° C (84° F and in July 30° C (86° F).

Jakarta And Its Metropolitan Area

In 1966 the government declared Jakarta a special metropolitan district with a status and administration similar to that of a province. For these purposes it is called Daerah Khusus Ibukota Jakarta Raya, often shortened to DKI Jakarta. It has a total area of 661 sq km (255 sq mi). Since the early 1970s the urban sprawl of Jakarta has grown into the adjacent province of West Java. For development and planning purposes, this large urban area is known as Jabotabek, an acronym for Jakarta and its West Java satellite towns of Bogor, Tangerang, and Bekasi.

Jakarta is aligned along a north-south orientation from the old harbor of Sunda Kelapa and the original site of European settlement on the north, to the city's southern suburbs. Kota, the city's oldest commercial area, is located south of Sunda Kelapa. Just south of Kota is Glodok, a banking, retail, and residential neighborhood with a large ethnic Chinese population.

Merdeka Square, with Monas, or Monumen Nasional (National Monument) at its center, dominates the city's central district. Surrounding the square are the presidential palace, the National Museum, and the Istiqlal Mosque. Just south of Merdeka Square, along the connected arteries of Jalan Thamrin and Jendral Sudirman, are major hotels, financial institutions, and the headquarters of domestic and multinational corporations.

This main corridor continues south to connect with Kebayoran Baru, a residential suburb and important shopping area built after 1945. Other residential areas are the Grogol, Taman Sari, and Senen neighborhoods near the central area of the city. The southern suburbs of Cikini, Menteng, and Gondongdia developed as exclusive Dutch residential areas; they are now fashionable neighborhoods for wealthy Indonesians and foreigners.

Housing is one of Jakarta's most serious problems. The quality of the buildings varies widely; more than half the structures are temporary or only semipermanent. The most common types are single-story structures made from wood and, occasionally, bamboo mats. Also common are single-family detached or semidetached houses made from brick, cement, and wood, with tile roofs. The government has made some effort to construct low-cost housing. Luxury houses in limited-access neighborhoods, such as Kemang, are increasingly common on the southern fringes of the city.

Electricity supply has expanded to meet the city's needs and most houses have electricity for lighting. However, water supply and sewage disposal are still inadequate. Less than half the households use piped water for drinking. Fewer still use piped water for bathing and washing. Only a small part of Jakarta is served by piped sewers and many homes lack septic tanks.

Education And Culture

Jakarta has more than 100 private and public institutions of higher learning, including the University of Indonesia, founded in 1950, the nation's oldest university. Despite the large number of institutions, there are more students than these schools can accommodate. There is also an insufficient number of vocational institutions to meet the demand for training.
Jakarta's cultural institutions showcase a variety of Indonesian art, including textiles, batik cloth (cloth that is dyed by a technique using wax), wayang orang (traditional theater with human actors), and wayang kulit (traditional puppet theater), painting, and Javanese and Balinese gamelan (drum-and-gong ensemble) music. See Indonesian Music; Indonesian Dance.
Important museums include the Jakarta History Museum, the Museum of Fine Arts, and the National Museum.

Point Of Interest
Notable landmarks include the former Dutch city hall (Stadhuis), which now houses the Jakarta History Museum; Istana Merdeka, the presidential palace; and Istiqlal Mosque, with space for more than 10,000 worshipers.
Among the city's parks, Medan Merdeka is the most well known. The park features the Monas (Monumen Nasional, or National Monument), a pinnacle towering nearly 140 m (nearly 460 ft).
The Jabotabek region offers many recreational opportunities. Kebun Raya, a world-renowned botanical garden located in Bogor, was laid out during the 19th century. The Ragunan Zoo is located south of the center of Jakarta.

Taman Mini Indonesia, located southeast of the city, is a large cultural theme park depicting the arts, customs, and lifestyle of each of Indonesia's 27 provinces and districts. Sporting facilities include the Senayan Sports Complex. The Ancol complex on Jakarta Bay includes an oceanarium and Southeast Asia's largest amusement park. A variety of open-air markets are located throughout the city.

The History

Jakarta's origin can be traced to a Hindu settlement on Jakarta Bay as early as the 5th century ad. By the 12th century, Sunda Kelapa served as a port for the Hindu Pajajaran Kingdom in the interior of Java. A Hindu king granted Portuguese traders permission to build a fort at Sunda Kelapa in the early 16th century, but in 1527 Fatillah, a Muslim leader from the north, conquered Sunda Kelapa and renamed the settlement Jayakarta.

Dutch traders captured the city in 1619 and renamed it Batavia, which became the capital of the Netherlands Indies. They rebuilt the settlement to resemble a Dutch city with canals. Activities centered around a walled fortress and the warehouses of the Dutch East India Company. The humid climate and the fort's location on a low-lying swampy area contributed to a high incidence of disease. In the early 1800s the city expanded as the Dutch began moving to the south, where the ground was higher and less prone to breed diseases.

The British captured Java in 1811 and ruled the island until 1816, when it was returned to Dutch control. Between 1920 and 1940, the city expanded further and gradually became modernized. Japan took possession of the city in 1942 during World War II and renamed it Jakarta. Following the Japanese defeat in 1945, the Dutch again took control, despite the demands of Indonesian nationalists who declared independence on August 17, 1945. The Dutch remained in Jakarta until 1949 when they formally transferred sovereignty to the new Republic of Indonesia.

During the Sukarno presidency (1945-1968), many buildings and monuments were added to the city's skyline. The country's second president, Suharto, restructured the government and energized the economy. As a result, Jakarta became the recipient of considerable investment.
In the mid-1970s Jakarta's physical and economic planners began addressing the needs of the Jabotabek region. The plans aimed to restrict growth along the coast, consolidate urban expansion into alternative growth centers, and provide better accessibility to employment and services. Planners have achieved considerable success in expanding the availability of urban services and the Kampung Improvement Program has had a dramatic effect in improving the most depressed neighborhoods of the city.

See Also Badminton In Indonesia

Badminton in Indonesia

2009-03-25T21:39:00.002-07:00

In the city of Solo on the Indonesian island of Java, the town square is a smooth dirt surface illuminated by blue fluorescent lights hanging from electrical cords. Every day, from morning to midnight, townspeople sit on easy chairs and watch players whack a small object made of cork, goat leather, and goose feathers back and forth with flimsy-looking rackets made of wood. The game they play is bulutangkis, and it is a national obsession. Outside of Indonesia the game is known as badminton.

Badminton was invented in the 1860s by the daughters of the Duke of Beaufort, who entertained themselves with a version of the children's game known as battledore and shuttlecock. The game they derived for themselves soon became known for the house in which they played it, the duke's Badminton House in Gloustershire, England.

Before long, badminton societies and clubs were sprouting throughout England. In 1893 the first Badminton Association was formed. Six years later the All-England Badminton Championship was played. Eventually, the sport migrated to continental Europe. From there it reached India via British military officers and Indonesia by way of Dutch colonists. The far-flung expansion necessitated the formation of the International Badminton Federation (IBF) in 1934.

Badminton took root in many countries, including Australia, China, Denmark, Indonesia, Ireland, Malaysia, New Zealand, Scotland, South Africa, and the United States. But nowhere did it catch on as it did in Indonesia, which ultimately became a global badminton superpower. In 1992, badminton's inaugural year as an official Olympic sport, Indonesians brought home the country's first gold medals.

Indonesia's tropical climate permits year-round outdoor play. The sport's low equipment cost makes it affordable to almost anyone. Two rackets, a shuttlecock, a long piece of string, and an empty piece of ground are all that is needed. Courts are often placed next to houses or apartment buildings because the structures serve as windbreaks. Fences covered with sheets of canvas also do the trick. In the absence of windbreaks, courts are oriented with prevailing winds blowing parallel to the court, not perpendicular.

Indonesian dominance of the sport began in the 1950s. In 1957 Indonesia competed in its first Thomas Cup, an international tournament named for IBF cofounder Sir George Thomas, a renowned badminton, tennis, and chess champion. Indonesia's stunning victory earned the country immediate entrance into the IBF.

Indonesia went on to win the triennial competition seven times in nine attempts from 1961 to 1984. The country also made its mark in other international tournaments, including the World Championship, the World Grand Prix, and the World Cup. Indonesia's best player during this stretch was also regarded as the best player in the world—Rudy Kurniawan Hartono, winner of a record eight All-England titles from 1968 to 1976. Hartono's victory at the 1980 World Championships before a home-country crowd in Jakarta keyed a dominant performance by the Indonesians, who won four of five events.

Starring on Indonesia's talent-rich delegation to the 1992 Olympic Games in Barcelona, Spain, was Susi Susanti, winner of the World Junior Championships in 1990, 1991, and 1992 (and ultimately 1993 and 1994). Susanti won the women's singles competition, becoming the first Indonesian athlete to earn an Olympic gold medal since the country gained its independence 43 years earlier. “It was something very precious for Indonesia,” she remarked later, according to Sports Illustrated. Meanwhile, the Indonesian men produced a medal sweep in the singles competition, with Allan Kusuma capturing the gold, Ardy Wiranata the silver, and Hermawan Susanto the bronze. Indonesia also earned the silver and bronze in the men's doubles.

The badminton team returned home as heroes. Their achievements had the effect of piling additional pressure onto the squad heading for the 1996 games in Atlanta, Georgia. “Because we won two gold medals in '92, the government wants some more in Atlanta,” Kusuma told Sports Illustrated a few weeks before the Atlanta competition. “Well, it is easy to say but not so easy to do.”

Kusuma and the national team's 80-odd other members lived at a cramped training center on the outskirts of Jakarta where, according to Sports Illustrated, words of inspiration were painted on a wall: “Badminton is my soul. Sportsmanship is my breath. Red and white [the national colors] is the symbol of my fate.” The players were also motivated by material incentives. Their gold-medal efforts earned Kusuma and Susanti each a $200,000 bonus—about 200 times the country's annual per capita income. The stars also reaped handsome incomes by promoting cars, shampoo, and other consumer products.

All the words and money, however, didn't help Indonesia improve on its Olympic medal count in Atlanta. The only gold medal was brought home by the men's doubles duo of Rexy Mainaky and Ricky Subagja, the reigning world champions. The two narrowly defeated a Malaysian pair who ignored a fortune-teller's advice to take green bananas onto the court. After the victory Mainaky sobbed as the Indonesian faithful among the crowd sang and waved flags. “I thank God for giving us the power to win this game,” he told the ESPNET Sportszone Web site afterwards.

Despite their performance at the 1996 Olympics, Indonesians have maintained their first-class rank in the sport. As for badminton in general, the future looks bright. See Also Indonesian Customs

Customs of Indonesia

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Marriage and Family

Women in rural areas of Indonesia are often married by the time they are 20 years old. Although people throughout the country have more freedom to choose their own marriage partners than they had in the past, rural families are generally more involved than urban families are in the choice of their children's spouses, and men generally have somewhat more freedom in choosing their spouses than women have. Engagement is more than an agreement between the future bride and groom; it binds the two families. Members of the extended family often live under the same roof or near one another. Older people are shown special respect.

In most regions, the home is traditionally dominated by the father, and the mother is responsible for raising children and caring for the household. In urban areas, however, the trend today is for many women to work outside the home, and women now make up 40.8 percent (2000) of the labor force. Women occupy 12 percent of the seats in parliament and generally have as much access to education as men do. Indonesian women have more rights than women in other predominantly Muslim countries, including rights in property settlements, inheritance, and divorce. Among the Minangkabau ethnic group, the mother is the dominant figure in the household, and extended families group together according to matrilineal descent.

Eating

Rice is the staple and is eaten at every meal in Indonesia. Vegetables, fish, and hot sauces are often served with the rice; specific dishes vary according to the region. Tea and coffee are the most common drinks. Fresh fruit is widely available and is often eaten as dessert. Popular meats include beef and chicken. Observant Muslims do not eat pork. Chilies are often used (sometimes in large quantities) in cooking, as are other spices. Coconut milk is used to cook particularly spicy food known as padang food, named after the city on Sumatra where it originated. In the capital, Jakarta, restaurants serve a variety of different cuisines, although the range is not as extensive as in some other Southeast Asian capitals.

Many Indonesians eat with a spoon and fork, but more traditional families eat with their hands. Generally, the fork is held in the left hand and the spoon in the right, and both hands are kept above the table while eating. It is impolite to eat or drink until invited to do so by the host. Finishing a drink implies the desire for the glass to be refilled. There are many street vendors selling food, but people who purchase food should always sit to eat because it is considered inappropriate to eat while standing or walking on the street.

Socializing

Indonesian culture is based on honor and respect for the individual. Letters begin with Dengan hormat, meaning “With respect,” and respect is important in greeting others. Status is also important; the most senior person or the host should be greeted first, and special deference should be shown to older people. A nod or slight bow is the usual form of greeting, although when meeting someone for the first time it is normal to shake hands as well. Handshakes are also used when congratulating someone or when saying goodbye before a long trip. Titles are very important and should be used when greeting and in general conversation. The most formal introduction would include, in roughly this order, Bapak (“Sir”) or Ibu (“Madam”), an academic or professional title (if applicable), the noble title (if the person uses it), and the person’s given and family names. Many Indonesians, especially the Javanese, have only one name and are therefore addressed both formally and casually by that name. Business representatives often exchange cards when greeting each other.

When socializing, one never touches the head of another person. Unless married or engaged to her, a man usually does not touch a woman in public, except to shake hands. The left hand is not used to shake hands, touch others, point, eat, or give or receive objects.

Indonesians believe that visits bring honor to the host, and they warmly welcome all guests. Unannounced visits are common. When a visit has been prearranged it is usual to arrive half an hour after the appointed time. Visitors sit when invited to, but will also rise when the host or hostess enters the room, because deference to one’s host is very important. A drink is often served, but a guest does not drink until invited to. A person may cause offense by refusing when food or drink is offered. Blunt talk should be avoided. If the host or hostess is not wearing footwear, it is polite for visitors to remove theirs. Shoes are removed before entering carpeted rooms, feasting places, places of funeral viewings, mosques, and other holy places. Gifts are not opened in the giver’s presence.

Recreation

Badminton and soccer are the most popular sports in Indonesia, and many people play volleyball and tennis. Shadow-puppet theater is a traditional art, and performances are particularly common in rural areas and on special occasions. Other recreational activities include watching television and going to the cinema. Censorship is strict.

Holidays and Celebrations

Indonesians celebrate the International New Year on 1 January. Muslims celebrate Idul-Fitri, a three-day feast at the end of Ramadan. Idul-Adha is a three-day festival for those not on the pilgrimage to Mecca (Makkah); it honors Abraham’s willingness to sacrifice his son at Allah’s behest. The birthday of the Prophet Muhammad is commemorated in July or August, according to the lunar calendar.

In Bali, a festival called Pengrupukan celebrates the New Year and the arrival of spring in March or April. The festival’s aim is to roust out the devils that, having been swept out of Hades following the rainy season, have gone into hiding on the island. The Balinese make elaborate offerings to lure the devils out and then run through the streets, their bodies painted, bearing torches and making noise to drive them off the island. The following day is Nyepí, when the emphasis is on silence and introspection; businesses are closed and people stay at home.

Christian holidays include Good Friday and Christmas (25 December), which are both public holidays. Easter Sunday and Ascension Day are also observed. The latter, 40 days after Easter, marks the day when Jesus Christ is said to have ascended to Heaven.

A pioneer for women’s rights in Indonesia is honored on Kartini Day (21 April). Raden Ajeng Kartini, or Lady Kartini, was the daughter of a Javanese nobleman and studied at a Dutch school. A foundation established in her name after her early death at age 25 opened the first girls’ school in Java in 1916. Independence Day is celebrated on 17 August and is considered the most important holiday in Indonesia. There are also hundreds of holidays related to other regional, religious, and cultural groups. See Also Prambanan Temple

Loro Jonggrang, Prambanan Temple

2009-03-25T06:34:00.000-07:00

Temple of Prambanan (also called the Temple of Loro Jonggrang) stands in Jogjakarta. It is actually not one temple, but a complex of temples, made around the 9th century. The complex is for the Shiva Hindu people and had about 200 temples. This is the myth and fact about the making of the temple.

Loro Jonggrang was a daughter of a giant king called Ratu Baka (King of Death), and she had a proposal from a young noble, Bandung Bandawasa. He was handsome, wealthy and powerful, but Loro Jonggrang didn't want to marry him. Ratu Baka gave a task to Bandung Bandawasa. He had to make 1000 temples in one night, to prepare his marriage to Loro Jonggrang. Bandung Bandawasa used his supernatural force to call the genies, and they made the temples in unbelieveable speed. Loro Jonggrang, seeing that the task was almost completed, ordered her servants to help her hit the rice punchers, and made the sound of cooking, so the genies thought morning had come and they ran away. Bandung Bandawasa was angry with her act. He already finished 999 temples and when he built the 1000th, he cursed Loro Jonggrang into it.

The largest temple in Prambanan complex is the Shiva temple, and inside the temple, there is a Durga (Goddess of Darkness, wife of Shiva, God of Destruction) believed as the body of Loro Jonggrang.

Historians said the myth is based on the true story. In 9th century, Rakai Patapan Pu Palar, a member of Sanjaya Dynasty in Central Java, started a rebellion againts the ruling Syailendra Dynasty. Scared by his threat, King Samaratungga had his daughter Pramodawarddhani marry Rakai Patapan's son, Rakai Pitapan. Rakai Pitapan then became the King of Central and East Java and started making Prambanan complex, which completed at 915 AD.

Nyi Roro Kidul

2009-03-25T06:19:00.000-07:00

This is the story of the "Queen of the Southern Sea". Pajajaran kingdom was located in West Java from 1333 AD to 1630 AD and it was conquered by the Islamic kingdom of Mataram from Central Java. Pajajaran's greatest ruler was Prabu Siliwangi. He had a bride in one his harems and she bore him a very beautiful daughter. The girl was called Dewi Kadita. The beauty of Dewi Kadita and her mother made the other harems jealous, and they formed a conspiracy against them.

The harems used black magic to make the bodies of Dewi Kadita and her mother be filthy, ugly and disgusting. Prabu Siliwangi got angry at Dewi Kadita and her mother and forced them to get out of the palace, as they were thought to be bad luck for the kingdom. While they were wandering around the country, the mother died. Dewi Kadita was walking in deep sadness, until she reached the southern sea (the shore of Indian Ocean).

She sat above a stove-shaped rock and when she was sleeping, she had a vision that she should jump into the water to release herself from the curse. When she woke up, with no second thought, Dewi Kadita jumped into the sea. She once again became very beautiful, but then she realized that she was not a human anymore. She had turned into a supernatural form of life. She then ruled all creatures off the southern coast of Java Island, and was known as Nyi Roro Kidul (queen of the southern sea). As revenge on her father, she became the primary bride for Mataram kings (the rival of the Pajajaran kingdom).

The river of Bengawan Solo, which started from the mystical mountain of Merapi in Central Java and leads to the Indian Ocean, is said to be the tunnel used by Nyi Roro Kidul to access Java. In a green costume, she traps males who are walking on the shore. They are swallowed by the waves and are thought to be missing or dead but will actually become her guard or mate.

Keris, The cursed sword

2009-03-25T06:18:00.002-07:00

In Indonesian tradition, the keris is a precious traditional sword. It can be identified by its strange shape. The king of Kediri (a kingdom in East Java) was named Kertajaya. He thought himself as a deity and was opposed by the Brahmana (priests). When he threatened the Brahmana, they ran to Tumapel and asked the ruler there, Ken Arok, for protection. Ken Arok thought that Kediri army would attack his territory, and ordered his troops to fortify. The Kediri army came to Tumapel as Arok expected. The Battle of Ganter, in 1222, resulted in the end of the Kediri Kingdom, then Ken Arok formed his own empire, Singosari.

After Kertajaya lost, the Kediri Kingdom was ruled by Tunggul Ametung. He had a very beautiful wife, Ken Dedes. A statue in Leiden Museum, Netherlands, shows Ken Dedes as Prajnaparamitha, Goddess of Wise. One day Ken Arok accidentally saw Ken Dedes as a wind hiked her gown. Ken Arok got a vision, that he would have Ken Dedes as his wife at any risk. Ken Arok decided to kill Tunggul Ametung.

Ken Arok ordered a keris to be made by the priest, Mpu Gandring. It took a long time to make a keris because only an enlightened priest could make it. Ken Arok was impatient to wait for the keris to be done. His lust for Ken Dedes was getting unbearable. He came up to Mpu Gandring to ask if the keris was completed. When Mpu Gandrig said no, Ken Arok killed him with the incomplete keris. Before he died, Mpu Gandring cursed the keris.

In the 5th year of Ken Arok's reign, a man called Anusapati wanted the throne of Singosari from Ken Arok. Ken Arok had abandoned Mpu Gandring's keris and Anusapati took the keris and killed Ken Arok with it. Ken Arok had a concubine named Ken Umang, and their son, Tohjaya decided the revenge. In the 21st year of Anusapati's rule, Tohjaya invited Anusapati to his palace for gambling, and while Anusapati was having fun, Tohjaya killed him, again with Mpu Gandring's keris.

After Anusapati's death, his son Ranggawuni wanted the throne. Tohjaya sent Lembu Ampal to attack Ranggawuni and his companion, Mahesa Cempaka. Lembu Ampal realized that Ranggawuni was the right person to be the king, and they fought against Tohjaya. Tohjaya was killed with Mpu Gandring's keris. Ranggawuni and Mahesa Cempaka realized that Mpu Gandring's keris would only make chaos and death, so they threw the keris to the Java Sea. Legend says that the keris turned into a dragon.

Queen Ajibara Putih

2009-03-25T06:18:00.001-07:00

Muara Kaman lies along the Mahakam River, in eastern Borneo. In the past the area was a kingdom ruled by Queen Aji Bidara Putih. She was a typical queen of myths: beautiful, wise, and sensitive. Many princes and kings proposed to her but she always refused them because she was more concerned with ruling her country and guarding her people.

One day, a Chinese boat came to eastern Borneo. First the people thought it was a merchant ship but the boat was loaded with trade goods and highly trained soldiers. Their envoys brought gold and porcelain to announce the marriage proposal from a prince of China. The queen didn't refuse instantly and replied that she had to ponder the proposal first. After the envoys left the palace, the queen called a court officer and ordered him to infiltrate the Chinese boat to gather information on the prince.

When night fell the officer sneaked onto the boat, got by all the guards, and finally found the prince's room. The large door would not open and he couldn't find a peek hole, so the officer put his ear to the wall, trying to catch sounds from inside. He heard that the prince was having his dinner and the noise of his chewing and slurping surprised the officer. It was like a boar that he had once heard when he was hunting.

He quickly left the boat and returned to the palace. He reported that the prince must have been a phantom, not a human. He believed that the phantom could be in a human's form only during the daytime. The queen was so surprised and got angry. On the next day, she refused his proposal.

The enraged prince ordered his troops to raid Muara Kaman. The battle was won by the prince's huge band of troops. As they drew near to the palace, Queen Aji Bidara Putih chewed a leaf of betel vine and sang a mantra while holding it. When she threw it at the Chinese troops, it turned to giant centipedes. The Chinese troops started to retreat but three centipedes chased them and sank the boat. The site of the sunken ship is now known as Danau Lipan (Lake of Centipedes), with Chinese treasures hidden on the lake's bed.

The Creation of Mount Bromo

2009-03-25T06:17:00.000-07:00

This is a legend about the creation of Mount Bromo, a famous volcano in East Java.

During the reign of the last king of Majapahit (in the 13th century), Brawijaya, one of the King's wives gave birth to a girl, Roro Anteng. Later she got married to a priest named Joko Seger. Because of an unfortunate situation, they were forced to leave the kingdom. They settled an area in the mountain named Tengger.

They were unhappy because they didn't have a child. They climbed the peak of the mountain and prayed to the gods. Betara Bromo -- god of fire, promised them many children. A stipulation was that they would have to sacrifice their youngest child. They finally had twenty-five children. They were instructed to sacrifice the youngest, Kesuma, but instead they hid him. An eruption occurred and Kesuma fell into the crater. His voice was heard saying, "I have to be sacrificed so that you will all live. From now on you should arrange an annual ceremony on the 14th of Kesodo."

Kesuma's brothers and sisters held the offering ceremony every year by offering fruits, vegetables, rice and meats. This ceremony is still held today by Kejawen sects (an original Javanese religion).

Indonesian Lifestyles

2009-03-25T06:02:00.000-07:00

Want to know what people from Indonesia do for recreation, what they eat or what they wear? This page is to give you some insight on how Indonesians live.

CLOTHING

Although many people in Indonesia wear clothing very similar to those worn in America, there are some traditional types of clothing that are still used today.

One type of garment worn for both ceremonial purposes and for relaxing at home is the "sarung". A sarung is simply a large piece of cloth that wraps around the lower body at the waist. A sarung used for ceremonial purposes often have intricate designs and are very colorful. The ones used at home are generally plain and simple. On the island of Java, the sarung is only worn by men, however on the island of Borneo (Kalimantan), women also use the sarung. In the Java provinces, women generally use a "daster" as a wrap for around the house. This garment is similar to a robe.

"Batik" is a style of cloth making in Indonesia using a hand-dyeing method. Shirts and other clothes are made from this art. Batik clothing is a made from silk and usually has beautiful, hand-painted designs.

FOOD

Rice is a major staple of food in Indonesia. Most people in Indonesia eat rice at least three times a day. "Nasi goreng" (fried rice), "nasi putih" (steamed rice) and "bubur" (a rice porridge) are only a few of the ways that rice is eaten. Spices such as curry and chili peppers are used in many Indonesian recipes. Other important foods in the Indonesian diet are fish, beef and chicken. Breads, cereals and cheeses are not eaten as much as in America.

EDUCATION

The Indonesian child begins his formal education at about age seven. The first six years of elemenetary school are called "sekolah dasar". The next three years of secondary school are called "sekolah menengah pertama". High school makes up the last three years and is called "sekolah menengah atas". Indonesian students go to school practically year-round. Each quarter there is a two-week break between sessions.

RELIGION

The primary religion in Indonesia is Islam. Several special days pertaining to the religion surround important dates in the life of Mohammed, the founder of Islam. Other religions in Indonesia include Christianity, Buddhism and Hinduism.

HOLIDAYS

Probably the most important Islamic holiday of the year in Indonesia is Hari Raya (also known as Idul Fitri). In the month prior to Hari Raya, Muslims in Indonesia fast everyday from daylight to dark. Then on Hari Raya there are celebrations and feasts to commemorate the end of fasting month. Christianity is also practiced in many parts of the country, therefore Christmas is also celebrated and is a public holiday in Indonesia. The major Hindu holiday called Nyepi is also celebrated in many parts of Indonesia. August 17 is Indonesia's independence day and is celebrated as the national holiday.

SPORTS

Soccer and badminton are two of the most popular sports in Indonesia. Other sports include swimming, tennis, bowling and bicycling. The popular American sports of baseball, hockey and football are not popular in Indonesia. Some traditional pasttimes in Indonesia include the annual buffalo races that take place on the small island of Madura (between Java and Bali).

Pulau Seribu, an Exotic Destination

2009-03-23T05:34:00.000-07:00

Pulau Seribu or the thousand island group is a group of small islands scattered in the bay of Jakarta. Pulau Seribu is located some 90 km from Jakarta making it easily accessible by ferry from Ancol in Jakarta or by air. In total there are 110 islands and many have been developed to service tourists. The islands this group geared towards tourism include Pulau Bidadari, Pulau Ayer, Sepa, Coconut, Pelangi, Bira, Pantara, Kul-kul and Pulau Putri and are the main islands for accommodation, dive shops and restaurants. The Pulau Putri Paradise Co. has developed Pulau Putri, Pulau Melintang, Pulau Petondang and Pulau Papa Theo as a holiday resort with cottages, restaurants, diving and sailing facilities.

Resorts and recreational activities abound and although the aforementioned are regarded by many travelers as above-their-budget, there are other smaller places to suit everyone. Interestingly, the northern area of the islands is a national marine park The reef systems surrounding Pulau Seribu are home to a magnificent underwater world with a wide variety of fish, making it an ideal spot for diving, snorkeling and fishing. Besides chilling out on the beach grabbing some rays from the sun there are quite a few other things to see and do. For instance, the ruins of VOC’s Fortress are interesting and used to be centre of Jakarta’s defence against the British invasion during the Dutch occupation. Adventurous people might be interested in jet skiing and banana boating. There is also canoeing and rafting available.

Getting There:

Speedboats from Marina Jaya Ancol, in Jakarta take about 20 minutes. Bidadari island is only 15 kilometers away from Jakarta.

Sanur Beach Bali Fascination

2009-03-23T02:24:00.000-07:00

Sanur Beach in Bali, Indonesia, is one long beach - with white/off white sand. As you see in the video, the water is calm and protected. Once home to a great reef, it is mainly gone due to erosion and Indonesia "progress"; silt and pesticide runoff from construction. So for Sanur, lot's of nice sand, but below the surface there are many problems. We were first interested in the beaches of Bali when a user e-mailed asking why we didn't include this beach. Unfortunately, this is one of the better beaches here. For some reason, probably corruption, these beaches do not get the treatment they deserve. There is little enforcement of the few laws Indonesia has for preservation. Feel free to comment.

One of Southeast Bali's gems is Sanur Beach. With its small tourist population, Sanur is a very attractive. The surf is gentler than other areas of the island and the hotels are quite nice. In the past 20 years Sanur has developed into a great resort for tourists, feasting on the sights and sounds of the Indonesian countryside.

Sanur is a very mellow town. There is an amazing contrast constantly going on here. There are hotels upon hotels, but there are also many aspects of the old village life going on as you will see when you find a place to stay. You may choose to stay in an 11-story hotel or you may choose to stay in a Balinese type resort. Aside from the accommodations, there are also many restaurants to enjoy near the beach. Indonesia is this way. Below is one of my favorite pictures; people relaxing around one of the temples in the area.

What to visit: The Sacred Temple of Ratu Ayu of Singgi, located in the Grand Bali Beach Hotel.

Sanur Beach - Bali - BEACH INDEX:

* Sand - Golden, about a km long
* Facilities - All included at the nearby hotels. Plus small stands that sell various items such as chessboards.
* Shade - mature palm trees
* Sports - Parasailing, surfing, snorkeling, touring on glass-bottom boats, canoeing, jet-skiing, windsurfing, sailing and swimming.
* Notes - can get crowded around major hotels.

Mount Kakatau, Exotic Volcano

2009-03-23T01:54:00.000-07:00

More than 120 years before December 26’s devastating Sumatra-Andaman Island earthquake, Indonesia suffered another catos-tropic natural disaster when the island volcano of Krakatoa (Krakatau), in the Sunda Strait, 40 kilometers off the west coast of Java on the island of Rakata (813m) in Lampung Province, erupted with unprecedented fury.

The main explosion unleashed a series of massive tsunami waves, some reaching almost 40 meters above sea level, killing more than 36,000 people in the coastal towns and villages along the Sunda Strait on Java and Sumatra islands.

But the effects were experienced on a global scale. Tsunami waves were also recorded or observed throughout the Indian Ocean, the Pacific Ocean, the American West Coast, South America, and even as far away as the English Channel. The sound of the island’s destruction was heard in Australia and India and on islands thousands of miles away.

Volcanic ashes, which fell on Singapore 840 kilometers to the north, Cocos Island 1155 kilometers to the southwest, and ships as far as 6076 kilometers west northwest, swirled around the planet for years, affecting incoming solar radiation and causing temperatures to plunge. Three months after the eruption, the dust had spread to higher latitudes causing such vivid red sunset afterglows that fire engines were called out in New York, Poughkeepsie, and New Haven to quench the apparent blaze.

Krakatoa’s dramatic history and emergence of a new island, son of Krakatau (Anak Krakatau), makes it a popular ‘must-see’ volcano. Now Anak Krakatau has reached about 300 M above sea level. It takes about 4-5 hours by boat to cross the Sunda Strait to this self-contained island volcano, and only 30 minutes to reach the crater summit. This kike takes you through thick vegetation and up barren slopes until you are looking down into the depression occupied by the active cone. From the crater rim, where the heat penetrates your shoes, you can look around and see the remains of the islands.

“It was a demonstration of the utterly confident way that the world, however badly it has been wounded, picks itself up, continues to unfold its magic and its marvels, and sets itself back on its endless trail of evolutionary progress yet again”

Paradise Trip Karimun Jawa Island

2009-03-16T02:51:00.000-07:00

Lies 90 km north east of Jepara in Central Java, The Marine National Park Karimun Jawa spread over 110,000 ha . The Karimun Jawa Islands comprise an archipelago of 27 small islets, of which Karimun Jawa is the largest. Only seven of the islands are inhabited. The vegetation consists mainly of mangrove and beach forest, although there is some lowland rain forest on Karimun Jawa. Most of the islands are surrounded by sandy beaches and fringing coral reefs. Fresh water is confined to a few small wells and forest streams on Karimun Jawa. The average tidal range is 92 cm.

Five of these islands are domestically inhabited and together with 22 others from the four major zones; Zone I is the core sanctuary area and is out of bounds to all, Zone 2 is the wilderness area open to limited tourism, Zone 3 is the utilization area, Zone 4 is the buffer zone.

For visitor to the Park, expect a very pleasant welcome, and an exciting range of flora and fauna to discover both above and below the water.The reefs harboring 35 types of hard corals, sponges, gorgonian, soft and red corals and an amazing 240 plus variety of fish.

At least 66 genera of corals have been identified; 353 species of reef fish; 7 species of giant clams and other marine organism such as mollusk, sponge, soft corals and sea worm. There are 16 species which are categorized as the endangered and rare species such as Green Turtle (Chelonia Mydas), Hawksbill Turtle (Eretmochelis Imbricate), Giant Clam (Tridacna Maxima), Sand Clam (Hippopus Hippopus), Boring Clam (Tridacna Crocea), China Southern Clam (Tridacna Derasa)
Lamun and Seaweed Plain.

The identified Lamun are Thalassia Hempicrii), Cymodocea Rotundata, Thalassodendron Ciliatum, Enhalus Acorodes, Halophila Ovate, Halodule Uninervis, Halodule Pinifolia, Halophila Ovalis, Syringodium Isoetifoliu.

Mangrove Forest Ecosystem

There are 44 species of mangrove trees, one of the rare mangroves species in the world is Scyphyphora Hydrophyllaceae.

Coastal Forest Ecosystem

The ecosystem is characterized by Terminalia Cattapa, Casuarina Equisetifolia, Seaeta Frutescens, Pempis Acidula, and Hibiscus Tiliaceus.

Ecosystem of Lowland Tropical Rain Forest

It is the habitat of some endemic butterflies. Some species that have been identified in Karimunjawa are Euploea Crameri Karimondjawaensis and Idea Ieuconooe Karimondjawaensis. There is also Ular Edor, a poisonous snake (Calloselasma Rhodosthomd) and White-Bellied Sea Eagle (Heliaeetus Ieucogaster).

The Enchanting Place Lombok Island

2009-03-15T04:23:00.000-07:00

Neighboring Bali, Lombok is part of the province of Nusa Tenggara Barat (NTB) with the capital Mataram. With an area of 5200 square km and a population of over 2.5 million people, Lombok does not attract as many tourists as Bali but nevertheless beautiful landscapes of rice fields and beautiful beaches of white sand. A Muslim dominance, the Sasak retain strong animist customs and practice a craft rich, including weaving and pottery. Lombok delight all travelers in search of authenticity wishing to escape the tourist crowds.

Geography
The culmination of Lombok is Mount Rinjani, which climb the 3726 meters, masterfully dominates this small island. The center is largely arrosépermettant crops of rice and spices, cassava or tobacco. The ribs, especially the South, North and the East are much more arid.

Lombok beaches are beautiful and very wild and little traffic, except Sengggigi which has grown relatively large tourist. Off the Gili islands offer magnificent opportunities for scuba diving with funds exceptional reefs. Some surf spots are also famous, especially around Kuta.

Climate
The climate in Lombok is substantially the same as Bali but still drier. So close to shore, the temperature ranges from 27 ° C (dry season) to 32 degrees C (rainy season). In the mountains, it is around 20 to 25 degrees C, depending on altitude. The dry season runs from March to October and the rainy season from November to April with rainfall more pronounced from December to February. The West is much wetter where it can rain in the dry season.
Today’s weather in Mataram (Lombok) with Yahoo

Religion and culture
The Sasak Muslims were the original inhabitants of Lombok and constitute by far the largest ethnic group. They retained their language and their customs. In the West, there is a relatively large population of Balinese Hindus who fled to Lombok during the Dutch invasion. The island also has a few small communities of Chinese, Bugis and Sumbawa. The Sasak practice two forms of Islam: the “waktu telu” is a traditional mixture of Islam and worship of ancestors and the more orthodox Islam.
Although arts and crafts are not as developed as Bali, Lombok is located in beautiful ikats and pottery and basketry are of high quality.

Economy
In the early 90s, Lombok has undergone major changes with the development of tourism including Senggigi (West) where many hotels have flourished along the coast. The Indonesian government wanted to offer an alternative to Bali and major projects were under way in the South. The troubles of 1997 and 2000, however, have put an end to this promising growth and Lombok is little frequented by tourists. Agriculture and fishing remains the main activities of the island and poverty is more present than Bali or Java.

To do and see
Lombok offers less wealth but Bali cultural landscapes are beautiful. Kuta and its region, south, offers beautiful white sand beaches and tourists are rare! There are also some surf spots famous as “Desert Point” accessible only by boat.

West Coast also offers beautiful beaches, but tourism development and the multitude of infrastructure make the stay pleasant little.

The center and the region Tetebatu this beautiful landscapes of rice fields where you can practice hiking. There are also some small artisan villages specializing in PORTERIE or basketry. The ascent of Mount Rinjani is possible from the village of sapit on the south-eastern flank of the volcano. It requires good physical preparation and takes 3 to 5 days. The services of a guide is compulsory.

Gili Islands, North West, are beautiful and lend themselves perfectly to the practice of diving with beautiful corals and diverse aquatic life (sharks, rays, turtles …). Although tourism is largely developed on these three islands, the atmosphere is peaceful and craft engines are banned! Gili Meno and Gili Air are much quieter than Gili Trawangan which has become the benchmark followers of techno!

Source: http://www.changeformissouri.org/?p=118

Puncak Jaya Wijaya

2009-03-15T00:49:00.000-07:00

Puncak Jaya, the only snowy area in Indonesia, also the highest mountain in Indonesia, located in the province of Papua (formerly Irian Jaya), which lies on the western half of the island of New Guinea. Puncak Jaya means “Great Peak.” Puncak Jaya sits at the western end of the Sudirman Mountains, a division of the main Maoke Mountains. It is 5,030 m (16,503 ft) tall and, though lying in the tropics, permanently snow capped.

The surrounding ranges are rugged, effectively isolating Puncak Jaya with a wall of high peaks, though the mountain is visible from the sea and low swamplands to the south. Several small glaciers are also nearby. The region around Puncak Jaya is rich in copper. Tembagapura, a service town for a large copper mine, is located nearby. Puncak Jaya was formerly known as Mount Carstensz.

Borobudur Temple - The Hidden Heritage

2009-03-14T19:24:00.000-07:00

Borobudur is a ninth-century Mahayana Buddhist monument in Magelang, Central Java, Indonesia. The monument comprises six square platforms topped by three circular platforms, and is decorated with 2,672 relief panels and 504 Buddha statues. A main dome, located at the center of the top platform, is surrounded by 72 Buddha statues seated inside perforated stupa.

The monument is both a shrine to the Lord Buddha and a place for Buddhist pilgrimage. The journey for pilgrims begins at the base of the monument and follows a path circumambulating the monument while ascending to the top through the three levels of Buddhist cosmology, namely Kāmadhātu (the world of desire), Rupadhatu (the world of forms) and Arupadhatu (the world of formlessness). During the journey the monument guides the pilgrims through a system of stairways and corridors with 1,460 narrative relief panels on the wall and the balustrades.

Location:
Approximately 40 kilometers (25 mi) northwest of Yogyakarta, Borobudur is located in an elevated area between two twin volcanoes, Sundoro-Sumbing and Merbabu-Merapi, and two rivers, the Progo and the Elo. According to local myth, the area known as Kedu Plain is a Javanese 'sacred' place and has been dubbed 'the garden of Java' due to its high agricultural fertility. Besides Borobudur, there are other Buddhist and Hindu temples in the area, including the Prambanan temples compound. During the restoration in the early 1900s, it was discovered that three Buddhist temples in the region, Borobudur, Pawon and Mendut, are lined in one straight line position. It might be accidental, but the temples' alignment is in conjunction with a native folk tale that a long time ago, there was a brick-paved road from Borobudur to Mendut with walls on both sides. The three temples (Borobudur–Pawon–Mendut) have similar architecture and ornamentation derived from the same time period, which suggests that ritual relationship between the three temples, in order to have formed a sacred unity, must have existed, although exact ritual process is yet unknown.

Rediscovery:
Following the Anglo-Dutch Java War, Java was under British administration from 1811 to 1816. The appointed governor was Lieutenant Governor-General Thomas Stamford Raffles, who took great interest in the history of Java. He collected Javanese antiques and made notes through contacts with local inhabitants during his tour throughout the island. On an inspection tour to Semarang in 1814, he was informed about a big monument deep in a jungle near the village of Bumisegoro. He was not able to make the discovery himself and sent H.C. Cornelius, a Dutch engineer, to investigate.
The first photograph of Borobudur by Isidore van Kinsbergen (1873) after the monument was cleared up.

In two months, Cornelius and his 200 men cut down trees, burned down vegetation and dug away the earth to reveal the monument. Due to the danger of collapse, he could not unearth all galleries. He reported his findings to Raffles including various drawings. Although the discovery is only mentioned by a few sentences, Raffles has been credited with the monument's recovery, as one who had brought it to the world's attention.

Hartmann, a Dutch administrator of the Kedu region, continued Cornelius' work and in 1835 the whole complex was finally unearthed. His interest in Borobudur was more personal than official. Hartmann did not write any reports of his activities; in particular, the alleged story that he discovered the large statue of Buddha in the main stupa. In 1842, Hartmann investigated the main dome although what he discovered remains unknown as the main stupa remains empty.

Events:
Following the major 1973 renovation funded by UNESCO, Borobudur is once again used as a place of worship and pilgrimage. Once a year, during the full moon in May or June, Buddhists in Indonesia observe Vesak (Indonesian: Waisak) day commemorating the birth, death, and the time when Siddhārtha Gautama attained the highest wisdom to become the Buddha Shakyamuni. Vesak is an official national holiday in Indonesia and the ceremony is centered at the three Buddhist temples by walking from Mendut to Pawon and ending at Borobudur.

The monument is the single most visited tourist attraction in Indonesia. In 1974, 260,000 tourists of whom 36,000 were foreigners visited the monument. The figure hiked into 2.5 million visitors annually (80% were domestic tourists) in the mid 1990s, before the country's economy crisis. Tourism development, however, has been criticized for not including the local community on which occasional local conflict has arisen. In 2003, residents and small businesses around Borobudur organized several meetings and poetry protests, objecting to a provincial government plan to build a three-story mall complex, dubbed the 'Java World'.

On 21 January 1985, nine stupas were badly damaged by nine bombs. In 1991, a blind Muslim evangelist, Husein Ali Al Habsyie, was sentenced to life imprisonment for masterminding a series of bombings in the mid 1980s including the temple attack. Two other members of a right-wing extremist group that carried out the bombings were each sentenced to 20 years in 1986 and another man received a 13-year prison term. On 27 May 2006, an earthquake of 6.2 magnitude on the Richter scale struck the south coast of Central Java. The event had caused severe damage around the region and casualties to the nearby city of Yogyakarta, but Borobudur remained intact.

Besakih - The Mother Temple Of Bali

2009-03-14T16:54:00.000-07:00

Traveling to east Bali is another exciting experience. Better get prepared, we should be fit and take sarong with us. We’re going to hike to the biggest and oldest temple in Bali: The Mother Temple of Besakih.

But before we go to Besakih, it is worth also to visit Klungkung. There are monument of Puputan Klungkung (as a remembrance of fight until death between the local kingdom of Klungkung against the colinialist Dutch), Hall of Justice or Kerta Gosa and the Museum. The Hall of Justice served like a court in the early 1900. It is a small hall of approximately 4×4 meters with wooden chairs in the middle of the hall. These were the seat of king, priest, and Dutch controller who decided what would be the punishment for the convict? On the hall ceiling you will see many Balinese traditional painting with Kamasan style. The theme of paintings are mostly life after death (especially scene of hell with many types of punihsment given to the sinful souls according to the bad thing they did in their past life) taken from the story of Bima Swarga and Tantri (Tantri is a long story with many stories inside it like the Arabian night tales). I think this painting somehow would create a shock therapy to the convict? to confess any kind of bad deeds s/he committed.

When we finish at Klungkung, we can go to the Besakih which is only 20 kms away. Besakih temple, built in around 8 century, is the biggest temple in Bali. Located at the slope of the highest mount in Bali, the temple is actually a complex of 18 temples. You need to wear sarong to enter the temple and pay entrance fee Rp.10000 (USD 1,1). First you need to walk 400 metres from the parking to the temple. You arrive at the temple yard. From here you’ll see the main part of the temple where all the Balinese will go praying in this part. You need to ascend through stairs beside the main part of the temple until you get to the Pura Gelap, the highest point, where you can see the whole area of the temple. You can take picture of the beautiful panorama from here.

Finishing our visit to Besakih temple, you will continue to Bat Cave Temple and Tenganan Village. Gua Lawah or the Bat Cave temple is a temple built just outside a cave where hundreds of bats flying and hanging on the cave wall. The legend says the tunnel of the cave ends up at the slope of Mount Agung. But there is no prove to it.

The Tenganan village is a village where the Bali Aga (or the original inhabitant of Bali) lives. They have their own society system, art and culture. The local people of Bali Aga produce a kind of beautiful hand woven cloth called tenun ikat. This can be a very special souvenir to get from Bali.

Tanah Lot Bali

2009-03-14T16:38:00.000-07:00

Become one of Bali Fascination, Tanah Lot is highly commercialised and people are required to pay to enter the area. To reach the temple, visitors must walk through a carefully planned set of Balinese market-format souvenir shops which cover each side of the path down to the sea. On the mainland cliff tops, restaurants have also been provided for tourists.

Tanah Lot means "Land in the Middle of the sea" in Balinese language. Located in Tabanan, about 20 km from Denpasar, the temple sits on a large offshore rock which has been shaped continuously over the years by the ocean tide.

Tanah Lot is claimed to be the work of the 15th century priest Nirartha. During his travels along the south coast he saw the rock-island's beautiful setting and rested there. Some fishermen saw him, and bought him gifts. Nirartha then spent the night on the little island. Later he spoke to the fishermen and told them to build a shrine on the rock for he felt it to be a holy place to worship the Balinese sea gods.

The Tanah Lot temple was built and has been a part of Balinese mythology for centuries. The temple is one of seven sea temples around the Balinese coast. Each of the sea temples were established within eyesight of the next to form a chain along the south-western coast.

At the base of the rocky island, poisonous sea snakes are believed to guard the temple from evil spirits and intruders. As well as one giant snake which also protects the temple, which was created from Nirartha’s scarf when he established the island.

Bedugul High Lands - Exotic Place To Visit in Indonesia

2009-03-11T07:15:00.000-07:00

Bedugul is the name of both a small city and a mountain-lake resort area, which Balinese have long used for weekend retreats. Bedugul is located on the main north-south road between Denpasar and Singaraja in cool damp mountain country, an excellent base for walking trips around the lakes and surrounding hills. Bedugul is located in a high plateau at the center of the Island. Cool air and mists are natural for the place.

A trip to the three great lakes of Bedugul, in the cool highlands of central Bali, is highly recommended as a welcome escape from the motor-mayhem of Kuta. As the road climbs in giddying leaps around the hillsides, the air becomes chiller. Eventually you reach the serene Lake Bratan. Even the swirling mists can’t hide the Lake’s primordial beauty, wrapped as if in different directions by clouds and lotuses.

Nothing in Bali is meant to stand out, but the lakeside temple Pura Ulan Danu Bratan does: its thatched roofs starkly punctuating the sky in a near-perfect juxtaposition of space, water and brick. The best time to take in the spectacle is early morning, as the rising sun dyes the lake purple, then crimson, then orange, and then finally the sun breaks out, gilding the temple towers with a gleaming radiance that seems to betoken the re-creation of the world.

Lakes Buyan and Tambelingan are much larger than the more developed Lake Bratan. Seen from above, they resemble a pair of spectacles, with a narrow channel connecting the two ‘lenses’. The road is a fantastic construction, running all the way along a high ridge to the north of the lakes. Right atop the saddle, with superb views over the two lakes, is the Puncak Bagus Coffee Shop, serving a mean brew made from locally grown beans.

On the shore of Lake Tamblingan – reached by a fair-to-atrocious side-road – a team of villagers under the direction of village chief is hard at work restoring the ancient temple Pura Gubug. Thatch is made from the leaves of the palm-sugar tree, the strands being soaked, coaxed into submission, then cut to size. The whole reconstruction is a huge operation, but a task that the villages are doing out of sheer devotion.

Prambanan Temple - Heritage Of Indonesia

2009-03-10T04:18:00.000-07:00

Prambanan temple, the largest temple compound dedicated to Shiva in Indonesia. Rising above the centre of the last of these concentric squares are three temples decorated with reliefs illustrating the epic of the Ramayana, dedicated to the three great Hindu divinities (Shiva, Vishnu and Brahma) and three temples dedicated to the animals who serve them.

It was built around 850 CE by either Rakai Pikatan, king of the second Mataram dynasty, or Balitung Maha Sambu, during the Sanjaya Dynasty. Not long after its construction, the temple was abandoned and began to deteriorate. Reconstruction of the compound began in 1918. The main building was completed in around 1953. Much of the original stonework has been stolen and reused at remote construction sites. A temple will only be rebuilt if at least 75% of the original stones are available, and therefore only the foundation walls of most of the smaller shrines are now visible and with no plans for their reconstruction.

The temple was damaged during the earthquake in Java in 2006. Early photos suggest that although the complex appears to be structurally intact, damage is significant. Large pieces of debris, including carvings, were scattered over the ground. The temple has been closed to the public until damage can be fully assessed. The head of Yogyakarta Archaeological Conservation Agency stated that: "it will take months to identify the precise damage". However, some weeks later in 2006 the site re-opened for visitors. The immediate surroundings of the Hindu temples remain off-limits for safety reasons.

The Prambanan temple complex consists of three zones. The outer zone is a large space marked by a rectangular wall (destroyed). The original function is unknown; possibilities are that it was a sacred park, or priests' boarding school (ashram). The supporting buildings for the temple complex were made from organic material; as a consequence no remains occur.

The middle zone consisted of four rows of 224 individual small shrines. These concentric rows of temples were made in identical design. Each row towards the center is slightly elevated. These shrines are called "Candi Perwara" or complementary temples, the additional buildings of the main temple. Some believed it was offered to the king as a sign of submission. The Perwara are arranged in four rows around the central temples, some believed it has something to do with four castes, made according to the rank of the people allowed to enter them; the row nearest to the central compound was accessible to the priests only, the other three were reserved for the nobles, the knights, and the simple people respectively. While another believed that the four rows of Perwara has nothing to do with four castes, it just simply made as meditation place for priests and as worship place for devotees.

Lake Toba - The Most Beautiful Lake of Indonesia

2009-03-10T03:57:00.000-07:00

Huge Lake Toba (in Indonesia named Danau Toba) in North Sumatra is Southeast Asia's Largest Lake, covering 1.146 sq km, and so far defying efforts to measure its depth-though it is known to be deeper than 450 m. It occupies the caldera of a massive volcano which exploded some 100.000 years ago in the most powerful volcanic eruption ever known. Early man was probably living in Sumatra at the time, and the scale of devastation caused by the explosion is hard for us to imagine-equivalent to hundreds of hydrogen bombs detonating simultaneously.

Shortly before the eruption, a giant boil of a mountain grew above the increasing quantities of molten material below. When the solid groound finally gave way, a searingly hot plume of ash was thrown into the sky-its remains can be traced today over an area of 20-30.000 sq km. Around the volcano the ash settled in a layer more than 600 m thick. This eruption set the world record for the quantity of material ejected-some 1.500-2.000 cubic km, compared with just 0,6 cubic km for the much-publicised eruption of Mt. St. Helens in Washington State, USA. Because of the massive quantity of ejecta, the empty cone soon collapsed in on itself to form the world's largest caldera. This became an ancient lake, which was itself destroyed about 30.000 years ago when a second, much smaller eruption occured. The island of Samosir in the center of the lake, and the lake's eastern shore-the main tourist centers today-are all that remain of the shattered cone.

The first Europeans to see Lake Toba (Danau Toba) were a pair of British missionaries, Messrs Burton and Ward, who traveled here in 1824. They were told that the lake level rose and fell like the sea. Although much of the area was already deforested and under rice cultivation, one area on the eastern shore was still covered with jungle. At the time, the lake's outlet was unknown, but eventually it became clear that the Asahan River flowed out through a "spirit-filled" forest at what is now Porsea on the southeastern shore.

Amazing Mountain In East Java

2009-03-09T16:15:00.000-07:00

Mount Bromo also Gunung Bromo, located in the Tengger Caldera, is one of the most popular tourist attractions in East Java, Indonesia. It is an active volcano and part of the Tengger massif, and even though at 2,329 meters it is not the highest peak of the massif, it is the most well known.

Gunung Bromo is an ancient caldera 10 km (6 miles) across, with four smaller peaks rising in the centre, ranging from between 300 and 400 metres (1,000 and 1,300 ft). Surrounding these peaks on the crater floor is sand and lush vegetation; every few years cinder and ash pour forth in eruptions to carpet the countryside with nutrient-rich deposits.

LEGEND

According to the local folk tale, at the end of the 15th century princess Roro Anteng from the Majapahit Empire started a separate principality together with her husband Joko Seger. They named it Tengger by the last syllables of their names. The principality did prosper, but the ruling couple failed to conceive children. In their despair they climbed Mount Bromo to pray to the gods, who granted them help, but requested the last child to be sacrificed to the gods. They had 24 children, and when the 25th and last child Kesuma was born Roro Anteng refused to do the sacrifice as promised. The gods then threatened with fire and brimstone, until she finally did the sacrifice. After the child was thrown into the crater, the voice of the child ordered the local people to perform an annual ceremony on the volcano, which is not held today.

HOW TO ENJOYING THE PANORAMIC VIEW?

There are two ways to take in the view: either from the crater's edge or a panoramic view of the entire caldera from afar (if time permits, watch the sunrise from both vistas). For the first, make the trek across the sand-sea floor, either by pony or by foot. Once at the base of the crater, climb up an incline of 250 concrete steps. At the top is a narrow lip from where you can look into the belly of the belching sulphurous centre of the crater and take in the 360-degree view of the entire caldera and the majestic Gunung Semeru, Java's highest peak at 3,676 metres (12,060 ft). Temperatures can drop to freezing before dawn, so be sure to dress warmly and bring a flashlight. For the panoramic view, hire a jeep to Gunung Pananjakan, about 3 km (2 miles) to the west, then it is a short hike along a paved road to the summit. Usually less crowded here, the view is just as amazing. All arrangements need to be made the night before. Both walks can be done in the pre-dawn period; if time is limited, enjoy sunrise at Gunung Pananjakan and after breakfast take a pony ride for the view of Bromo's navel.

HOW TO GET TENGGER HIGHLANDS?
There are several ways to reach the Tengger highlands and transport can be arranged in Surabaya, Malang or even Bali. Public buses and the train go as far as Probolinggo; from here, there are tour companies with mini-vans to take you the rest of the way. There is modest accommodation in both Ngadisari and Cemara Lwang (closer to the rim) and the better rooms come with hot water. As Gunung Bromo is inside a nature park, a small entrance fee is required.

Bunaken - Indonesian National Marine Park

2009-03-09T08:47:00.000-07:00

Bunaken is one of Indonesia's most famous dive areas, and it draws scuba divers from all over the world. In addition to Bunaken itself, a rather featureless banana-shaped island, the national park includes the neighboring islands of Manado Tua, a distinctive cone-shaped extinct volcano, Siladen, Montehagen, Nain, and Nain Kecil. Bunaken is about 45-60 minutes by boat from Manado. Most resorts will arrange transfers from the airport for their guests. Alternatively, a public boat leaves daily except Sunday at 2PM, or you can charter a boat anytime.

Bunaken is part of the Bunaken National Marine Park, which has some of the highest levels of marine biodiversity in the world. Scuba diving attracts many visitors to the island. Bunaken is located at the north of the island of Sulawesi, Indonesia. It belongs administratively to the municipality of Manado.
The Bunaken National Marine Park was formally established in 1991 and is among the first of Indonesia's growing system of marine parks. The park covers a total surface area of 890.65 km², 97% of which is overlain by sparkling clear, warm tropical water. The remaining 3% of the park is terrestrial, including the five islands of Bunaken, Manado Tua, Mantehage, Nain and Siladen. Although each of these islands has a special character, it is the aquatic ecosystem that attracts most naturalists.

The waters of Bunaken National Marine Park are extremely deep (1566 m in Manado Bay), clear (up to 35-40 m visibility), refreshing in temperature (27 to 29 °C) Pick any of group of interest - corals, fish, echinoderms or sponges - and the number of families, genera or species is bound to be astonishingly high. For example, 7 of the 8 species of giant clams that occur in the world, occur in Bunaken. The park has around 70 genera of corals; compare this to a mere 10 in Hawaii. Although the exact number of fish species is unknown, it may be slightly higher than in the Philippines, where 2,500 species, or nearly 70% of all fish species known to the Indo-western Pacific, are found.

Theater and Film of Indonesia

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Shadow puppets (wayang kulit) have been at the core of Javanese theater for more than 1,000 years and are still the most popular form of shadow theater. In wayang kulit, the puppeteer (dalang) manipulates leather figures so that their shadows dance across a white screen. Performances, which typically begin in the late evening and end at sunrise, are built around such Indian epics as the Ramayana and the Mahabharata. Other forms of Javanese puppet theater include flat wooden puppets (wayang klitik) and three-dimensional rod puppets (wayang golek).

Among Indonesia’s most innovative contemporary theater companies is Bengkel Teater, established in 1967 by Rendra, a well-known poet and dramatist. Bengkel productions blend traditional Indonesian theatrical and musical forms, such as shadow puppets and gamelan orchestras, with American and European theater, such as the works of English playwright William Shakespeare. Street theater performances increased in the late 1990s.

Two Europeans made the first film in Indonesia in Bandung in the mid-1920s. For the next several years most of Indonesia’s films were made by Indonesians of Chinese descent, who also owned most of the cinemas. In the mid-1930s the Dutch government established a film production company, and film making grew until 1942, when it stopped abruptly with the Japanese invasion during World War II.

After independence in 1949, film production expanded rapidly, peaking at 58 films in 1955. At the same time, the industry experienced a major shift toward greater pribumi (ethnic Indonesian) involvement in film making. Films were often about the struggle for independence and the government strictly censored them. In the early 1960s films became increasingly politicized. Indonesia’s most important film directors of this era were Bachtiar Siagian and Usmar Ismail, who made a satirical film about President Sukarno titled Tamu Agung (The VIP, 1955). In the violence following the 1965 coup attempt on President Sukarno, Siagian was jailed on Buru Island. Other filmmakers were also purged, and Siagian was not released until 1979.

In the 1990s Indonesia produced about 60 to 70 feature films each year, less than half the total number of new films shown in Indonesia. Before the Suharto era ended, government censorship guided the depiction of key events and individuals in Indonesian history. Most Indonesian films are in Bahasa Indonesia. One prominent exception was the highly regarded Djut Nya Dien, a story in the Acehnese language about a heroine in the Dutch resistance. In rare instances difficult social problems are addressed in films, as in Putri Giok (The Jade Princess), which examined the assimilation of Chinese Indonesians.

Traditional Dance Of Indonesia

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Indonesia is home to many traditional dance styles, and the classical dance traditions of Java and Bali have attracted worldwide attention. In Java, classical forms blend native traditions with stories and dance techniques from India. The forms have evolved over the last 200 years from the dances of Java’s former Islamic-influenced courts and today are centered in Yogyakarta, Surakarta, and Jakarta. The most significant of the Javanese court dances are the bedaja and the serimpi. Slow and restrained, women dancers move solemnly to the accompaniment of the gamelan and choral singing. Javanese mask dances (wayang topeng) have been traced to the 11th century. In these, dancers with wooden masks based on traditional three-dimensional rod puppets (wayang golek) act out stories from the Mahabharata, the Ramayana, and local tales. The most famous of these tales is The Adventures of Prince Panji. Another significant dance drama is the wayang orang, in which men and women act out a familiar range of Indian and local epics. In the wayang orang, dancers dress and act in a style adapted from traditional shadow puppets (wayang kulit).

Bali has a rich tradition of dances that are part of religious rituals. Often performed by nonprofessionals, dances are held in temple courtyards and coincide with religious feasts. The sacred baris gede is a battle dance performed by men, while another secular form of baris has been developed for the tourist market. Women dance the sacred rejang to evoke beauty. Bali is also well known for its trance dances, in which performers experience an altered state of consciousness and seek contact with the spirit world. In the Sang Hyang, a genre of trance dances in remote villages, men are believed to become possessed by animal spirits that bring about ritual purification of the community. Adolescent girls dance the Sang Hyang dedari.

The Balinese perform versions of Java’s wayang wong and wayang topeng, but the legong is Bali’s best-known dance. Two or three young girls perform the dance, which tells fragments of stories from the life of Prince Panji. The legong dates from the 18th century, although it draws on older traditions. Several regional governments pay performers to dance, both to foster identity and to promote tourism.

The New Order and Post New Order Era - Indonesian history

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Suharto instituted a “New Order” (Orde Baru) regime, which espoused a largely pro-Western policy. Indonesia ended confrontation with Malaysia and became a major promoter and participant in the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), which was founded in 1967. Suharto was officially inaugurated president in 1968. Elections were held in 1971, but they were tightly controlled by the government. The government-backed Golkar party secured most of the seats in the House of Representatives, as it would in each of the elections held at five-year intervals thereafter. Similarly, the People’s Consultative Assembly routinely returned Suharto to the presidency, unopposed, at five-year intervals.

In 1975 the state-owned oil enterprise, Pertamina, was unable to meet debt repayments amounting to $10.5 billion, and the crisis threatened Indonesia’s financial structure. Only by canceling projects, renegotiating loans, and receiving help from the United States and other Western governments did Indonesia salvage the situation. The rise in world oil prices helped Indonesia’s economic recovery. When oil prices stagnated in the early 1980s, Suharto shifted economic policy away from a reliance on oil exports. As part of the changes, he introduced greater openness (keterbukaan), promoting foreign investment in Indonesia and greater integration of Indonesia into the world economy. He also introduced reforms across a wide range of sectors to cut production costs and improve the competitiveness of Indonesia’s commodity exports. Although this policy brought about solid economic growth, the reforms did not reverse the nation’s growing economic and social inequalities, particularly among the rural Javanese. A large slice of Indonesia’s wealth came to be concentrated in the hands of the president’s family and their associates. The economic inequalities were exacerbated by the growth of the population, despite a relatively successful family-planning program in Java.

Opposition to Suharto’s rule grew steadily in the late 1980s and early 1990s, although many Indonesians were afraid to express their views openly. Suharto’s most vocal opponents were Islamic radicals and university students alienated by the government’s corruption and human rights violations. In early 1978 widespread student demonstrations prompted the government to restrict activity on college campuses and freedom of the press. In the early 1990s many dissidents gave their support to Megawati Sukarnoputri, the daughter of former president Sukarno. When she was deposed as chair of the Indonesian Democratic Party by political rivals in mid-1996, protesters rioted in Jakarta. Although Megawati did not have the support of a large part of the Indonesian population, she was the first figure in many years to pose a challenge to the incumbent president.

Ultimately, it was the economy that posed the greatest threat to Suharto’s rule. In mid-1997 an economic crisis developed when the value of Indonesia’s currency plummeted. The economic crisis was particularly acute for Indonesia’s urban middle class and the poor, as the cost of basic goods and services skyrocketed. In early 1998 riots broke out in several Indonesian cities, and in March, after Suharto was reelected unopposed for a seventh term, students staged protests on university campuses across the country. In May peaceful protests as well as violent riots escalated, and government troops killed hundreds in an attempt to contain the chaos. The growing unrest prompted Suharto to resign on May 21, and his handpicked vice president, Bucharuddin Jusuf Habibie, assumed the presidency.

In his brief term in office, President Habibie introduced processes of reform (reformasi) and tentatively set about dismantling some of the most repressive measures put in place by Suharto. Provinces were given greater control over their finances. Some of the economic privileges given to the former president’s family were revoked, but Habibie avoided any direct confrontation with Suharto, his mentor since his youth. Habibie’s popular support, which was never very strong, eroded rapidly during his term as president as a result of his failure to deal rigorously with Suharto’s legacy, as well as his involvement in a bank fund misappropriation scandal.

Indonesia held elections for the 500-seat House of Representatives in June 1999. The large number of small parties, many of which disputed the vote-counting process, delayed the declaration of results. Megawati’s new Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle received the largest number of votes (33.7 percent), but it did not gain a majority, winning only 153 seats. Golkar, which had dominated previous elections under Suharto, followed with 22.4 percent, followed by the National Awakening Party (12.6 percent), the PPP (10.7 percent), and the National Mandate Party (7.1 percent). When the People’s Consultative Assembly convened in October to choose the next president, it unexpectedly elected Abdurrahman Wahid of the National Awakening Party. For vice president it elected Megawati Sukarnoputri. A Muslim cleric, Wahid enjoyed a large and devoted following as head the Nahdlatul Ulama, Indonesia’s largest Islamic organization with about 40 million members. Although neither leader had any previous experience in government, the pairing satisfied the widespread need felt in Indonesia for political change. The new administration faced many problems, including a need to reform governance and administration, remove the Suharto legacy of inefficiency and corruption, and address the continuing economic problems of the country.

In mid-2000, however, Wahid became implicated in two multimillion-dollar corruption scandals. Although an investigative inquiry did not prove Wahid was directly or indirectly involved in the high-level graft, the scandals intensified criticisms of the president’s inattention to the country’s severe social and economic problems. In February 2001 and again in April, the House of Representatives delivered censures against Wahid alleging corruption and incompetence. Wahid rejected the allegations as baseless and ignored calls for his resignation. The legislature then voted to begin impeachment proceedings against Wahid in August. The political crisis came to a head in late July, when Wahid issued an emergency decree to suspend the legislature in an attempt to hold onto power. Police and military officials refused to obey his decree, however, and on July 23 the People’s Consultative Assembly convened in an emergency session and voted to remove Wahid from office. Vice President Megawati was chosen to replace him as president.

The Growth Of Nationalism And The Japanese Occupation

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At the beginning of the 20th century the Dutch introduced the Ethical Policy, under which farming and limited health and educational services for Indonesians were developed. Railways, roads, and interisland shipping were also expanded. The policy helped create two new social elements: a few Western-educated Indonesians and a smaller group of Indonesian entrepreneurs, who began to compete with a predominantly Chinese commercial class. The newly educated and somewhat prosperous Indonesians grew resentful of the colonial structure that denied them a role commensurate with their education and abilities.

The first important vehicle for the anti-Dutch nationalist movement was the Serikat Islam (Islamic Union), established in 1912. Growing out of a protective association for batik merchants, the Sarekat Islam by 1918 claimed a membership of more than 2 million people throughout the archipelago. The Dutch were initially conciliatory toward Sarekat Islam, and in 1916 they established the Volksraad (People’s Council). In the Volksraad, selected representatives of major population groups could deliberate and offer advice to the government. After World War I (1914-1918), however, and especially after an abortive Communist-led insurrection in 1926 and 1927, the Dutch government adopted a more repressive policy.

In the 1920s the Indonesian nationalist movement was headed by leaders who were not primarily Muslim, notably Sukarno, an advocate of complete independence who founded the Indonesian Nationalist Party (Partai Nasional Indonesia, or PNI) in 1927. Despite the Dutch arrests and exiles of Sukarno (1929-1931, 1933-1942), Muhammad Hatta (1934-1942), and other nationalist leaders and the banning of the PNI and other noncooperating parties, the nationalist movement maintained its momentum. Only after Germany overran The Netherlands during World War II (1939-1945), however, did the Dutch even hint at a postwar transfer of political authority.

In 1942 the Japanese invaded and occupied Indonesia. Anxious to mobilize Indonesian support behind their regime, the Japanese gave Sukarno and his associates symbolic political freedom. The Japanese regime was repressive, however, because they had strategic concerns about Indonesian resources, particularly petroleum, and because they feared Allied counterattacks. They forced tens of thousands of people into conscripted labor and many did not survive.

In September 1943 the Japanese established militias in Bali, Java, and Sumatra, giving thousands of young men military training and forming the nucleus of the postwar independence army. In October 1944, in order to muster support against anticipated Allied attacks, the Japanese promised eventual Indonesian independence and subsequently offered limited self-government. Throughout most of the occupation, however, Japan’s harsh behavior and the growing economic hardships alienated Indonesians.

The Dutch Influence and Control Over Indonesia

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The Dutch East India Company (see East India Company: Dutch East India Company), founded in 1602, competed with the Portuguese and the English for the archipelago’s trade. The Dutch governor-general Jan Pieterszoon Coen arrived on Java in the early 17th century and established Batavia (now Jakarta) as the Dutch headquarters. Through direct force and alliances with native leaders, Coen tried to stop the interisland network of traders from engaging in international trade. In 1629 the Dutch clashed briefly with Mataram, then settled into a period of coexistence. The Dutch captured Malacca in 1641, but Malacca no longer had complete control of the spice trade to Europe. To gain a trade monopoly, the company allowed cloves to be grown only on the island of Ambon and nutmeg and mace to be grown only in the Banda Islands. The company destroyed the spice trees in other places. In 1678 Mataram was forced to cede the Priangan region of western Java to the Dutch company.

During the 18th century the Dutch East India Company introduced coffee and other new crops to Java. It also started a system of forced deliveries of crops that relied heavily on cooperation from agreeable Javanese aristocrats and from leaders of the growing local Chinese population, whose immigration the Dutch promoted. Dutch interference in Mataram’s affairs led to the kingdom’s division, in 1755, into the principalities of Surakarta and Yogyakarta. In the Moluccas, the Dutch extended their trading rights into political control. Elsewhere in the eastern islands, most local rulers retained their internal autonomy but were drawn into special relationships with the Dutch. Financial mismanagement and a decline in trade brought the East India Company to bankruptcy, however, and in 1799 it was dissolved. The Dutch government then assumed control of the company’s Indonesian possessions.

The Consolidation of Dutch Control
Britain occupied Java briefly (1811-1816) during the Napoleonic Wars. Both the British and later the Dutch tried to centralize and reform Java’s administration. The Dutch wavered between opening the area to individual enterprise and reverting to a monopoly system. From 1825 to 1830 the Javanese prince Diponegoro led a guerrilla revolt against the Dutch. The wars, which left as many as 200,000 dead, cost the Dutch huge sums of money and they ultimately decided for a government monopoly. The Dutch annexed large areas of central Java and in 1830 introduced the Culture System, under which peasants had to devote part of their land (officially one-fifth, but usually far more) to cultivating government-designated export crops instead of rice. Extremely profitable for the Dutch, the system was blamed for widespread famine in parts of Java in the 1840s and 1850s.

In the mid-19th century Dutch liberals campaigned against the Culture System, and by the 1870s some of the system’s harshest aspects were removed. The new Liberal Policy gave farmers more freedom to grow crops they wanted. Oil, tin, and rubber later began to replace coffee, sugar, and tobacco as the main exports to Europe. These products came largely from outside Java, and the Dutch took control of the islands where they were produced. In the late 19th century the Dutch were engaged in a 30-year war with Aceh and Bali, which ended in 1908 in the former and 1909 in the latter. By this time, Sulawesi, the Moluccas, the Lesser Sunda Islands, and most of Borneo had also been brought under firmer Dutch control.

The Coming of Islam in Indonesia

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Islam arrived into Indonesia via overseas merchants, initially from southern India and Gujarāt in western India. By the late 13th century the coastal states of northern Sumatra were beginning to accept the new religion; the first Muslim ruler in northern Sumatra was Sultan Malik al Saleh of Pasai. Islam spread slowly until the rise of the sultanate of Malacca (Melaka) on peninsular Malaysia’s western coast in the early 15th century. Malacca had become a major spot on the trade route between the Moluccas (Spice Islands) and Europe, which increasingly sought Moluccan spices. As a result, Malacca gained commercial and political power and also became the major center in Southeast Asia for the spread of Islam.

Malacca’s gain came at the expense of Majapahit. Merchants from Majapahit in northern Java traveled to Malacca to trade Javanese rice for Moluccan spices, and many merchants converted to Islam. Malaccan princes in turn became powerful from their trade connections and began exerting commercial and military pressure on Majapahit. By the early 16th century, Majapahit had virtually disappeared.

Meanwhile, Portuguese traders captured Malacca in 1511. The European intrusion changed the existing patterns of trade and led to the growth of several strong Muslim states, each competing with the others for trade routes in Indonesia. One of the most powerful of these states was Aceh in northern Sumatra. During the 16th century Aceh launched frequent attacks against Portuguese Malacca, either alone or with other local Muslim states.

Under Sultan Iskandar Muda, Aceh controlled all of Sumatra’s pepper-trading ports except those in the extreme south, and its influence extended to parts of the Malay Peninsula. Another important trading state of the period was Makassar. Situated in southwestern Sulawesi, Makassar and its people converted to Islam in the early 17th century. Bantam, in western Java, was the Muslim successor to the Hindu kingdom of Sunda. Bantam controlled southern Sumatra and thus the vital Sunda Strait. In the late 16th century a new Muslim kingdom of Mataram arose in central Java and began to absorb many of Java’s maritime principalities.

And finally at now, Indonesia become the biggest moslem country.

Early kingdoms in Indonesia

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Rock inscriptions on Java dating from the 5th or 6th century tell of Taruma, an extensive Javanese kingdom that was centered near present day Jakarta. The people of Taruma observed Hindu religious rites of India and promoted irrigation works. By the beginning of the 7th century Java was home to several important kingdoms, and a harbor kingdom was also apparently well established on the southeastern coast of Sumatra. The kingdoms of this time fell into two main types of political unit: the seafaring trading states along the coasts of Sumatra, northern Java, Borneo, Sulawesi, and some of the other eastern islands; and the rice-based inland kingdoms, particularly of eastern and central Java. The greatest maritime empire was Sri Vijaya, a Mahayana Buddhist kingdom on Sumatra’s southeast coast. In the late 7th century Sri Vijaya was a center of trade with India and China and for the next five centuries controlled much of China’s trade with the western archipelago. Little archaeological evidence of the Kingdom of Sri Vijaya remains on Sumatra.

In contrast, the Hindu-Buddhist kingdoms of central and eastern Java left extensive temples, buildings, and inscriptions. These monuments and artifacts show Indian culture had vast influence on the religion and state organizations of the Javan kingdoms. The central and eastern kingdoms relied on rice agriculture and had a complex hierarchy headed by a god-king. Inscriptions reveal that under the Sanjaya family the Hindu kingdom of Mataram flourished on the Dieng Plateau in the early 8th century. In the second half of the 8th century a new Buddhist kingdom under the Sailendra dynasty developed in the nearby Kedu Plain; Mataram declined as the Sailendra kingdom rose. The Sailendras built the massive temple monument of Borobudur in the mid-9th century.

Also by the mid-9th century, rulers claiming descent from King Sanjaya (ruled 732-778) of central Java founded a new kingdom of Mataram, whose rule extended from central to eastern Java. In the early 10th century, for unknown reasons, the kingdom’s center shifted to the east, where Hindu influence on the state weakened. First under Sindok (ruled 929-947) and later under Airlangga (ruled 1019-1042), who united the eastern kingdom with Bali, Mataram became increasingly interested in overseas trade. A period of division followed, after which the new kingdom of Singosari was founded on Java in 1222. Its founder and first ruler was Angrok, a commoner. Under the Buddhist king Kertanagara (ruled 1268-1292), Singosari controlled many of the Sumatran areas formerly ruled by Sri Vijaya. Kertanagara’s successor, Vijaya (ruled 1293-1309), repelled a Mongol invasion of Java and in 1293 founded Majapahit, the greatest Javanese empire. Majapahit, under Hayam Wuruk, claimed sovereignty over much of what is now Indonesia and Singapore and parts of Malaysia.

Early history of Indonesia

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Fossil remains of homo erectus, an ancestor of modern man (homo sapiens), have been found in the Solo and Brantas river valleys in Central Java. These fossils, known as Java Man, are estimated to be about 1.8 million years old; however, few traces of human life from the more recent Paleolithic and Mesolithic times (Old and Middle Stone ages) have been excavated. Some crude stone implements, such as a rectangular ax, and rock paintings in caves of the eastern islands have been found.

Throughout history the peoples of Southeast Asia migrated extensively, giving the Indonesian archipelago a mix of more than 100 ethnicities and languages. Within this mix there has been a wide cultural gap between the coastal peoples, who probably developed irrigated wet-rice cultivation (sawah) about 2,000 years ago, and the inland peoples, who depended on shifting, slash-and-burn agriculture (ladang) until recently. The coastal regions probably developed sawah because irrigation was easier to develop near the coast and because the larger coastal populations made ladang difficult. Later, coastal peoples developed differently from inland peoples because the former were more exposed to outside influences. In time, three distinct types of Indonesian societies evolved. On the coast were the trade-oriented, deeply Islamic coastal peoples. Hindu-influenced, wet-rice cultivators developed further inland. Still further inland, typically in remote mountainous regions, were tribal groups who practiced shifting cultivation and indigenous religious beliefs.

Trade between Indonesia and India’s Bay of Bengal most likely began in the 1st and 2nd century ad. Although most historians no longer believe earlier theories that Indians conquered parts of Indonesia or settled it extensively, Indian culture exerted a powerful influence on the states that developed in the archipelago. Direct communication with China probably began between the 3rd and 5th century, as Indonesia exported cloves, tree resins, and camphor. In the early 5th century Faxian, a Chinese Buddhist pilgrim, and the princely monk Gunavarman from Kashmīr each wrote of direct voyages between western Indonesia and China.

Art and Culture of Indonesia in a Brief

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Island Hopping in Indonesia

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With its exotic scenery and fascinatingly diverse culture, Indonesia offers wonderful opportunities for adventuresome travel. Inexpensive transportation by bus and ferry, and clean, affordable accommodations make the country a haven for backpack travelers on a budget.

Because Indonesia is made up of nearly 14,000 islands, no traveler can see all of it. You’ll learn about the best places to go from other backpack travelers and from Indonesians themselves. But a bit of planning will help bring many of the most interesting attractions within your reach.

Orangutan in Sumatra

When touring Indonesia’s western island of Sumatra, consider starting in the city of Medan. To the northwest of Medan, the Gunung Leuser National Park contains the Bohorok Orang-utan Rehabilitation Centre. An estimated 5,000 wild orangutans live in the park. You can find excellent, inexpensive accommodations near the park along the banks of the Bohorok River. At the losmen (guest houses) wild monkeys steal fruit from the verandas, and each morning a guide leads a short walk to a feeding site for the orangutans.

Relaxing at Lake Toba

In the mountains south of Medan lies Lake Toba, a peaceful and beautiful volcanic crater lake. If you plan to go by bus southward through Sumatra, rest up at Toba before the long trip. During your visit, take a trip out to Samosir Island at the lake’s center to explore the villages.

Borneo Tropical rain forest

Just below the equator, on the island of Borneo, a tropical rain forest is rising out of a logged, charred wasteland. Dawn mists cling to the leaves of ginger and mango trees erupting out of a tangle of ferns, rattan and yam vines. A sparse canopy of white-barked acacias shelters them in filtered shade as the sun burns through the haze. From deep in the distance a tuneless chorus of gibbons booms over the clamor of cicadas, while a white-bellied sea eagle soars silently above.

Surfing the wild western coast

Surfers head for the long, western coast of Sumatra for its excellent surf beaches. Offshore, the Mentawai Islands feature consistently large swells. The well heeled can charter small coastal freighters that ply up and down the coast, anchoring seaward of surf-spots. After a few hours in the water the exhausted surfers return to the ship, to eat, drink, and socialize with the crew and less energetic passengers.

With no railways on Sumatra, most budget travelers get around by bus. Anyone contemplating the long trip from north to south can expect a journey of more than 48 hours, assuming the bus does not break down (they regularly do). You’ll likely spend the journey squashed into a small seat, wedged between bound chickens and bags of rice, and surrounded by thick smoke from clove-scented cigarettes. Despite the hardship, this kind of bus travel brings you closer to ordinary Indonesians. Friendly local Indonesian travelers often invite backpackers to meet their families.

A volcanic side trip

Consider crossing the Sunda Strait between the islands of Sumatra and Java by ferry. While in the vicinity, take a side trip to Krakatau. Krakatau volcano erupted in 1883 in one of history’s loudest and most spectacular natural events. The huge waves that the explosion generated inundated low-lying coastal areas of Java and Sumatra, killing tens of thousands of people. Much of Krakatau disappeared beneath the sea after the eruption, leaving a smaller but very active volcanic island, Anak Krakatau (“Child of Krakatau”).

The Beach of Kuta, Bali

The beach of Kuta is one of the first favorite beaches discovered by tourist. On the south, the beach is fenced by the airport’s runway, which gives you a breathtaking landing experience. The beach stretches as far north as the eyes can see. As short walk away north, waves will invite you to test your surfing

Kuta is very short drive away from the airport, and transportation is readily available to take you from and to Kuta to and from anywhere else in Bali.

Art and Architecture of Indonesia

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Indonesian modern art is an adaptation of modern art in other parts of the world, flavored with Indonesian cultural influences. Modern Indonesian art is often traced to the formation, in 1937, of the Union of Indonesian Artists, or Persagi (Persatuan Ahli Gambar Indonesia), and to important artists of the time such as Sudjojono. Artists were important in the nationalist movement in the 1930s and 1940s.

Indonesian artists clustered around several institutions such as the Taman Ismail Marzuki Art Center in Jakarta, a center of avant-garde art in the 1970s. The painter Djoko Pekik is known for his hard-edged expressionist paintings of the problems of daily life in Indonesia, particularly for the poor. The New Art Movement (Gerakan Seni Rupa Baru) in the 1970s and 1980s emphasized making art relevant to society by examining socioeconomic problems. Practitioners of this art included Hardi, Nanik Mirna, Jim Supangket, Dedi Eri Supria, Gendut Riyanto, Haris Purnama, and Bonyong Munni Ardhi. Contemporary artists such as Heri Dono, Agus Suwage, Tisna Sanjaya, and Arahmaiani create daring depictions of Indonesia’s social issues. Basuki Resobowo paints somber scenes from contemporary Indonesia, often based on themes of struggle and resistance. The more liberal environment in Indonesia since May 1998 has brought a surge of contemporary paintings dealing with these topics, which were forbidden during the Suharto era. Many of Indonesia’s contemporary artists, such as Basuki Resobowo, spent long periods in exile during Suharto’s rule.

Indonesia has a long and grand architectural tradition. Indian influence is evident in the large Buddhist monument of Borobudur and the Hindu temple of Prambanan, both in central Java. Borobudur is Indonesia’s most famous tourist attraction. Built in the 9th century, it is a representation of the Buddhist vision of the cosmos. Prambanan, the largest Hindu temple complex in Java, was built during the 8th and 10th centuries. Arabic and Chinese Muslims have influenced the architectural style of mosques throughout Java.

The government, with international aid, has worked to preserve much of its architectural heritage, including Borobudur. Some sites, however, are threatened by rapid economic development. Meanwhile, many of the new structures in Jakarta, particularly in the city’s business center, show the modernist and postmodernist influences of contemporary architecture. Indonesian architect Soejoedi Wirjoatmodjo has played a prominent role in modern designs.

Coastline of Indonesia

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Due to the large number of islands, Indonesia has about 54,720 km (about 34,000 mi) of coastline, much more than most countries. The country claims all waters surrounding its islands to 12 nautical miles (22 km/14 mi) from the coastline. Indonesia’s exclusive economic zone, an area of the ocean in which the country controls fishing and other rights, extends 200 nautical miles (370 km/230 mi) from its shore.

Much of the northeastern coast of Sumatra and the coasts of Kalimantan and Papua are low and swampy with extensive mangrove forests. Along the coastal regions of northern Java, northeastern Sumatra, and southwestern Sulawesi, local villagers have developed ponds in the brackish tidal waters of mangrove forests. The ponds are used for the farming of fish and prawns. When world prawn prices rose in the early 1980s, villagers expanded the ponds into paddy fields lying further inland. They used pumps to mix seawater and irrigation water to help the fish and prawns thrive.

In stark contrast, the coastlines along the southern edges of Java, Sumatra, and some of the smaller islands of eastern Indonesia (such as Bali, Lombok, Sumbawa, and Sumba) are exposed to the swells that roll in from the Indian Ocean. These areas contain some of the world’s best surfing beaches, attracting large numbers of tourists. Bali is particularly renowned for its beaches. Tourists are also attracted to the coral reefs and atolls that extend down the southwestern coast of Sulawesi and surround many of the smaller islands of eastern Indonesia.