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The Folk Dances
2007-04-30 19:27:00
The Folk Dances Like most of the performing arts of the Orient dance in Indonesia is believed by many scholars to have had its beginning in religious workship. Even today, many dances are considered sacred or can be traced back to their early spiritual associations. Among these are not only the temple dances of Bali, but also such seemingly profane dances, such as the Bedoyo Ketawang of Solo, performed only on such rare occasions that they are in peril of becoming lost for the lack of younger generation dancers able to perform them.Dance traditions today are as widely diverse as the various ethnic cultures of which they are part. Nurtured to refined perfection in the royal Javanese courts and princely homes the classical dances of Central Java are highly stylized expressions which have probably already attained their basic movements during the height of the Hindu-Javanese culture from the 8th to the 13th century. From the courts, those dances eventually reached the broad s...

The Performing Art
2007-04-30 19:25:00
The Perform ing Art From graceful court and temple dances to charming folk dances and boisterous play, the performing arts of Indonesia offer an astounding range of types and styles for the visitor to study or enjoy, reflecting, as they, do, the soul and traditions of the various ethnic groups who support them. Music, dance and drama are very often interwined, such as the ludruk transvestite theatre of East Java and the lenong folk theatre of Jakarta, both known also for their slapstick humor and early Shakespearean simplicity on their stage settings. An important form of indigenous theatre is the puppets play, of which the most celebrated is the wayang kulit shadow play of Java where the characters are represented by the shadows of intricately carved and painted flat leather puppets, cast on a ...

The Cuisine
2007-04-30 19:24:00
The Cuisine The staple food of most of Indonesia is rice. On some of the islands in eastern Indonesia, staple food traditionally ranged from corn, sago, cassava to sweet potatoes, though this is changing as rice becomes more popular. From the surrounding seas as well as from fresh water fisheries fish is abundant and of great variety, such as lobsters, oysters, prawns and shrimps, squid, crab, etc. Fish features prominently in the diet as fresh, salted, dried, smoked or a paste. Coconut is found everywhere and besides being produced for cooking oil, its milk the juice from the white meat is an ingredient for many dishes. Spices and hot chili peppers are the essence of most cooking, and in some areas they are used generously such as in West Sumatra and North Sulawesi. Each province or area ha...
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The Religion
2007-04-30 19:23:00
The Religion The majority [about 85%) of the population follows Islam. Freedom of religion is implemented by the Indonesian Constitution, however, which is defined in the First Principle of the State Philosophy’ “Pancasila”, which upholds a “Belief in One Supreme God

The Climate
2007-04-30 19:22:00
The Climate Indonesia’s climate is definitely tropical. There is no Autumn or Winter and distinctive “dry” and “wet” seasons share the year. The East Monsoon, from June to September, brings dry weather while the West Monsoon, from December to March is moistureladen, bringing rain. The transitional period between these two seasons is interspersed by the occasional heavy rain shower, but even in the midst of the West Monsson season, temperatures range from 21 degrees (70_F) to 33 degrees celcious 190_F except at higher altitudes which can be much cooler. Heaviest rainfalls are usually recorded in December and January and humidity is generally between 75% and 100%.

The Flora and Fauna
2007-04-30 19:19:00
The Flora and Fauna British naturalist A. R. Wallace (1823-1931) postulated an imaginary line (named after him Walace’s Line) as the dividing line between Asiatic and Australian fauna. It passes between Bali and Lombok islands between Kalimantan and Sulawesi, then continues south of the Philippines and north of Hawaii. This theory probably explains the presence of species of fauna familiar to both Asia and Australia found in Indonesia. However, there are species indigenous to Indonesia, like the “orang utan” apes of Sumatra and Kalimantan, the giant “komodo” lizards which are the only ones of their kind in the world today roaming free on the island of Komodo; the one homed rhinoceros of Java, the wild “banteng” oxen, tigers and many other species which...

The Language and Dialects
2007-04-30 19:12:00
There are about 583 languages and dialects spoken in the archipelago. There normally belong to the different ethnic groups of the population. Some of the distinctly different local languages are: Acehnese, Batak, Sundanese, Javanese, Sasak, Tetum of Timor, Dayak, Minahasa, Toraja, Buginese, Halmahera, Ambonese, Ceramese, and several Irianese languages. To make the picture even more colorful, these languages are also spoken in different dialects. Bahasa Indonesia is the national language which is akin to Malay, written in Roman script and based on European orthography. In all tourist destination areas English is the number one foreign language fairly spoken and writer, whereas some Dutch is till spoken and understood in the bigger cities and French increasing in its popularity at the better hote...
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The Culture and Art
2007-04-30 19:09:00
The Culture and Art Indonesia is rich in art and culture which are intertwined with religion and age-old traditions from the time of early migrants with Western thoughts brought by Portuguese traders and Dutch colonists. The basic principles which guide life include the concepts of mutual assistance or “gotong royong” and consultations or “musyawarah” to arrive at a consensus or “mufakat” Derived from rural life, this system is still very much in use in community life throughout the country. Though the legal system is based on the old Dutch penal code, social life as well as the rites of passage are founded on customary or “adat” law which differs from area to area. “Adat” law has a binding impact on Indonesian life and it may be conclud...

The Capital City
2007-04-30 19:08:00
The nation’s capital, Jakarta, has a fascinating and significant history. It started as a small harbour town called Sunda Kelapa, but its founding dates back to the year 157 when it was named Jayakarta by Fatahillah of the neighbouring Sultanate of Banten.The name Jayakarta means City of Great Victory but this was later changed to Batavia under the Dutch. Now as Jakarta, the centre of government, business and industry, it spreads over an area of more than 650 sq.km 1410 sq miles) and has a population of over eight million people.It is also designated as a special territory, (Daerah Khusus Ibukota - DKI), which means that is is administered by a governor and enjoys the same status of a province. Jakarta is the main gateway to Indonesia. It is a contrast of modern western architecture and traditional Indonesian culture. Its rapid growth into a metropolitan city reflects the economic, political, social and industrial development of the nation.In recent years, Jakarta has expanded...
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History
2007-04-30 19:08:00
First recorded attempts to invade Indonesia were by the notorious Mongol Emperor Kubilai Khan who was driven back in 1293. Arab traders and merchants laid the foundations for the gradual spread of Islam to the region which did not replace Hinduism and Buddhism as the dominant religions until the end of the 16th century. Small Moslem kingdoms developed and grew, but none anticipated the strength and persistence of European invasions which followed. In 1292, Marco Polo became one of the first recorded Europeans to set foot on the islands, but it wasn’t until much later that the Portuguese arrived in pursuit of spices. In 1509, Portuguese trading posts were established in the strategic commercial centre of Malacca on the Malay peninsula and it was from here that they began to control trade Routes.The Dutch followed at the turn of the 16th century and succeeded in ousting the Portuguese to the easternmost islands where some ports were controlled by another major European power, Sp...
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The Livehood
2007-04-30 18:12:00
<!–google_ad_client = “pub-8825118283689551″;google _ad_width = 336;google_ad_height = 280;google_ad_format = “336×280_as”;google_ad_ type = “text”;//2007-04-30: jogja solo big blendgoogle_ad_channel = “1880273058″;google_color_bor der = “FFFFFF”;google_color_bg = “FFFFFF”;google_color_link = “000000″;google_color_text = “000000″;google_color_url = “000000″;//–> <script type=”text/javascript” src=”http://pagead2.googlesyndicati on.com/pagead/show_ads.js”> The Livehood Although the industrial sector of the economy is gradually gaining importance as a result of conscientious government policies, Indonesia is still predominantly agrarian. Major agricultural products for domestic consumption and export include rice, corn, cassava, soybeans, ...

Wayang Puppet Theatre
2007-04-30 18:09:00
function myopen(s_url) { s_param = “width=600,height=600,scrollbars=1, resizable=yes”; s_url = s_url +’&form_name=myform’; s_name=”pilihan”; new_window = window.open(s_url+”,s_name,s_param) ; new_windo Wayang Puppet Theatre in Indonesia UNESCO proclaimed the Wayang Puppet Theatre as a Masterpiece of Oral and Intangible Heritage of Humanity on 7th November 2003. It was proclaimed, with 28 other masterpiece around the world, enhancing the first list of 19 cultural spaces and expressions selected in May 2001. The Proclamation of Masterpiece of the Oral and Intangible Heritage of Humanity programme was created in 1997 at the 29th session of the General Conference of UNESCO. Wayang is an ancient form of story telling originated on the Indonesian island of Java. For ten centuries wayang flourished at the royal courts of Java and Bali as well as in rural areas. Today, wayang is practiced not only on Java and Bali, but also on the islands o...

Stone-expert Mission in Borobudur World Heritage Site
2007-04-30 18:08:00
In consultation with the Department of Culture and Tourism of the Republic of Indonesia and the World Heritage Centre, a technical mission was organized on Borobudur World Heritage Site from 27 September to 7 October 2006. Italian stone-expert Prof. Costantino Meucci inspected the site in collaboration with the team of conservationists from the Borobudur Heritage Conservation Institute. Despite the great efforts made over the years for the conservation of the stones, the monitoring programme conducted by the Borobudur Heritage Conservation Institute has shown that the rate of material deterioration of the stone continues to increase, especially as far as scaling is concerned (but also alveolization and cementation). Even if a large part of this deterioration of the stone is natural and cannot be stopped, it seems that it could be reduced by more adapted maintenance practices and treatments on the site. The Mission hence aimed at reviewing the current methodolo...
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Interdisciplinary research in Prambanan
2007-04-30 18:07:00
Interdisciplinary research in Prambanan World Heritage Compounds and Taman Sari Water Castle in Yogyakarta. function myopen(s_url) { s_param = “width=600,height=600,scrollbars=1, resizable=yes”; s_url = s_url +’&form_name=myform’; s_name=”pilihan”; new_window = window.open(s_url+”,s_name,s_param) ; new_window.focus(); } (Date: February 6, 2007) Within the framework of the project entitled “Protection and Rehabilitation of Cultural Heritage in the Earthquake-affected areas of the Special Province of Yogyakarta and the Province of Central Java” funded by the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, UNESCO Office, Jakarta in close collaboration with the Department of Culture and Tourism, is currently implementing two major interdisciplinary research programmes in Prambanan World Heritage Compounds (including Lumbung and Sewu Temples) and Taman Sari Water Castle, which have been affected by the 27 May 2006 ear...
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Earthquake Rehabilitation
2007-04-30 18:05:00
International Experts Meeting for the Rehabilitation of Earthquake -affected Prambanan World Heritage Site and Taman Sari Water Castle, 5-8 March 2007 - Yogyakarta, Indonesia function myopen(s_url) { s_param = “width=600,height=600,scrollbars=1, resizable=yes”; s_url = s_url +’&form_name=myform’; s_name=”pilihan”; new_window = window.open(s_url+”,s_name,s_param) ; new_window.focus(); } (Date: March 7, 2007) PRESS RELEASE International Experts Meeting for the Rehabilitation of Earthquake-affected Prambanan World Heritage Site and Taman Sari Water Castle, 5-8 March 2007 - Yogyakarta, Indonesia Jakarta, 5 March 2007 - An International Experts Meeting on the rehabilitation of earthquake-affected Prambanan World Heritage Site and Taman Sari Water Castle is currently gathering international and national experts in Yogyakarta (from 5-8 March 2007) in order to prepare an integrated action pl...

Tourism in Indonesia
2007-04-30 17:57:00
Tourism in Indonesia is being developed through two main programs, covering tourism and tourism products. There are five supporting programs, namely’ control of environmental pollution, education, training and tourism guidance; tourism research and development; tourism infrastructure development; and the supervision and development of arts and culture. The target for tourism set in Repelita VI is 6.5 million foreign tourists with US$9 billion in foreign exchange. Meanwhile 84.2 million domestic tourists are expected to spend nine (9) trillion rupiahs. Through various activities, tourism is expected to generate 900.000 new job opportunities. DOMESTIC TOURISM PROMOTION Tourist objects and tourist attractions are being introduced to the Indonesian people to promote domestic tourism. Group tourist awareness (Pokdarwis) has been established as moving spirit for tourist development such as the improvement of tourist attractions to socialize the Seven Char...
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Angkringan Lik Man
2007-04-27 16:42:00
Angkringan Lik Man, Taste the Night With Traditional Dinner. Do you know a famous place in Yogyakarta where university students, cyber communities such as bloggers and chatters, journalists, artists, pedicab drivers, and even hookers get relax and involved in a warm conversation? When you studied in this student city, where did you usually hold a discussion with your friends about your paper’s themes of tasks? One of the places you mention must be angkringan Lik Man that is located at the north of Tugu railway station. It is understandable since the place is famous with Yogyakarta communities. No formal rules apply in this place but tolerance where people are willing to shares space, for example, and to aware of each other’s feeling. YogYES invites you to enjoy the nuance of angkringan Lik Man as many other people has experienced as well. From Malioboro Street, you can walk northwards until you reach an alley right to the north of Tugu railway station. If you turn left,...