Mention the word ‘snake’, and generally 95% of people run for the hills!. This is probably the worst thing you could do as you will arouse the snake’s attention. As most bushwalkers will tell you, it’s better to stand still and let the reptile get on with his business and go past you. Of course there are those times when you unavoidably step on one and then shit hits the fan, so to speak. It happened to me in Australia one particular year, and although I was lucky not to be bitten, the partner of the snake underfoot was not impressed. The snake in mention was a King Brown, one of the deadliest snakes in the world, and promptly chased me down a dry gully. In Indonesia on my travels I have come across snakes numerous times and just applied common sense in our meetings. Chances are that you will never come across a snake unless you travel in the jungles or open grasslands. A majority of tourists will never see a snake as they never venture off the beaten track.
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When I write ‘climbing mountains’, I don’t mean the likes of Everest or Mount Kinabalu, but rather those volcanoes, distinct or otherwise, located across the archipelago. Over the decades I have scaled quite a few. There are several matters you should take into consideration when the desire to do a Sir Edmund Hillary on any climb. First and foremost make sure you let somebody know the day you go out to climb and this applies to any major trek you take on in Indonesia. The simple reason being that if anything did go wrong on your sojourn then it will give the relative authorities an idea where to look for you. This is only common sense. In my opinion it is always advisable to use a local guide as they know the best ways up and down the mountain.
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Sunday, the 20th of May, 1908: A handful of young Indonesians, led by Wahidin Sudirohusodo, and supported by Soetomo, Gunawan and Suradji — declared the formation of “Boedi Oetomo”, laying the foundations for our independence. The movement would awake Indonesians to Indonesia — to its rich cultural heritage, and age-old values. It was not a decision made in haste. The group had made a thorough study of our history to find the missing thread that could possibly reunite us into one nation.
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The concern over the world’s endangered indigenous languages is not a new issue. In 1951, UNESCO held a convention on the language of education on a worldwide basis. Its main purpose was to promote and preserve indigenous languages from extinction. Attended by a committee of language pundits worldwide, the convention produced a general consensus that a child’s mother tongue should become the medium of instruction.
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Rujak (roujack) or rojhak is a sweet sour salad made from fruits and vegetables and is mostly eaten as a snack between meals throughout Indonesia. The fruit and vegetable variations are many. Some regions even have rujak in their array of ceremonial foods.
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Across Indonesia today it is a public holiday in celebration of Muhammad’s birthday. Also called Maulid Nabi, government offices and numerous shops are closed, and, no newspapers are printed for this day.
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Diving in the waters of Indonesia is surreal and as you slip into the depths, a whole new world encircles you, enthralls you and each dive is an experience never forgotten. The waters around the Maluku Islands is no exception and probably provides some of the best diving in the archipelago although some will dispute this. The Maluku islands are a string of islands stretching between Sulawesi and Papua in the eastern part of the Indonesian archipelago. Ambon is a tiny island in the middle of this group of island and consists of two peninsula’s connected together in their eastern tip. Most of the diving and snorkelling in Ambon is done along the southern coast. Ambon has a multitude of dive locations. A cluster of tiny islands in the western tip of Ambon called Nusa Tiga is spectacular and in the bigger island of Seram located in the north is another. Other dive locations can be found in Saparua, Molana and Nusa Laut islands to the east of Ambon, about an hour and a half speedboat ride from Latuhalat. A day trip option is the site at Molana island.
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Being Visit Indonesia Year 2008 it was only obvious that passenger arrivals would increase steadily and especially to the safe tourist island of Bali. When I was over in Bali recently, there was an increase in domestic travellers and although this is good to see for the economy of such a small island, it is the other islands in the archipelago that desperately need the tourist dollar. According to Communications Minister Djusman Syafii Djamal predicted the number of air passengers in the country will rise 18 per cent this year from 36.13 million last year. Djusman said his prediction is based on the past performance, pointing out the past seven years have seen a four-fold increase in the number of air passengers in the country. Travellers hate to go by car or bus, with badly battered roads in most parts of the country having been damaged by rain triggered floods in the past several months, he said.
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The Javanese traditional kris — a wavy, double-blade dagger, sometimes spelt keris — has a significance that goes beyond its role as a weapon. A kris can be a symbol of a man’s social status and power. Some kris are believed to possess supernatural qualities and only certain people are allowed to make them. Only master craftsmen are believed to have the skills and knowledge required to make a kris with special magical powers. Banyu Sumurup kampong is famous for producing kris — both souvenir kris and kris that possess magical powers. The kampong, which is located in Imogiri, Bantul, 25 kilometers south of Yogyakarta city, is home to 70-year-old master craftsman Djiwo Diharjo. Djiwo is well known, not only among government officials around Indonesia, but also with foreigners.
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Rice is our staff of life, we eat a lot of it. And after years and years of consuming rice daily, we have become very creative when it comes to making rice dishes with leftover rice. Though our renown nasi goreng is not always prepared out of leftover rice, we first think about making the leftovers into the most versatile rice dish in Indonesia.
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