Elizabeth_Rini_Yuliastuti wrote:Wow!!!
I knew thats my country is the most beautiful place in world and I proud of to be Indonesian people.
Samuel .. I couldn't say anything when I saw your post about Indonesia. Amazing!!!
I really proud of you that my country has a people like you who can tell and descripe my country very well.
I wait another post of Indonesia specially Bali.
All the best and happy travel!
(Z)

Hi Elizabeth! Thank you so much..Indonesia is really amazing country. I'm proud to be Indonesian too...
This thread will expose many and many about indonesia's spots of nature and cultural heritage. Tourism in Indonesia now is step foward more modern and attractive. It's time to show the rich of Indonesia to foreign people.

Lake Toba



Lake Toba, also known as Danau Toba, is the most famous tourist attraction in North Sumatra. Lake Toba, located in the heart of the Batak country, is the largest lake in Indonesia and also in Southeast Asia with a surface area over one thousand square kilometers. Lake Toba is also the deepest lake in the world with over four hundred and fifty meters deep



The Toba caldera complex in Northern Sumatra, Indonesia consists of four overlapping volcanic craters that adjoin the Sumatran "volcanic front". The youngest and fourth caldera is the world’s largest Quarternary caldera (100 by 30 kilometres) and intercepts the three older calderas.




An estimate of 2500-3000 cubic kilometres of dense-rock equivalent pyroclastic material, nicknamed the Youngest Toba tuff, was blasted from the youngest caldera during one of the largest single eruptions in geologic history. Following the "Youngest Toba tuff eruption", a typical resurgent dome formed within the new caldera, joining two half-domes separated by a longitudinal graben.There are at least four cones, four stratovolcanoes and three craters visible in the lake.



Most of the people who live around Lake Toba are ethnically Bataks. Traditional Batak houses are noted for their distinctive roofs (which curve upwards at each end, as a boat's hull does) and their colorful deco

Dayak Tribe Culture



Dayak is a name of tribes that identifies the various indigenous peoples on the island of Borneo by the Indonesian part known as Kalimantan. They are divided into about 450 ethno-linguistic groups. Despite some differences, these group share physical features, architecture, language, an oral tradition, customs, social structure, weapons, agricultural technology and a similar outlook on life.



Dayak population estimated at about four million spread over the four Indonesian provinces in Kalimantan / Borneo, the Malaysian territories of Sabah and Serawak and Brunei Darussalam. In Sabah, the Dayak are known as Kadazandusun.



In the past, anthropologists described the Dayak as the "legendary natives of Borneo" who lived in longhouse and engaged in head-hunting. Today, they form a small minority, the loser in an era of swift change and modernization.



The original Dayak identity their cultural, economic, religious and political life has been preserved through their oral tradition. Experts agree that there are many basic affinitives in the legends of the various Dayak groups. Sadly, though, all the original elements of Dayak life as described in the legends have suffered significantly from external elements.

Lorentz National Park



Lorentz National Park - one of the World's Heritage site with 2.4 million hectaresis the largest protected area in South-East Asia. It is the only protected area in the world to incorporate a continuous, intact transect from snowcap to tropical marine environment.



The site is the largest protected area in Southeast Asia (2.35 mil. ha.) and the only protected area in the world which incorporates a continuous, intact transect from snow cap to tropical marine environment, including extensive lowland wetlands. Located at the meeting point of two colliding continental plates, the area has a complex geology with on-going mountain formation as well as major sculpting by glaciation and shoreline accretion which has formed much of the lowland areas.



These processes have led to a high level of endemism and the area supports the highest level of biodiversity in the region. The area also contains fossil sites that record the evolution of life on New Guinea.



An outstanding example of the biodiversity of New Guinea, Lorentz is one of the most ecologically diverse national parks in the world. It is the only nature reserve in the Asia-Pacific region to contain a full altitudial array of ecosystems spanning from marine areas, mangrove, tidal and freshwater swamp forest, lowland and montane rainforest, alpine areas, and equatorial glaciers.



At 4884 meters, Puncak Jaya (formerly Carstensz Pyramid) is the tallest mountain between the Himalayas and the Andes.

Wow your post is great! I visited most places that you put on your post and I love them all.

Indonesia is great and I suggest it to everyone to visit your country. It is beautiful!

Marco_van_de_Kamp wrote:Wow your post is great! I visited most places that you put on your post and I love them all.

Indonesia is great and I suggest it to everyone to visit your country. It is beautiful!

hi Marco..! thank you so much! Indonesia is great, but many places still unexplored. The gouvernment couldn't promote Indonesia well. I hope you can visit Indonesia again and bring many of other visitors! It's time to Visit Indonesia..yeah!

Dreamland Beach



As one of the most gorgeous beaches on the island, it is also renowned for its dangerous shorebreak.This place is classified as one of the best surfing sites, but suitable for advanced surfers only.



Dreamland Beach is a beach located on the Bukit peninsula, on the island of Bali, Indonesia.The beach provides basic accommodation and cafes for surfers and day trippers. One of the most beautiful beaches on the island



You have to walk a little then down a path of stairs to reach the beach.. Once on the sand, you will find rented umbrellas and beach benches facing the beach. You can also order food and drinks from the local traditional cafés available all around the beach.



The cafes might seem common and usual, but many of them actually serve European dishes which is out of the ordinary for this setting. Planning to spend the night? Some of the local cafes offer humble accommodations at a reasonable price (ranged between Rp 50,000 to Rp 200,000 per night). In the evening, enjoy the sunset whilst several tourists build a campfire on the beach, or just play a light game of beach ball. As for me, I prefer swimming offshore and enjoy the sunset from there.



There are not many activities to be done here at night. The electricity is turned off after 10 pm and thus candles are lit to chase away the deep darkness of the night. After having dinner, the best thing you can do is to read a book or have a draft of cold beer. Otherwise, you can go upstairs to where most of the rooms are and enjoy the scenery. The moon’s reflection dancing in a flurry of lights on the ocean’s surface is simply breathtaking.



During the peak season (July and December), some of the rooms on this floor will be more packed so at least you are not alone and will have company to chat with along with your own group of friends. It is always interesting meeting other travelers and sharing experiences. When you finally feel like sleeping, go back to your room and snuggle under the blanket. The lullaby of tides breaking on the shore is such a peaceful sound to sleep to. Being in Dreamland is like being in a dream you wish you will never wake up from.

Minangkabau Culture



The Minangkabau ethnic group (also known as Minang or Padang) is indigenous to the highlands of West Sumatra, in Indonesia. Their culture is matrilineal, with property and land passing down from mother to daughter, while religious and political affairs are the province of men (although some women also play important roles in these areas). Today 4 million Minangs live in West Sumatra, while about 3 million more are scattered throughout many Indonesian and Malay peninsula cities and towns.



The Minangs are the world's largest matrilineal society, in which properties such as land and houses are inherited through female lineage. Some scholars argue that this might have caused the diaspora (Minangkabau, "merantau") of Minangkabau males throughout the Malay archipelago to become scholars or to seek fortune as merchants. As early as the age of 7, boys traditionally leave their homes and live in a surau (a prayer house & community centre) to learn religious and cultural (adat) teachings. When they are teenagers, they are encouraged to leave their hometown to learn from schools or from experiences out of their hometown so that when they are adults they can return home wise and 'useful' for the society and can contribute their thinking and experience to run the family or nagari (hometown) when they sit as the member of 'council of uncles'.



The name Minangkabau is thought to be a conjunction of two words, minang ("victorious") and kabau ("buffalo"). There is a legend that the name is derived from a territorial dispute between the Minangkabau and a neighbouring prince. To avoid a battle, the local people proposed a fight to the death between two water buffalo to settle the dispute.



The prince agreed and produced the largest, meanest, most aggressive buffalo. The Minangkabau produced a hungry baby buffalo with its small horns ground to be as sharp as knives. Seeing the adult buffalo across the field, the baby ran forward, hoping for milk. The big buffalo saw no threat in the baby buffalo and paid no attention to it, looking around for a worthy opponent. But when the baby thrust his head under the big bull's belly, looking for an udder, the sharpened horns punctured and killed the bull, and the Minangkabau won the contest and the dispute.



The roofline of traditional houses in West Sumatra, called Rumah Gadang (Minangkabau, "big house"), curve upward from the middle and end in points, in imitation of the water buffalo's upward-curving horns.

Bunaken Marine National Park



What visit to North Sulawesi is complete without one day to view the spectacular coral gardens of the Bunaken Marine Reserve. Declared a Marine Park in 1991, it is acknowledged as one of the top dive sites in the world. It is about 40 minutes drive from the resort to one of the dive centers or to the central harbor, where a motorized outrigger canoe or dive boat will whisk you to Bunaken Island in about 45 minutes.



Bunaken National Park is Marine Park with the most various species in the world. The fascination under water life in water territory of this a real Bunaken national park varieties, specific, on unique, and exotic, make this area as the beautiful North Sulawesi tourism and grow as one of famous marine park tourism object in the world.



It is because of this location nearness with Manado city that only about 6 km from the downtown area, or from Tongkeina in Pisok foreland even only 3,5 km. Access to this location also very fluent, can be gone through speedboat within 20 up to 60 minutes.



The Reserve comprises of the Bunaken Islands, Siladen, Nain and Montehage, the dive and snorkeling sites are numerous and diverse. The drop off wall at Liang Cave in particular is rare in the world and described by enthusiasts as spectacular with caves, gullies and caverns harboring an immense wealth of marine life. Brilliantly colored fish dart amongst the vibrant coral and the water is clear and warm. It is ideal for the first snorkels or experienced who divers alike.

Ijen Crater



Ijen Crater is the biggest crater lake in Java. The sulfur crater lake lies between a natural dams of deeply etched rock. It is 200 meters deep and contains about 36million cubic meters of steaming acid water, shrouded in a smelling swirling sulfur cloud. Inside the crater the different color and size of stones are found. Indeed the crater of Ijen is beautiful garden of stone as well.



The Ijen Plateau lies in the centre of the Ijen-Merapi Maelang Reserve, which extends over much of the mountainous region directly west of Banyuwangi and borders on the Baluran National Park in the north east. As at Mt. Bromo , the caldera is best viewed from the air. Fortunately, almost all commercial flights operating between Denpasar - Surabaya, Yogyakarta or Jakarta usually fly, if not directly over, then close by Ijen plateau, where the seemingly luminous blue/green crater lake forms an unmistakable landmark. It is a beautiful scenery and located about 32 km to the north west of Banyuwangi.



The principal attraction at Ijen is the large, sulphureous crater lake which lies hidden between sheer walls of deeply furrowed rock at more than 200 meters. The Ijen crater itself lies at approximately 2,300 meters above sea level. It forms a twin volcano with the now extinct Mount Merapi. The enormous crater lake, which is 200 meters deep and covers an area of more than meters, a million square meters, contains about 36 million cubic meters of steaming, acid water.



Ijen crater shows a special type of volcanic feature common to Indonesia, about 1 kilometer in diameter and 175 meters deep. The floor is covered completely by a warm lake, milky blue green in colours held back by a dam built many years ago by the Dutch, in order to keep the hot, mineral laden water from raining the crop lands below.



The crater can be reached from either the east or the west by any kinds of vehicles, but the second part of the trip covers distance 3 km on foot (jungle track). However, the latter is more popular approach, since the climb from the road's end to the edge of the lake is only one and a half hours. And a walk around the lake takes a full day.

The temperature drops at night, near the crater rim it can fall to about 5° Celcius. The road ends at Jampit, where very basic shelter is available. It is also possible to sleep in the old vulcanology station further up the hill, now used by sulphur collectors, but permission must be obtained in advance.