Tourism Article

CONTENTS
(Click the links below)

WELCOME T0 INDONESIAN ARCHIPELAGO [Part-I]
(From Ithoy'S Page 04)

WELCOME TO INDONESIAN ARCHIPELAGO [Part-II]
(From Ithoy'S Page 05)

WELCOME TO "DKI" JAKARTA
(Current Edition)
Introduction
History, People
& Religion
Geography & Climate
Culture
Transportation & Tele-
communication
Other Public Services
Places of Interest
Monas
National Museum
Ancol
Pulau Seribu
TMII
Ragunan Zoo & other places
Additional Information

SIDE NOTE :
If you are interested to know more about Indonesia, you may send an email to me and I will be glad to provide the information. Lately, there are so may rumors about my country in the Internet, magazines, newspapers, radio, TV, etc, due to the political instability. There are also some governments who suggest their citizens not to visit Indonesia for the time being because they consider it unsafe. Objectively, I have to admit that there are some riots in several parts of Indonesia, but it does not mean that the whole country is not safe at all. There are still more safe and peaceful places in Indonesia that are worthy to be visited. As I have explained in my article, Indonesia consists of THOUSANDS of islands. It is not a part of continent, such as Europe or America. The peacefulness in a certain island or province will not be easily bothered by a riot happened in other part. For example, my hometown, Manado, in North Celebes Province, is located THOUSAND MILES from Aceh or Timor which are recently quite unsafe. It is also separated by seas and even takes more than 5 hours by airplane to make a trip from one to another. Another fact that lots of tourists keep visiting Bali, which is just a strait away from Lombok, an island that previously experienced riot. Nothing happened in Bali at that time. What I am trying to convince you is... there is no reason to be afraid to visit Indonesia right now! I myself live in Jakarta, the capital city of Indonesia. I can still see foreign tourists hang around here without being afraid of anything. However, if you have a plan to spend your vacation in Indonesia, just send me an email, and I will give you information about the latest progress of the situation here. I can also assist you with information about some reliable tour & travel agencies, or even recommend  a guide if you need one. Just click my "EMAIL ME" section and choose "VS06 Tourism Information" as the subject of the email, even if you use a web-based email account. Thank you very much for your kind attention!

Introduction

Jakarta is the biggest city in Indonesia and even in Southeast Asia. It is also the capital city of the Republic of Indonesia. Officially it is called DKI Jakarta. "DKI" is the abbreviation of "Daerah Khusus Ibukota", which means "The Special Region of the Capital City". Although it is a city, but its rank is equal to a province, because the city is lead by a governor. DKI Jakarta itself consists of five mayoralties: Central, South, East, North and West Jakarta.

As a capital city, Jakarta is the center of government, business and industry in Indonesia. All the central offices or headquarters of governmental departments, ministry and institutions, as well as most of the big companies, banks and foreign embassies, are located in this city. Jakarta is also the main gateway to Indonesia with its Soekarno-Hatta International Airport. Yet, it is not the only gateway to Indonesia. Some other parts of Indonesia, including Bali, also have international airports.

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History, People & Religion

Jakarta has a remarkable history. It has been a trading center, started as a small harbor town called Sunda Kelapa, but its actual founding dates back to the year 1527, when it was named Jayakarta by Fatahillah of the neighboring Sultanate of Banten. Jayakarta means "city of great victory". During the 17^th century, it served as the capital of the Dutch East Indies with the name Batavia. Reminders of this period can still be seen today in the architecture of some parts of North Jakarta. After the independence day of Indonesia, it was renamed as Jakarta, with area of more than 410 sq miles or 650 sq kilometers. The recent area is much bigger than the old town.

The indigenous people or ethnic group of the Jakarta area is Betawi. However, as the capital of the republic, Jakarta has become one of the fastest growing urban centers in Indonesia, with population of more than 8 million. Today Jakarta's population is composed of many ethnic and racial groups, such as Sundanese, Javanese, Balinese, Madurans, Minangkabaus, Bataks, Bugis, Manadonese, Malays, Bajars, Chinese, Arabs, Indians and Europeans. As time goes by, inter-marriage has given birth to a population group that is unique to the city.

As Jakarta consists of so many ethnic groups, the people are Moslems, Christians, Catholics, Buddhists and Hinduisms.

The biggest mosque in Jakarta is the Istiqlal Mosque, located in Central Jakarta. The oldest mosque in Jakarta is the Kebon Jeruk Jami' Mosque on Hayam Wuruk Street. It was built in 1718. At that time, a couple of Chinese Moslem muhajirin (fugitives) were forced to leave their country and went to Batavia, named Chan Tsin Hwu and his wife Fatima Hwu. The couple is credited by having built the mentioned mosque.

Just a few meters from Istiqlal Mosque, there is Cathedral (Catholic) Church, and not so far from there, you can find a Christian (Protestant) church, named Immanuel Church. The oldest church in Jakarta is the Sion Church, built between 1693 and 1696 to serve the Portuguese-speaking community in Batavia. Formerly known as the Portugeesche Buitenkerk. It can be found on Pangeran Jayakarta Street.

One of the old Chinese (Buddhist) temples in Jakarta is the Jin-de Yuan Temple. It is located in Glodok. In the 17^th century, this busy business district was located just outside Batavia's town walls, and was reserved for Chinese residents.

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Geography & Climate

Jakarta lies on the north coast of Java Island. There are two main rivers flow through the city, Ciliwung and Cisadane.  The city is located on the alluvial plain of sedimentation, formed by many centuries. The soil is very fertile. Although the city is crowded by so many buildings, but the government has made some 'green zones' like parks or gardens, as the heart of the city. The green zones cannot be used for buildings. There are also trees and green plants at the banks of almost all the main roads inside the city, providing oxygen and fresh air to reduce air pollution.

The city is located at a latitude of 6° 17' south and a longitude of 106° 48' east. It has an average daily temperature of 27° Centigrade (81°F) during dry season, normally between May and October, and 25° Centigrade (77°F) during the rainy season, normally from November to April. The average humidity is a high 81%. Due to its location on the coast, Jakarta's climate extremes are tempered by sea breeze, especially at the northern part.

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C u l t u r e

The culture of the general population of Jakarta must be distinguished from that of Betawi, which is the culture of the indigenous people of the area. The culture tradition of Jakarta is generally contemporary Indonesian, while that of Betawi is largely traditional.

The Betawi culture finds its expression in such forms as Cokek, Samra, Japin, Blenggo (dances) and Gambang Kromong or Rebana Biang (music). Betawi's most popular folk theater is Lenong and Topeng. In both, the element of humor features prominently. There is also a specific Betawi form of the Wayang leather puppet play, known as Wayang Kulit Betawi.

Ondel-ondel, are huge human effigies that are usually paraded during festive occasions. Presumably, the effigies were in former times used to scare evil spirits and chase them out of the village. Ondel-ondel parades are usually accompanied by gambang koromong music.

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Transportation & Telecommunication

The transportations within the city are various from bajaj (a small three-tires vehicle), bus, train, to taxi. Normally, the foreign tourists prefer using taxi. Every taxi is equipped with argometer which counts the cost according to the distance. The cheaper public transportation is bus, but of course, you should firstly know Jakarta's roads to hang around by bus, because unlike taxi, the buses have their own permanent routes. There are regular and air-conditioned buses. For short distance, bajaj is the best choice. Before all, you have to tell the driver where to go and negotiate about the cost. Trains are also available, not only from station to station in the city, but also to some other towns or cities in Java. There are also some traditional means of public transportation, such as delman or bendi (pulled by a horse) and becak (tricycle), but those are recently rare to be found.

There is no reason to worry about the telecommunication facility in Jakarta, because it has met the standard requirement for such a metropolitan city. You can directly dial to hundreds of countries in the world. A wartel (telecommunication service for public) can be easily found everywhere. Some are open for 24 hours a day. You can make a phone call, send fax or cable, and even connect to Internet from there. There are also so many public phones by the streets or at the public places. Some can be used with coins (for local call) and the rest can be used with phone card (for local and international call).

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Other Public Services

Hotels of several classes can be found in Jakarta. Among others are Hilton, Grand Hyatt, Borobudur Inter-Continental, etc. Jakarta has also various restaurants, from traditional to international menu. There are also many tours & travel agencies around the city, which are ready to serve you for domestic tours and providing tickets of domestic and international flights, such as Garuda Indonesia, Qantas, Cathay Pacific, Air France, British Airways, etc.

Other public services like postal offices, tourism information centers, hospitals, police stations, money changers and international banks can also be easily found in the city.

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Places of Interest

So many foreigners have known Bali as a tourism destination in Indonesia, but just a few knows that there are also some places of interest in Jakarta that I cannot list all in this article. Some of them are listed in following sections:

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Monas

The word Monas is an abbreviation of "Monumen Nasional", or National Monument. It is one of the many monuments built during the Soekarno (the 1^st President of the Republic of Indonesia) era of fierce nationalism. The 137-meter-tall marble obelisk is stopped with a flame coated with 35 kilograms of gold, and represents the people's determination to achieve freedom. It towers over Merdeka (freedom) Square and serves as Jakarta's most prominent landmark. The monument is open to the public and houses a historical museum and meditation hall. An elevator carries visitors to the top, offering a bird's eye view across the city.

Besides of Monas, there are also some monuments in Jakarta. Among others are: Soekarno-Hatta Monument and Lubang Buaya Heroes Monument.

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National Museum

Located on the west side of Merdeka Square, the National Museum is probably the best one in Indonesia, or even in Southeast Asia. Established in 1778 by U.M.C. Rademacher under the auspices of the Batavia Association of Arts and Sciences, it offers historical, archaeological and ethnographic aspects of Indonesia through its extensive collection of artifacts and relics which date as far back as to the Stone Age. It has one of the most complete collections of bronzes and ceramics from the Han, Tan and Ming Dynasties, the finest numismatic collection in the world, the statuary and sculpture salvaged from some sites, and collection of cultural instruments, household utensils, arts and crafts.

This museum is popularly known as Gedung Gajah (elephant building) because of the stone elephant offered by King Chulalongkorn from Thailand in 1871, placed on the front lawn of the building.

Here are the list of other museums in Jakarta:

• Satria Mandala Museum,
• Komodo Museum,
• Perangko (philately) Museum,
• Maritime Museum,
• Kebangkitan Nasional (national arising) Museum,
• Wayang Museum, and
• Jakarta Museum.

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Ancol

It is named Jaya Ancol Dreamland, located in the northern part of Jakarta, at the beach of Jakarta Bay. It is Jakarta's largest and most popular recreation park. There are sea and fresh water aquariums, swimming pools, a bowling alley, a golf course, restaurants, art market, hotels and massage parlors. The other interesting objects inside the complex are as follows:

Marina Jaya Ancol is a special port for yachts, motor and sail boats, also the place for marine recreation, such as jet skis, canoes, wind surfers, and fishing. Stalls along the beach serve drinks and snacks while tents are available for sunbathers and sea lovers.

Fantasy Land is the Indonesian version of Disneyland, also offers a number of restaurants and souvenir shops.

Sea World is a building where you can find a big aquarium of sea water. There is a glass tunnel through the bottom of that big aquarium, from where you can clearly see many kind of fishes around you.

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Pulau Seribu

This group of islands scattered across the Java Sea to the north of Jakarta offers a heaven away from bustle of city life. Golden beaches fringed with coconut palms line the sea. The surrounding waters are paradise for snorkeling and scuba diving. The colorful coral reefs are home to a phenomenal variety of tropical fish.

The islands can be reached from Tanjung Priuk or Sunda Kelapa Harbor by ferry or chartered boat. Among the islands developed for tourism with bungalows, restaurants, diving and sailing facilities are Bidadari, Ayer, Laki and Putri Island. Tanjung Island near Putri has an airstrip.

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TMII

It is the abbreviation of "Taman Mini Indonesia Indah" (Beautiful Indonesian Miniature Park). The idea of making the TMII is to give the visitor a glimpse of diversity of the Indonesian archipelago in a single location. The park represents all the provinces in Indonesia and their traditional characteristics, reflected most strikingly in the exact regional architecture of each province. It has its own orchid garden in which hundreds of Indonesian orchid varieties are grown. There is also a bird park with walk-in aviary, a fauna museum, and recreational grounds with a swimming pool and restaurants.

Indonesian Museum, a richly decorated building in Balinese architecture can also be found there. It houses contemporary arts crafts and traditional costumes from different parts of Indonesia.

Teater Imax Keong Emas (Golden Snail Theatre) is also located in TMII. It presents "Beautiful Indonesia" on a gigantic screen using Imax system.

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Ragunan Zoo & other places

Jakarta's zoo is situated in the suburb of Ragunan, South Jakarta. Indigenous animals such as Komodo dragon, tapir, Java tiger, wild ox and brightly colored birds are given ample room in a lush tropical setting.

Besides of those have been mentioned above, there are still many places of interest in Jakarta, such as:

Taman Ria Senayan is a park with a beautiful lake for boating and paths for cycling. There also many games like in Ancol Fantasy Land and some restaurants (one is floating on the lake with ship form).

Taman Ismail Marzuki (TIM) Art Center is the focal point of cultural activities in Jakarta. It is said to be the largest of its kind in Southeast Asia and consists of exhibition halls, theatres, an academy of arts, archives building and planetarium.

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. Visiting Indonesia is just like visiting hundreds of countries!.

If you need more information about Indonesia, please feel free to send me your email (click the "Email Me" button at the top of the page and select "VS06 Tourism Information" as the subject of the email). I'm also pleased to assist you, if you plan to visit Indonesia on your vacation!

Official sources of some data given in this article are taken from:

1. Indonesia - Travel Planner - 1997 Telecommunication Year, Published by: The Directorate General of Tourism - Republic of Indonesia, 1996.
2. Discover Indonesia - A Travel Guide to the Indonesian Archipelago and Indonesia Postal Services, Published by: Public Coorporation for Posts and Giro in coorporation with ITPB - Republic of Indonesia, 1992.