According to Intershippingrates, Indonesia undoubtedly has the most impressive sights in Southeast Asia: natural phenomena, architectural monuments, art and culture of more than 150 peoples. Here you will see a blazing sunset; admire the colored lakes that fill the craters of the Keli Mutu volcano on Flores; climb the eighth tier of Borobudur – poems in stone; see huge dragons on Komodo Island; go trekking in the mountains of Irian Java; sunbathe on the magnificent beaches of Bali; catch a giant butterfly in Sulawesi; descend into the crater of an active volcano; sail to Krakatoa – the most famous volcano on the planet; learn the art of batik making and any Indonesian child will show you how to make a kite.
The originality of the architecture and traditional art of Indonesia is due to the influence of different and sharply different cultures and civilizations – Buddhist, Hindu, Muslim and European. Already in the first centuries of our era, the peoples of the island of Java (its culture has long been the leading one) accepted Buddhism and Hinduism under Indian influence. Indian and local traditions combined in the classical art of Java, including architecture.
The oldest surviving architectural monuments are small graceful Hindu temples (“chandi”) on the Dieng plateau. in Central Java (7th – early 8th century). They are compact cubic arrays on stepped bases topped with pyramids. The most grandiose sanctuary in Java is Borobudur (late VIII – early IX century). This is a natural hill lined with andesite blocks. It looks like a stepped sloping pyramid crowned with a stupa. Countless reliefs on the galleries of the terraces of Borobudur, Buddha statues tell about the earthly life of the Buddha and his reincarnations. Since the 8th century, Hinduism has become the state religion in Java and neighboring islands. The Hindu temple complex of Lara Jonggrang in Prambanan (late 9th – early 10th century) combines three large temples, five smaller sanctuaries and numerous chapels. The slender and soaring main temple of Shiva is especially beautiful. temple complex Panataran (XIV – early XV century) in East Java is very refined; its free, irregular form is unusual. Numerous Hindu temples of the island of Bali, decorated with luxurious ornamental carvings, also belong to the same era.
Since the 16th century, Islam has been in Indonesia, and the traditions of Hindu culture have been lost. They survived only on the island of Bali, whose population still professes Hinduism. In the rest of Indonesia, mosques and palaces of local rulers (“cratons”) began to be dominated by motifs of Muslim architecture in Asian countries. With the establishment of Dutch rule in Indonesia (XVII century), cities were built according to the European model. On numerous islands, many peoples of Indonesia have developed arts and crafts.
Central Java is famous for products made of gold and silver, daggers of a peculiar shape – krises. Java is the birthplace of batik (a multi-colored fabric of a special painting technique) of amazingly beautiful patterns and colors. On all the islands, mats, kitchen utensils, bags are woven from bamboo and coconut palm leaves. In Bali, art crafts, painting, popular prints have reached popularity. The types of folk dwellings are diverse – from huts (West Irian) and light bamboo houses on stilts to large wooden communal houses (among the Dayaks of Kalimantan, sometimes the whole village lives in one huge house).
The highest point in Indonesia is Mount Jaya. Its snow-white peak rises above dense tropical forests in one of the most inaccessible corners of the island of New Guinea. Eternal snow and glaciers near the equator is also one of the natural wonders that Indonesia is so rich in.
Jakarta is a colossal metropolis; the magnificent museum complex “Indonesia in miniature” Taman Mini – with temples and fantastic birds under a wire dome; An hour’s drive from Jakarta is the Puncak Safari Open Zoo.
Among the sights of Indonesia in Jakarta are the Archaeological Museum; several temples of times equal to the empire; Willem Church (1835); presidential palace; National Museum. In the city of Ujungpandang on the island of Sulawesi – Fort Vredenburn; Museum of Folk Art.
