Java – Jakarta
The capital Jakarta offers a fascinating mix of different influences. The old town with buildings from the Dutch and Portuguese colonial times is worth seeing. The national monument rises 140 m above Merdeka Square and is crowned with a gilded “flame”. The Central Museum has a good ethnological department and shows, among other things, sculptures from pre-Hindu times. The Portuguese Church with the huge Dutch pump organ (1695) is also worth a visit.
The modern Istiqlal Mosque in the center of the city is one of the largest in the world. Also worth seeing is the antique market on Jalan Surabaya (Surabaya Street) and the countless batik factories in the Karet district. In the southeast of the city is Taman Mini Indonesia Indah, a 100-hectare theme park that offers an overview of the 26 Indonesian provinces, some of which are culturally very different.
Each province is represented in Taman Mini by a scale house in the respective traditional architectural style, in the houses there are also exhibitions of traditional clothing and handicrafts of the respective region. Most houses also offer cultural performances, and a calendar of events is available from the tourist information. The Jakarta Cultural Center is one of the largest in Southeast Asia.
Java is the smallest but most important of the Greater Sunda Islands. The island is predominantly mountainous. Active and extinct volcanoes and volcanic groups form the central axis of the island. On both sides of the volcano alignments (there are 17 active volcanoes), mountainous and hilly countries have formed. In the north of the island, the mountains are partly swampy alluvial plains. The Javanese soil is extremely restless and sometimes highly explosive. There are 35 active volcanoes on the island.
Due to the fertile volcanic soils, many people have settled here. However, they live in constant danger. The Fire Mountains are nowhere as clearly felt as on Java. Jakarta is practically a huge collection of kampungs, i.e. villages, interspersed with many high-rise buildings and highways. The urban area has a huge extension. However, an actual center cannot be found. In the metropolis, wealth and poverty are close together. Worth seeing is the National Museum and the old port Sunda Kelapa with the traditional sailing ships as well as the “flea market” in Surabaya Street. In addition, you should visit Glodok, the Chinese quarter. Also worth seeing are “Taman Merkdeka”, the Freedom Square with the presidential palace and the “Istiqlal Mosque”, the largest mosque in all of Indonesia.
Staying in Jakarta is not a recreation in the usual sense, the air pollution is extremely high. As in most Third World countries, drinking water is a rare commodity. Another problem is the huge mountains of garbage. However, all these problems do not seem to fundamentally affect people’s lives. In the smaller temple complexes, you can study the culture of the country and the habits of the people in an unadulterated way. Offerings brought along are offered to the gods.
180 km from Jakarta is Bandung, the capital of West Java and the third largest city in Indonesia. Because of its European ambience, pleasant climate and many parks and gardens, Bandung was also called the Javanese Paris in colonial times. Many residential areas are still characterized by Dutch colonial architecture. Craftsmanship has a high priority in Java. Our further journey takes us to Yogyakarta.
