The Aru Islands
The group of islands called Aru are located just west of West Papua in the Arafura Sea, which stretches all the way to West Papua to the east and Australia to the south. Aru is the easternmost group of islands in Maluku, they consists of about 85 islands totaling an area of 8.563 sq. km. [...]
Tirta Gangga
Tirta Gangga is a small village built on an altitude of about 500 meters, seven km northwest of Amlapura. Tirta Gangga means “water from the Ganges”, and the place is known for it’s “water palace” and beautiful surroundings. In many people’s opinion this is among the most beautiful areas on Bali.
Tenganan
When Majapahit conquered Bali in 1343 there were some Balinese who did not accept this change of rule, and therefore built their own villages in remote areas. The descendants of these people are today known as Bali Aga or Bali Mula, meaning “the original Balinese”. They still live in villages like Tenganan in East Bali [...]
Goa Lawah
There is no doubt why Goa Lawah, the bat cave, has got this name. Thousands of noisy bats fill the air in and around the cave, with a sharp smell of bat droppings covering the ground in a thick layer. It is also said that pythons live inside the cave, feeding on the bats. The [...]
Sade, a Sasak village on South Lombok
A visit to a traditional Sasak village is a necessary part of your trip to Lombok. There are two villages like this a few kilometers north of Kuta, called Rembitan and Sade. Even if some of these traditional villages today may have become tourist traps a visit can be an interesting experience. All the guides, [...]
North Lombok
North Lombok is dominated by the massive Gunung Rinjani volcano, and most of the villages here sits on the slopes of the mountain or along the narrow coastline. Many travelers come here on their way to the Gili islands or to climb Gunung Rinjani, and will therefore miss the rest of the beautiful landscape with [...]
Gunung Rinjani
Gunung Rinjani is one of the highest mountains in Indonesia with an altitude of 3.726 m. At the bottom of the crater there is a large lake called Segara Anakan, about 8 km long and 6 km wide. The lake is surrounded by steep walls and is located about 600 meter below the rim of [...]
Fish and surf on Kuta, South Lombok
Driving far south on Lombok you will eventually reach the small village of Kuta, about 54 km south of Mataram. This is the only area on the south coast which has some tourism of any significance, but must not be compared to Kuta on Bali. This place is much more quiet with only a fraction [...]
Danau Bratan
The Danau Bratan lake is located inside the old caldera of the now extinct Gunung Catur volcano. The lovely area around the south and west side of the lake is known as Bedugul (see separate article). Not far from here are the Danau Buyan and Danau Tamblingan lakes, two of the four large lakes on [...]
Bedugul
Bedugul is the name of the area south and west of the Danau Bratan lake. Taking the road passing Bedugul is the fastest way to travel from the southern tourist areas to Singaraja and North Bali. From the south the road passes through some steep terrain before Bedugul, with a very scenic landscape. The Taman [...]
Nusa Penida
Nusa Penida consist of three islands; the large Nusa Penida, Nusa Lembongan and Nusa Ceningan. The islands are under administration of the Klungkung district. A common way to travel here is by public boat from Sanur to Lembongan. You can also sail from Padangbai directly to Nusa Penida, which will bring you to Sampalan on [...]
Nusa Tenggara facts
The Nusa Tenggara islands are mostly poor and sparsely populated. Especially on the eastern islands the climate is dry and the landscape mountainous. Nusa Tenggara is different from the rest of Indonesia both geographically, ethnically and culturally. The main reason for this is the deep waters dividing Nusa Tenggara and the western parts of Indonesia [...]
West Timor
Timor is the easternmost and clearly the largest island in the Nusa Tenggara archipelago (see also East Timor). The island is 450 km long and 105 km wide. Area 30.820 sq. km, with a population of around 1.3 million on West Timor and about 850.000 on East Timor. The island has several mountain chains, the [...]
Semarapura
Even if many still use the old name Klungkung, the official name of this city is today Semarapura. Most maps and signs now use the name Semarapura. The biggest attraction here is the Taman Gili (island-garden) complex, consisting of Bale Kambang and Kerta Gosa within a large garden. In the western part of the garden [...]
Klungkung
Klungkung is one of the smallest districts on Bali, but as a former center of the Gelgel dynasty it is also one of the most important historically. It includes Semarapura city, Goa Lawah and the three Nusa Penida islands. 1343 was a particular important year in Balinese history, when the island was conquered by Gajah [...]
Puncak Jaya
The summit of Puncak Jaya (“Victory Peak”) as it is called in Indonesia, better known as Carstensz Pyramid among climbers, stands at 4.884m and is located in the western central highlands of Irian Jaya at a latitude of 4° S. It is the highest peak in Oceana, or the Australasia continent, and in Indonesia. It [...]
North Maluku
Halmahera is the largest island in the Maluku archipelago. Because of the mountainous landscape it is however the most sparsely populated, considering the size. Population is about 130.000, and there are no large cities here. Only on the northern peninsula there are some infrastructure and villages of any significance, there are some villages on the [...]
Pulau Buru
Buru is one of the largest islands in Maluku, it is part of central Maluku and is administered from Ambon just east of the island. Buru consists mainly of mountains covered with forest, the highest peak is Gunung Tomahu, 2.428 meter above sea level. Land area about 3.670 sq. km., it is 145 km long [...]
West Kalimantan
West Kalimantan is not a large tourist destination, and therefore not a place where you can expect to find many tourist facilities. The region has about four million inhabitants, and the largest concentration of people with Chinese background in Indonesia. The most important town is Pontianak, founded in 1770 by an Arabic trader. Pontianak has [...]
Jatiluwih
There is no doubt that Jatiluwih is among the most beautiful places and can offer some of the best scenery on the entire island of Bali. The place has a particular charm even if the weather, which can change dramatically within minutes, is rainy and cloudy. Everywhere you look you see green rice fields and [...]
Gunung Batukau
Gunung Batukau is the second largest mountain on Bali (2.275 m), and only Gunung Agung is of higher religious importance. The slopes are covered with rainforest, apart from West Bali National park this is the only wilderness region of any significance left on the island. The mountain is located in the Tabanan district, and is [...]
Kalimantan facts
Kalimantan is the name of the Indonesian part of Borneo, the third largest island in the world. This province alone makes up for 28 percent of the area of Indonesia (539.000 sq. km), but only 5 percent of the population (about 10 million). Two thirds of Borneo belong to Indonesia, the northern region is part [...]
Slash-and-Burn and Budidaya Rotan in East Kalimantan
Forests in Asia and throughout the tropical world are being rapidly transformed through slash-and-burn. Increasing population pressure has made this ancient system unsustainable in many areas. In lesser populated areas slash-and-burn, or shifting agriculture, is less problematic and perhaps even the only viable form of utilisation of indigenous peoples natural resources. Shifting cultivation is a [...]
East Kalimantan
East Kalimantan, or Kalimantan Timur (Kaltim), is perhaps the most accessible part of Kalimantan and at present probably the most industrially advanced province of Indonesian Borneo. Mostly its prosperity is due to its oil and timber resources. After Irian Jaya it is the second most spacious province of Indonesia, and with its 2.5 mill people [...]