- java borobudur

For centuries, Borobodur lay hidden under layers of volcanic ash. The reasons behind the desertion of this magnificent monument still remain a mystery.

Some scholars believe that famine caused by an eruption of Mount Merapi forced the inhabitants of Central Java to leave their lands behind in search of a new place to live. When people once again inhabited this area, the glory of Borobudur was buried by ash from Mount Merapi.

Borobudur was rediscovered in 1814 by Sir Thomas Stamford Raffles who, during his visit in Semarang, received a report indicating the discovery of a hill full of many carved stones. The hill was believed by the local inhabitants to be the site of an ancient monument called budur. Raffles then commissioned a team led by Cornelius to investigate the hill.

It was in 1835 that the site was cleared. Some efforts were made to restore and preserve the colossal monument since then. Unfortunately, in 1896 the Dutch colonial government gave away eight containers of Borobudur stones, including reliefs, statues, stairs and gates, as presents for the King of Siam who was visiting Indonesia.

A restoration program undertaken between 1973 and 1984 returned much of the complex to its former glory, and the site has since become a destination of Buddhist pilgrimage. On January 21, 1985 the temple suffered minor damage due to a bomb attack. In 1991, Borobudur was listed by UNESCO as a World Heritage Site.
Exploring Borobudur

Viewed from above, Borobudur takes the form of a giant mandala, symbolically depicting the path of the bodhisattva from samsara to nirvana, through the story of Sudhana described in the Gandavyuha Sutra, a part of the Avatamsaka Sutra. In total, this massive monument contains over 2 million stone blocks.

Some scholars think that this massive monument is a gigantic textbook of Buddhism to help people to achieve enlightenment. To read this Buddhist textbook in stone requires a walk of more than two miles. The walls of the galleries are adorned with impressive reliefs illustrating the life of Buddha Shakyamuni and the principles of his teaching.

Representing the existence of the universe, Borobudur perfectly reflects the Buddhist cosmology, which divides the universe into three intermingled separate levels. The three levels are Kamadhatu (world of desire), Ruphadatu (world of forms), and Arupadhatu (world of formlessness).

The hidden base of Borobudur was originally the first level, which contains the gallery of Kamadhatu level. It is thought that during construction Borobudur experienced a landfall that threatened the entire building. To prevent the whole monument from collapsing, the Kamadhatu level was closed and made into a new base that holds Borobudur steady.

This level of Kamadhatu pictures the world of passion and the inevitable laws of karma. The first 117 panels show various actions leading to one and the same result, while the other remaining 43 panels demonstrate the many results that follow one single effect. At least 160 relief panels were carved around this level, based on the manuscript of Karmavibhangga. What is left of these can be seen in the Southeast corner of this level.

The reliefs of the Rupadhatu level show the stories based on the manuscripts of Lalitavistara, Jataka-Avadana and Gandavyuha. The Lalitavistara reliefs, consisting of 120 panels, tell us about the life of Siddhartha Gautama Buddha. It starts with the glorious descent of Buddha from the Tushita heaven. Born as Prince Siddhartha, Buddha's childhood was isolated from the outside world's misery. Accidentally witnessing the misery of sickness, decrepitude and death, young Prince Siddharta decided to escape from the worldly life and commencing his search of freedom from suffering. Siddhartha’s long and painful search finally led him to the highest level of enlightenment and made him Buddha, the Enlightened One. This story ends with Buddha’s sermon in the Deer Park near Benares.

The Jataka is a collection of stories about Buddha's previous reincarnation, chains and virtues. According to the Jataka, Buddha was born 504 times before being born as Prince Siddharta, taking on the forms of god, kings, princes, learned men, thieves, slaves, and a gambler. Many times he was born in the forms of animals such as lion, deer, monkey, swan, big turtle, quail, horse, bird and many others. But the Boddhisatva (Buddha-to-be) was distinguished from all other kings, slaves, or animals among whom he lived. The Boddhisatva is always superior and wiser than those around him.

As to the relief of Avadana, the main figure is not the Buddha himself. All the saintly deeds pictured in this part are attributed to other legendary characters. The stories are compiled in Dvijavadana (Glorious Heavenly Acts) and the Avadana Sataka (The Hundred Avadana). The first 20 frames in the lower series of stories on the first gallery depict the Sudhanakumaravana.

The series of reliefs covering the wall of the second gallery is dedicated to Sudhana’s tireless wandering during his search for the highest wisdom. The story is continued on the walls and balustrades of the third and fourth galleries. Most of the 460 panels depict the scenes based on the Mahayana text Gandavyuha, while the concluding scenes are derived from the text of Badracari.

On the last three circular uppermost terraces, 72 stupas circle the huge main stupa that crowns the top of the temple. The circular form represents the eternity without beginning and without end, a superlative, tranquil, and pure state of the formless world. There are no reliefs on the three circular terraces.

All but the largest central stupas on the upper levels contain a (more or less) life-sized statue of the Buddha kneeling, although many of these statues are missing or damaged. There are also many alcoves along the lower levels which contain similar statues but many of these are missing or damaged as well.

- Bali paradise

Many tourist representations of Bali invoke an image of paradise. They want you to picture yourself as surfer Leonard Luevas describes:

“comfortably ensconced in a place where smiling locals meditate and pursue their timeless and mystical ways and where resident and visiting surfers spend much of their time riding flawless waves and living in a hedonistic life that other surfers can only dream about.”

The bombing in Kuta gutted this myth but Bali’s precious culture had already been screwed by tourism long before the blast.

For approximately forty years, Bali was reasonably “off the beaten path”; frequented by anthropologists, adventure seekers and freaks searching out their little corner of Paradise. The West’s discovery of Balinese surf breaks in the 1960’s ensured the island’s culture would be forever changed, however. Surfers, bohemian honeymooners, budget travelers and (the final kiss of death) the Lonely Planet all arrived. Resorts were constructed, skyscrapers erected and before anyone knew it, Bali became a tourist hotspot with barely a shred of its own culture surviving. Bali became like what Cancun, Mexico is to Americans – a resort with a mirage of foreign culture.

Many Balinese have relocated to new neighborhoods in urban tourist centers and lost touch with their traditional customs and everyday village life. With the influx of tourism the indigenous Balinese forgot their usual way of life to sell souvenirs, prostitute their identity and indulge the tourist fantasy of life on a tropical island. An amusing example of this phenomenon occurred during President Ronald Reagan’s 1986 visit; he was treated to a performance of a kecak dance, considered to be symbolic of Bali, in his honor. The kecak dance performed was actually created by German artist Walter Spies and some Balinese dancers in the 1930s.

The incline of tourists in Bali drew to an abrupt halt on October 12, 2002. In the early hours of the morning, a member of a Javanese Islamic fundamentalist group entered Paddy’s Bar on the crowded Jalan Legion. The bar was packed with partygoers and holidaymakers. He walked to the middle of the dance floor and detonated the explosives taped to his chest, causing a mass stampede for the exit.

Parked just outside though was a van loaded with explosives which detonated 30 seconds afterwards. The carnage was devastating. The blast decimated the nearby bars killing 203 people, almost all of them tourists. Fundamentalist Muslims with links to al-Qaida had targeted the busy Kuta Beach street because of its high concentration of Western tourists.

The aftermath of the “Bali Bomb” saw an immense economic shift on the island where tourism counted for 79% of its total income. News of the bomb splashed across the front pages of every newspaper in the World. The British, American, and Canadian Governments issued travel advisories warning its citizens not to travel to Bali or anywhere else in Indonesia. Even the Aussies were afraid to return for months afterwards.

However, even prior to the bombing Bali experienced a double-edged representation. The October 2001 edition of Lonely Planet’s South East Asia on a Shoestring describes Bali as “both a tropical paradise and an example of the destructive effects of tourism.” On Lonely Planet’s website, we learn that “Bali is so picturesque that you could be fooled into thinking it was a painted backdrop…But the paradise gloss has been manufactured and polished by the international tourist industry rather than by the Balinese themselves…and it pays scant regard to the political and economic reality of life on Bali.”

Even Fodors, a guidebook publisher typically orientated towards first class tourists refrains from writing an overview of Bali in the usual romantic fashion. “The beautiful beaches…are thick with resort development.” After the bombing the Balinese suffered enormously as tourism fell off. Many people were reduced to living off of less than $1 a day. The people had become dependent on tourism and the whole island assumed a gloomy air.

To make matters worse on February 1st, 2003, the Indonesian government put new regulations concerning travel visas into effect. In the past a traveler was granted a free sixty-day visa on arrival -It was changed to a thirty-day visa on arrival with a fee of twenty dollars. The Indonesian government presumably placed these new visa sanctions into effect in order to both line their pockets and discourage ‘low class travelers’. What the Indonesian government seemingly failed to recognize (or care about) is that budget tourists stay for longer periods of time, end up spending more money and support local businesses.

kute bali garbage The environmental implications of reduced tourism are becoming clear, particularly in the tourist Mecca of Kuta Beach. Although there are less tourists now than usual, there are still enough drunken surfers and Australian college kids to create a huge mess. But now, thanks to the bombing, garbage cans in densely populated public places have been banned as potential hiding places for bombs.

Revenue from tourism would eventually paid for a proper waste disposal system but in light of the recent recession plans have been put on hold. As it stands, locals in Kuta empty their garbage into a river that spills its contents out into the Indian Ocean during high tide. Then, the swells on Kuta Beach, Bali’s only sand bottom surf break, deposit all the garbage onto the beach. This, the most popular spot for beginning surfers, sometimes resembles a cesspool.

Bali is sold as a surf Mecca and hedonistic party for young holiday makers. In fact it is a ruined Eden. An island bloated by over development and over promotion. One feels that even had it not been for the bombing Bali may well have gone the way of Acapulco and ended up a sleazy, forgotten resort. A search for “Bali” and “Travel” on Yahoo brings a website called www.bali-paradise.com. It had a counter that kept repeating a message that seems to sum up Bali’s plight: “Bali has too much to offer to be forgotten, please continue to support Bali!”

- Kalimantan

HISTORY

East Kalimantan is the biggest province in Kalimantan Island cover region with a width of 245237 Km2 with number of populations more than two millions men. East Kalimantan is the richest of natural sources area in Kalimantan. This region is rich of oil, coal, gold, wood and natural gas. The most of Natural Resources of East Kalimantan, have exported and give high contribution for the nation income. Based on history note, the eldest Kingdom of Hindu in Indonesia is reside in this area. This conclusion based on note of inscription that being found in 'Lembah Wahau', in north of Tenggarong that coming from 5 century. This eldest Empire of Hindu had mentioned that has done contact with India and Sriwijaya Kingdom. The substitution of this Hindu Empire is Sultanate Kutai that emerging at third century with its capital of in Tenggarong. Kutai then become the center commerce of Denting in this region and Tenggarong become the biggest and busier town in East Kalimantan, finally shifted by Samarinda and Balikpapan at 20 century. Kalimantan was known as one of main oil producer area in Indonesia. The exploitation of Oilfield in this area have been done since 1897 started from delta area Mahakam River, while distillation area of oil is focused in Balikpapa

Bunaken Diving

Bunaken Diving
National Park Dive Sites

To dive in the deep waters of the Bunaken Island National Marine Park in Manado is to be among some of the highest levels of biodiversity in the world, with outstanding fish variety and world-class wall diving. The clear, warm waters contain astonishingly high numbers of species, whether corals, sponges or fish. When you're scuba diving in Bunaken you can see seven times more genera of coral than Hawaii, 33 species of butterflyfish and over 70% of all fish species known to the Indo-western Pacific.

Harlequin shrimp - photo courtesy of Silent Symphony

Oceanic currents sweep into Bunaken bringing a steady supply of nutrients. It's a sure certainty that where there is plenty of food in the sea, there will be an abundance of marine life, and you can be here to witness this rich harvest too. From the smallest commensal shrimp to black tip reef sharks and eagle rays, there is something for everyone in this very special destination.

Bunaken diving is very popular with fun divers and marine biologists both of whom can take great pleasure from the diversity of coral and fish found here. You will surely encounter marine life here that you have not come across elsewhere.

The most notable recent find within the park was in 1997, when the coelacanth was discovered living in the lava tubes of Manado Tua. This 'living fossil' fish brought international attention to Bunaken. Unusual mammals that can be seen include dugongs, which feed on the sea grass beds in the south of the park, and sperm whales, which travel through the area on their way to calve in the Sangihe Archipelago.

The park is located just out of Manado Bay in the Sulawesi Sea, off the northern tip of Sulawesi, and features some two dozen diving sites spread across an area of 75,000 hectares and the five islands of Bunaken, Siladen, Manado Tua, Montehage and Nain.

Included in the measures to protect this eco-treasure, is the creation of the marine park for which all divers must buy a pass which is used to fund conservation and village development programmes. It has long been recognised that the Manado area is an area worth preserving both for the good of the environment and the local economy. Various schemes are being undertaken to encourage responsible attitudes towards the reefs, the sea life and with regards to refuse disposal in the area. In Bunaken your few dollars really do make a difference!

TRIP TO INDONESIA CLIENTS TESTIMONY :

**I am writing to tell you about our clients in Indonesia. Jose Antonio Lizana called us some days ago to tell us that he couldn´t be happier with his tour and your services. He was talking for quite a long time about all the things that he had liked, and he was completely satisfied with his guides and drivers, he only had nice words for all of them. He is a person who travels a lot, for work reasons and also on holiday, and he was really impressed with everybody in your agency. We already knew that you were the best, Jeffry. Of course, he loved Indonesia, and he is really thinking about coming back next year. We are quite sure that soon we will have to ask you for another program for him.

I really must insist that he has returned completely satisfied. He is a regular client, and has travelled with us several times, but this time he was even happier than before. We really are very grateful for all your hard work, and look forward to working a lot more with you in the future. Thanks again and best regards, (Paco)

I just wanted to send you a note to share our thoughts with you about our Indonesia trip. We are very happy to have travelled with Adventure Indonesia. Your guides throughout the various places we visited, were prompt, knowledgeable, and a pleasure to spend our time with. Most of them went out of their way to let us experience the "real" happenings that go on in the different regions and provinces in Indonesia. Papua was a really difficult trek compared to what we are used to. We would like to say that we will be recommending Adventure Indonesia to our regular travel agent, and to anybody that asks our advice if they are considering a trip to your country.
All the best to everybody. Ken & Melanie Adamson. CANADA

The trip to Ujung Kulon was fabulous. Thanks so much for setting it up. Jannice was especially fantastic as a guide. I promised her some photographs, but all my emails to her have been rejected. So, please forward the attached photograph to her. I will be sending you a few more to pass on to her as well. Also, please feel free to use the photos of the rhino on the Adventure Indonesia website if you like. Thanks.

A country of incredible and diverse beauty

A country of incredible and diverse beauty

A country of incredible and diverse beauty, stretches 5,151 km between Asian and Australia continents and divides the Pacific and Indian Oceans at the equator, Indonesia is the largest archipelago and the fifth most populous country in the world with about 200 million inhabitants.

Of the country's 17,508 islands, only 6,000 are inhabited and 992 permanently settled including the five main islands: Sumatra (473,606 sq. km), Kalimantan or Borneo (539,460 sq. km), Sulawesi (189,216 sq. km), Irian Jaya (421,981 sq. km) and the most populated Java Island (132,187 sq. km).

Indonesia encompasses mind-stupefying extremes: the 4,884 meter high snow capped Carstensz Pyramid peak of Irian Jaya, the lush lowland and mountainous tropical rain forest with it's endemic wildlife such as the mystical Orangutans, Sumatran Tigers, the World's smallest monkeys Tarsius Spectrums, Javan Rhinos, Tree Kangaroos, the world's largest lizard the fearsome Komodo Dragons, birds etc. which more than the entire continents of Africa, restless volcanoes, primitive forest tribes, exotic art & cultures, traditional music, historical sites, lakes, nature reserves, world class sea gardens and reefs and the smiling people make ndonesia the most complex single nation in the world and one of finest travel destinations on Earth.