Live Streaming
Program Highlight
Company Profile
Zona Integritas
Indonesian Wonder

Indonesian Wonder (654)

21
August

For you who love beach tourism, just visit the province of Lampung.  This province has many beautiful beaches. One of them is Duta Wisata beach.  Its location is not far from the downtown of Bandar Lampung. This beach is frequently visited by local and foreign tourists. It is located  on Jalan Laksamana R.E. Martadinata. The entry ticket to the beach is IDR 10,000 per person. This beach is open every Monday to Friday from 8 AM to 8 PM Indonesia local time. If you drive a car,  you will be charged an entrance fee of IDR 50,000.

When you enter this tourism attraction, you will see a beach with coral edges. On the beach, there are rows of gazebos which  can be used as a place to rest. There are various interesting tourism activities that can be done at Duta Wisata Beach. If the weather is sunny, you can see several islands  in Lampung Bay. In addition, as far as your eyes can see, you can also see several hills full of trees.

For those of you who want to go around Duta Wisata beach and want to see the hills from a  close distance, you can rent an engine boat there. Moreover,  there are rental facilities such as banana boat, jet ski and water bike  for those  who want to pump your adrenaline while looking at the panoramic views of typical high seas of Bandar Lampung. When the afternoon comes, please don't go  home quickly. You can see the beauty of the sunset on the beach. Duta Wisata beach has an auction area for fish caught by fishermen and the fish are still fresh. After buying fish, you can process it into grilled fish and eat it while you are relaxing in the gazebo of the beach.

19
August

Tanjung Layar beach is a tourism object in Sawarna tourism village, Bayah, Lebak regency, Banten. The name of the beach comes from two giant rocks which have a shape like a sailing ship. At the East of the beach, there is a coral group like left footprint whose size is two times one meter. Its name is Jejak Kaki Kabayan or in English, it means Kabayan footprint. People say, the footprints of his brother are in Jampang, Sukabumi. Currently, Tanjung Layar beach and other beaches at Sawarna tourism village are managed by BUMdes Sawarna. In the era of Dutch Indies, the bay was known with the name, Java’s Eerste Punt or in English, it means the first end of Java Island. History of the beach is told in Sundanese chronicle and legend (fairy tales) of the south coast.

According to the history, two giant rocks at Tanjung Layar area were incarnation of two powers which would become Sangkuriang ship to sail across the Southern Ocean when going to get married with his mother, Dayang Sumbi, but Sang Hyang Widi of God Almighty did not allow the will of Sangkuriang, because of that he raged, and the ship was kicked to the North becoming Mt. Tangkuban Perahu. Meanwhile, the big sails which were thrown away to the South of Java Island became rocks that are sturdy and rigid at the Southern beach of Banten province. Actually, the twin rocks occurred because of a natural phenomenon which happened hundred years ago.

Besides the beach, Tanjung Layar area also has thousands of caves which stretch along Pelabuhanratu until Bayah and Malingping. Over there, there is also a natural sea basin which contains of various kinds of marine animals that usually occupy the coral reefs. You cannot swim at Tanjung Layar beach but the beach is a heaven for those photography’s lovers. It is because the beach has many beautiful spots as photography’s objects. Tanjung Layar is also mentioned as a hidden heaven at the Southern coast of Java island by tourists.

18
August

In commemorating Independence Day on August 17, every year the government holds a state ceremony at the Merdeka Palace complex Jakarta. This year, the state ceremony was held, although in limited conditions, due to the Covid-19 pandemic. Actually, in the complex, there is another palace besides the Merdeka palace, called the Istana Negara or the State Palace. The State Palace is used as a venue for the state events, among others, the inauguration of high-ranking state officials, national working meetings, national and international congresses, and state banquets. The State Palace is located on Jalan Rijswijk (now Jalan Veteran) No. 17, Central Jakarta. The building is adjacent to the Ciliwung River, and flanked by the Bina Graha building and the State Secretariat. This palace is located opposite to the Merdeka Palace, so the two palaces often called as the "Twin Palace". The building has white color with a European style architecture taken from Greek architectural art. This palace does not have a wide and open foyer like many residential houses in Jakarta. The State Palace has five wide doors. In the center of the building there is a dining room in a classic style with pillars along both sides of the room. There are two pavilions on the left that facing to the main building. This pavilion was originally used as a residence for staffs and adjutants of the Dutch Governor-General but now this building functions as the office of the presidential household staffs.

The Istana Negara was built in 1796 as a resting house. Initially it belonged to van Isseldijk, an official of Raad van Indie, then the ownership transferred to JA. van BraamWhen Indonesia was under British rule, the State Palace Building was built into a magnificent palace with a Neoclassical architectural style and became a place of honor. At this palace, Lieutenant General Raffles lived with other important people from 1811 to 1816In 1821, this palace was purchased by the Dutch colonial government to be used as the residence of the Governor General in Batavia, because the official residence of the Dutch Governor General was at the Bogor Palace, West Java. In the 19th century a new palace was built in the same area, especially for various official ceremonies that were attended by many people. The Palace overlooks the Merdeka Square and later known as the Merdeka Palace.

The State Palace was used as a residence and as an office by the Dutch Governor General Baron van Der Cappellen. In addition, this palace was also often used as a place to stay for high-ranking officials of the Dutch East Indies government after attending the meetings in Batavia

Until the era of Governor General Du Bus de Ghisignies from 1826 to 1830, the State Palace still functioned as a residence, office, and a place for meetingsIn 1942, Governor General Tjarda Van Starkenborch signed an agreement to hand over the Dutch East Indies government to the Japanese troops at this Palace.

Since that time, the State Palace has been occupied by the commander of the Japanese Armed Forces who controlled Java and Madura. This palace has become the residence of Siko Shikikan or the commander of the Japanese Army who ruled Indonesian territory, namely Hitosji Imamura, Kumakichi Harada, and General Yamaguchi. After the Indonesian Proclamation of Independence on 17 August 1945, President Soekarno also stayed at the State Palace until the recognition of sovereignty on December 27, 1949. This Palace was a witness of the signing of the Linggarjati agreement. The State Palace also became the place for the signing of the negotiation text between Indonesia and the Netherlands after the Round Table Conference.

17
August

Gedung Joang '45 or Joang 45 Museum is one of the museums in Jakarta. This museum is located on Jalan Menteng Raya 31, Kelurahan Kebon Sirih, Menteng District, Central Jakarta. After it was renovated, the museum was inaugurated in 1974 by President Soeharto.

Gedung Joang ‘45 was originally the Schomper Hotel building which was built around 1920-1938, and managed by L.C. Schomper, a citizen of Dutch descent. During the Japanese occupation, this hotel was taken over by Ganseikanbu Sendenbu (Propaganda Department) and later known as Gedung Menteng 31. This building became the headquarters for a political education program which was held for a number of youth leaders who played a major role in the independence era, including Sukarni, Chaerul Saleh, A.M Hanafi and Adam Malik. They were better known as 'Pemoeda Menteng 31', who were the actors behind the kidnapping of Soekarno, Hatta and Fatmawati to Rengasdengklok, the day before independence. Those young figures were fostered by Soekarno, Hatta, Moh. Yamin, Sunaryo and Achmad Subarjo.

In this museum, a number of paintings related to the proclamation of Indonesian independence are exhibited. There are also several dioramas, among others describing the atmosphere of the Menteng 31 Building during the independence era and Soekarno's oration at the Grand Meeting at the IKADA Field on September 19, 1945.

There is also a documentary archive in the form of photographs and bust statues of the independence movement’s leaders. In addition to historical documentation, the Joang 45 Museum is equipped with various facilities, including a permanent and temporary exhibition room and a multi-media corner, the Joang 45 cinema which shows various films with the theme of struggle and documentaries, a historical reference library, a children's room containing various games, studio photos, souvenirs’ shop and outdoor plaza for children's theater activities.

13
August

Magelang is a popular region in Central Java, because it has global tourism objects, such as Borobudur Temple. Besides Borobudur Temple, Magelang city also has a variety of interesting tourist objects to explore such as Silancur Highland. Silancur Highland is located in Mangli village, Kaliangkrik sub-district, Magelang, Central Java. Its location is at the slope of Mount Sumbing with an altitude of 1,300 meters above sea level. Silancur Highland is located 15 kilometers from the town square of Magelang and takes about 30 minutes to reach there. To enter this tourism object, you have to pay a ticket Rp.15,000 per person.

The main attraction of the Silancur Highland is seeing sunrise. If you want to see the phenomenon of sunrise at Silancur Highland, I suggest you to come early morning. This panorama of the sunrise from the east is decorated with silhouettes from Mount Merapi, Merbabu, Andong and Telomoyo. When the sun rise is over, the beauty of Silancur Highland is no less interesting. The view of the mountains is seeing more clearly and you can take pictures with a beautiful mountainous panorama as the background.

If you like camping, this tourism site is the right choice, because Silancur Highland offers a camping ground. You can enjoy the lights of Magelang city and also the view of the stars at night. The management also provides tents for visitors who do not bring camping equipment. The camping area has been completed by electricity. So you don't have to worry about running out of gadget batteries. The temperature in Silancur Highland is cold, around 11 degrees Celsius at night, so you have to bring a thick jacket if you want to camp. Don't worry, the Silancur camping area are also equipped with food stalls which provide various food supplies.

14
August

Kethek Ogleng dance is one of  traditional dances from East Java. This dance comes from the Javanese language that means 'kethek' (monkey).  Meanwhile, the word -Ogleng is taken from the sound behind thdance. Based on the name, the dance movement follows the behavior of monkey.  At the show, the Kethek Ogleng dance is performed by 4 dancers, namely 3 female dancers and a male dancer who plays the role of a monkey man.

The performance of Kethek Ogleng dance begins with the entry of the three female dancers on the stage. 2 of the 3 women act as maidservants and the rest is a female dancer as the daughter of Dewi Sekartaji, the princess of the kingdom of Jenggala, Sidoarjo.  While the male dancer acts as Raden Panji Asmorobangun who comes from the Dhaha Kediri kingdom. This dance movement narrates about  the story of Raden Asmorobangun and Dewi Sekartaji, who fall in love with each other. They have a dream to build a harmonious family life.

Kethek Ogleng art is a folk art coming from Tokawi Village, Nawangan sub-district, Pacitan Regency in East Java.  The art of Kethek Ogleng was created by Mr. Sutiman at the end of 1962 and has been preserved by the people of East Java up to now. The Kethek Ogleng dance is usually performed during  celebration events, such as wedding, circumcision  and ritual event welcoming the birth of a baby.  Now, the dance is also performed to welcome important guests.  The Kethek Ogleng dance is accompanied by Javanese gamelan instruments, traditional percussion instruments and Sinden vocal.

11
August

Pangandaran is a regency in West Java province. It is directly border with Indian Ocean to the South, so that Pangandaran has beautiful beaches. One of them is Madasari beach, which is located at Masawah village, Cimerak subdistrict. The beach has a cluster of coral hills which is filled with trees and shrubs. Unfortunately you only can enjoy its beautiful panorama from the side of the beach or from the peak of coral hills. The sea surrounding the beach is dangerous because it has big waves, thereby there is a prohibition to swim in the sea.

If you are interested to see the beautiful views of Madasari beach when the waves hits the rocks, you can climb the coral hills near the beach. We suggest you to be careful and use comfortable shoes when climbing the hills. Uniquely the hills on Madasari Beach have the names respectively, such as Batu Gedogan, Batu Sebrotan, Batu Leuit, Legok Gandu, Cariuk, and Pandan Nyampai. If you want to enjoy the beauty of the beach from the shore, you have to be careful when the water is receding. You will find some species of sea animals like sea urchin. When stepped on, you will be pierced by the sea animal's spines. In addition, you can also enjoy the beauty of the sunset. If you also want to watch the sunrise, you have to camp in the grass area that has been provided to the visitors. Visiting this tourist object, you can also explore the natural surroundings.

To enter Madasari beach area, the ticket price is not based on the number of visitors but only the vehicles, so the price could be variable. From Parigi, the center of the capital city of Pangandaran, it is about 31 kilometers, takes about 1 hour by car. Along the trip to Madasari Beach you will pass some other tourist sites namely Batukaras Beach and Green Canyon. Because each location of the objects are closely, after traveling to Madasari beach, you have to continue your visit to Batukaras and Green Canyon beaches, so you can feel the sensation of journey to Pangandaran, West Java.

10
August

Indonesia has not only amazing natural tourism object, but also some religious destinations which are quite popular. One of them is Maria Annai Velangkanni church in North Sumatra province. The church is located on Jalan Sakura, Tanjung Selamat in Medan. It is quite unique because it looks like a temple in India.

At glance, Maria Annai Velangkanni church looks like a temple in India because the founder of the church, Pastor James Bharataputra S.J. was inspired with the temple in India. The church started being built in 2001 and finished in 2005. The name of Annai Velangkani is taken from Indian language. Annai means mother and Velangkanni means where the virgin Mary appeared. The appearance of the virgin Mary becomes the background why the Catholic church with Mogul architecture was built. Mogul architecture is the characteristic of temple in India.

Previously, Maria Annai Velangkanni church was for Tamil Catholics in Medan. But in the development of the church, all Catholics can come and make pilgrimage without boundary of origin or race. Since, the church is actually presented for all Catholics and also a tourism object for tourists. Multicultural aspect of the church can be seen through the structure of its building which has various symbols. Take for example; the entrance gate is decorated with miniature of traditional houses of Batak Toba and Karo. At the right pole of the gate, there is a carving of an Indian woman who is dancing and on the left pole, there is a Chinese man who is giving a greeting. Then, along the wall of the gate, there is also a statue of Indonesian tribes.

Maria Annai Velangkani church consists of two levels. The ground floor becomes a hall. The first floor is a place of worship with a balcony whose 14 windows tell about the way of cross. On the second floor, there is an Annai Velangkanni statue with her son which is directly brought from India. Over there, there are also 20 windows which tell events in the life of Jesus, equipped with seven levels of towers with three domes that symbolize heaven. At the left side, there is Annai Velangkanni chapel for daily worship and in front, there is a mini park to commemorate the Pope Yohanes Paulus II. There is also a park for children and a Graha complex to accommodate visitors to stay for free.

07
August

Pelite cake

Written by
Published in Indonesian Wonder

Muntok has been registered as one of the Heritage cities in Indonesia. Besides being known as a historical city, Muntok is also known as the City of Thousand cakes. There are Pelite, Bluder, Gomag, Lemper, and Jongkong cakes. Today  we are going to introduce you one of the typical cakes of Muntok, namely Pelite cake.

Pelite is white color cake which is wrapped in pandan leaves. Some people call it a pelite daun cake, because if the banana leaf or pandan leaf is opened, then the bottom part of the cake will look like a wick of lamp. Other people call it sampan cake, because it looks like a boat. This Pelite cake is made from rice flour, coconut milk and white sugar as well as its container formed like takir from pandan or banana leaves. To make the pelite cake, all the ingredients are processed become a dough. Then it is steamed in a container made of pandan or banana leaves.  When it is eaten, the texture of this cake is so soft. It tastes sweet and savory. People of Muntok usually  enjoy Pelite cake in the morning and afternoon with a cup of tea or coffee.   Pelite is sold with relatively cheap, only Rp. 1,500 - Rp. 2,500 per piece.

Pelite Cake was the favorite cake of the first president of Indonesia Sukarno  when he  together with Mohammad Hatta, Haji Agus Salim, and Mohammad Roem were exiled to Bangka Island precisely in Muntok, West Bangka, in 1949. At the time, the upheaval of Indonesia's struggle after the independence was still happening amid the  exile. This sweet-tasted cake was the snack for Bung Karno every morning or when drinking tea or coffee in the afternoon.  President Soekarno also brought the cake when he  invited the local people of Muntok to trip to Tanjung Kalian beach, Muntok.

05
August

The traditional village of Wae Rebo in Manggarai district on the island of Flores, East Nusa Tenggara has received UNESCO Best Excellence Award at the "UNESCO Asia Pacific Heritage Awards 2012", which was announced in Bangkok, Thailand on August 27, 2012. This small and isolated village is known for rebuilding Mbaru Niang's traditional house based on the spirit of community cooperation towards sustainable traditions. At the same time, the development program improves the welfare of the villagers. To reach the village which is located around 1,100 meters above sea level, we must first go to Labuhan Bajo City by airplane or boat and continue by public transportation to Ruteng City. From Ruteng City, we take another public transportation to the village of Denge. We can also book a travel agent at Ruteng which will serve directly to Denge, the closest village to Wae Rebo. It takes around 3-4 hours on foot from Denge Village to Wae Rebo Village which is located on a mountain. The village of Wae Rebo is completely surrounded by beautiful mountains and dense forest of Todo. This tropical forest is rich with vegetation, where you will find orchids, various types of ferns and hear the singing of birds. There is not any signal for cellular coverage in this village, and electricity is only available from 6 to 10 pm. The air is relatively cold, especially in the dry season, so don't forget to bring your jacket if you plan to visit this village.

The founder of the village and hence their main ancestor who built the village about 100 years ago, was a man named Empu Maro. At present, the inhabitants are descendants of the 18th generation. The main characteristic of Wae Rebo is their unique home, which they call Mbaru Niang, which is tall and conical in shape and is completely covered by palm leaves from its roof to the ground. It seems that at one time, such a house is quite common in the area. But until now, only the village of Wae Rebo still maintains the authenticity of the traditional Manggarai house. The house has five levels, each level is designed for a specific purpose. The first level, called Lutur or tent, is a large family residence. The second level, called Lobo or attic, is for storing food and goods, the third one, called Lentar is for storing seeds for the next harvest, the fourth level called Lempa rae is reserved for food supplies in case of emergencies, and the fifth and upper levels, which are called Hekang kode, which is considered the most sacred, is placing offerings for ancestors.

In the village of Wae Rebo, there is one house that is different from the others, which is a special ceremony house. This community building is where members of all clans gather for ceremonies and rituals. The people of Wae Rebo Village are mostly Catholics but still adhere to old beliefs. In this house, the sacred heirlooms of drums and gongs are maintained. With a small population of around 1,200 residents, this village consists of 7 houses. The villagers' staple food is cassava and corn, but around the village, they grow coffee, vanilla and cinnamon which they sell in a market, which is located about 15 km from the village. Nowadays, Wae Rebo is increasingly popular as a tourism destination for fans of international ecotourism, and this has added to the economic prosperity of the village. Wae Rebo residents warmly welcome visitors who want to see their village and experience their simple traditional life.