VOI - Voice of Indonesia | RRI - Radio Republik Indonesia

Banyumas Regency, which has the nickname as the regency of a thousand waterfalls,  has many waterfalls of tourism; one of which is Curug Gede located in Purwokerto, Ketenger Village, Baturaden Subdistrict, Banyumas Regency. It is also one of the most exotic natural tourism attractions, and it must be visited when visiting Banyumas Regency. In addition to the beautiful scenery, the cozy atmosphere makes visitors feel at home.

Gede waterfall, which has a height of 50 meters, has its own charm of natural beauty. Its location in the forest area, surrounded by hills and shady trees, such as pine trees and mountains  certainly makes the surrounding air cool and refreshing. The scenery is green, beautiful and very instagramable, especially if by using a camera. Visitors can take pictures while sitting on the rocks and playing in the water or taking pictures under the lush trees. They can also play along the waterfall. The river is quite shallow and the water is very refreshing.

Gede waterfall  tourism can also be an option for those of you who like camping. The area is quite large and supported by a calm atmosphere, of course, it will be very suitable for setting up tents. Here, you can also  enjoy togetherness while lighting a campfire and listening to the gurgling water from Curug Gede. If you like scenery and tranquility, this  Gede waterfall is a perfect place to calm your mind.  The tourism destination is open every day from Monday to Sunday, from 08.00 AM to 17.00 PM western time. The best time to visit this waterfall is in the morning, of course, when the weather is good.

Chairman of the Study Board of the People's Consultative Assembly of the Republic of Indonesia,  Djarot Syaiful Hidayat and a number of other Assembly members paid a visit to Bulgaria to strengthen bilateral relations of both  countries on Monday (29/4).  The meeting took place at the Bulgarian parliament building and was chaired by a representative of the Bulgarian Parliament as well as the Chairman of the Indonesia Friendship Parliament  Bulgaria,  Stanislav Bogdanski.  In a press release of the Embassy of the Republic of Indonesia Sofia in Jakarta  on Wednesday (1/5)  Djarot appreciated the warm welcome of Bulgarian parliamentarians.  Even during recess,  they could still conduct meetings and discussions to realize the improvement of bilateral relations between the two countries.

On one hand, Indonesia, as the largest economy in the ASEAN region with its growing potential, can be an ideal entry point for Bulgaria to enter the ASEAN common market.  On the other hand, Bulgaria as part of the European Union is expected to be one of the entrances to deeper partnership cooperation with Indonesia.  Therefore, Djarot hopes  that  it will create friendship,  mutual trust and strengthen between Indonesia and Bulgaria  for the long term, and it  will give a positive image of both parties with all partners in the region. Partnership between Indonesia and Bulgaria as sovereign countries is certainly important to share historical experiences on strengthening democracy and national development.

Meanwhile, Indonesian Ambassador to Bulgaria, North Macedonia and Albania,  Iwan Bogananta conveyed that  Indonesia-Bulgaria bilateral relations, which  have been established for 68 years,  are very close. Even, both countries have had  a lot of cooperation  in the political,  economic,  defense  and socio-cultural fields.  Iwan also admitted   during his time as Ambassador in Bulgaria, there was an increase in bilateral trade trends by 49 percent with a total trade value of US$755 million or around Rp12, 28 trillion. 

Moreover, according to Ambassador Iwan, his side has also materialized Indonesia's ‘Spice Up The World’ program by  implementing the Rendang Goes to Europe program, in this case building a production factory and supply chain of Indonesian food in Bulgaria. On that occasion,  Stanislav Bogdanski also appreciated the visit of Indonesian parliamentarians to Bulgaria.  According to Stanislav, over the last four years,  the cooperation of both countries has continued to increase,  not only between governments,  but also with the private sector and people-to-people contacts.  He encouraged the strengthening of cooperation between the parliaments of the two countries.

If you travel to Magelang, Central Java,  you will see the magnificent Borobudur temple. However, Borobudur Temple is not the only interesting place to visit in the area. Not far from Borobudur Temple, there is a beautiful tourism village called Candirejo Tourism Village. Candirejo Tourism Village is located in Borobudur subdistrict, Magelang. Having a  panoramic view of Mount Menoreh, the village, which was originally a transit and stay place for tourists when going to Borobudur Temple, is now transformed into a new destination.

Candirejo tourist village is located on the slopes of the mountain. In the southern part of the village, there is a beautiful and green natural landscape called Menoreh Hills. If you want an exciting and different experience, please try hunting for sunrise views around the Menoreh Hills, precisely at a spot called Watu Kendil. In addition to hunting for amazing panoramas, while exploring this hill, you will also be introduced to the traditional farming system typical of the Menoreh community, namely intercropping. The intercropping farming system allows one land to be filled with not just one, but many types of plants. If you like a challenge, try offroad tours. Candirejo Tourism Village offers offroad tours through roads with hilly contours in the Menoreh region, crossing the Progo River, and ending at the Watu Kendil spot. Then for those of you who like fishing, in Candirejo Tourism Village there is a traditional fishing system using a trap called bronjong (net). Interestingly, the fishing location is in the river. You can feel a new and super exciting experience while catching fish using nets.

If you travel to Candirejo, please don't forget to taste its culinary specialties. One of them is mangut. This dish is made from beong fish, which is endemic to the Progo River, and cooked with coconut milk and savory yellow spices. When you return home, don't forget to buy some souvenirs, such as stone carvings. Local people carve andesite stones left over from the eruption of Mount Merapi to make puppetry motifs, stupas and cobek (mortar).

The Indonesian robotics team won at the RoboGames 2024, in San Francisco, US. In the event held on 15-23 April 2024, Indonesia won one gold medal, five silver, and three bronze. Robo Games is an annual world class robotics competition. There are 50 types of robotics competitions joined by participants from many countries. RoboGames was dubbed the world's largest robot competition in the Guinness Book of World Records. This year's Robo Games was the 16th edition.

Indonesia was represented by members ofUniversitas Komputer Indonesia(UNIKOM) Bandung Robotics Division. They were Taufiq Iskandar, Nawaf Saeful Anwar, and Dinar Maulana. The team was grateful to participate and win. This was the latest participation of Indonesia after not joining RoboGames during the COVID-10 pandemic. The robot in the competition was a result of robotics research by Electrical Engineering and Informatics Engineering students of UNIKOM Bandung.

One of the team member Nuzwir said the competition was an event to test their product, while improving a competitive and globally-tested research culture. The success of Indonesian robotics team at RoboGames 2024 was witnessed directly by the Indonesian Consulate General in San Francisco.