Tana Olen, the Forbidden Forest
“We call this place Tana Olen,” Philius, the Dayak elder explained. “In Kenyah Dayak language this means forbidden forest –...
History/Culture
Menteng Pulo: Field of Honour
The most astonishing experience when entering the Netherlands Field of Honour Menteng Pulo (Menteng Pulo Ereveld) is the silence. Just...
Life Back Then
Author of Olivia & Sophie, Rosie Milne, explores what expat life was like 200 years ago. My novel Olivia &...
The Influence of Javanese Music on Early Jazz
“Jazz has borrowed from other genres of music and also has lent itself to other genres of music.” – Herbie...
Rebuilding Ruins: PT Pembangunan Kota Tua
Most of Jakarta is made of new developments and expanding suburbs, however look to the North and you’ll find Kota...
Tugu Kunstkring Paleis: A Culturally Rich Dining Experience in the Heart of Menteng
On a quiet, leafy-tree street corner set amongst stately white mansions and European luxury cars parked roadside is a structural...
The Mapping of Java
The islands of Java and Bali located 8 degrees south of the Equator in the Indian Ocean are two of...
Settlers, Saints, Kings and Conversions: The Dawn of Indonesian Islam
Author of A Brief History of Indonesia, Tim Hannigan, travels back in time to explore the history of Islam in...
Kamasan: An Ancient Living Tradition
Imagine you are a master Balinese painter, and your King has recently commissioned you to do a piece of work....
The Kids Went Wild in Batavia
“The memory of things gone is important to a jazz musician.” – Louis Armstrong Joey Alexander’s nomination for two Grammy...
Preserving the Balinese Language for Generations to Come
Language represents culture. In culturally rich Indonesia this is especially true; is an archipelago of over 17,000 islands with around...
Saudara Dalam Sejarah: Exposing the Story of Indonesia’s Forgotten Exiles
In the 1960s, Sukarno sent thousands of students to study abroad, including in China. After the 1965 anti-communist massacre, in...
The Outdoor Museum of Taman Prasasti – a Window to the Past
We take a trip to the Taman Prasasti cemetery in Jakarta, where Sir Thomas Stamford Raffles’ wife, along with many...
The Ancient Temple of Gunung Padang
The recent revelation that Gunung Padang, a megalithic site south of Cianjur in West Java, almost certainly conceals a step...
Indonesia’s War on Drugs
Nearly all UN members have endorsed the 1961, 1971 and 1988 conventions on the prohibition of the main illegal recreational...
Swapping shirts with Plato: Kicking the Atlantis Football Around
cIn contrast, popular publishers love it, as its inclusion in a book title is a powerful selling point. Recently there...
The Big Apple and the Spice Islands
For whatever reason, New York picked up the appellation ‘Big Apple’ – is it even appropriate? Unbeknownst to most people,...
West of the South-Eastern Islands
Nusa Tenggara Barat (NTB) is one of Indonesia’s 34 provinces. Wedged between Bali and the tiny island of Komodo, it...
Ende, Flores: The Womb that Conceived Indonesia
Grace Susetyo takes a trip to Ende, where Indonesia’s first president, Sukarno, was exiled between 1934-1938. President Sukarno used his...
Going, Going, Gone: In Search of the Ultimate Longhouse
Along with blowpipes, traditional tattooing, mastery of plaiting crafts, canoe-building and the custom of wearing huge bunches of metal earrings...
The Mysterious, Phantasmagoric World of Javanese Wayang Theatre
The morality and messages conveyed in Wayang Kulit plays still permeate Javanese thought and daily life. The spellbound audience is...