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Where there is a will, there is a path… ~ Indonesian Proverb
Selamat people!
We are absolutely thrilled to be embarking on a new adventure… to Indonesia. 😊
The archipelago of Indonesia is composed of about 17,500 islands, and it’s estimated that roughly 10,500 of these are inhabited. We’ll be visiting two of them – Java and Bali.
Indonesia has sufficient islands to fill several lifetimes of travel exploration… but sadly, we had to restrict our choice to just two. Given the time and budget we have, we chose to start with the two most accessible islands, and the ones that will probably give us the best sense of the country in a short space of time.
The last time Ren visited these two islands was in the late ‘90s and early ‘20s respectively, and it will be Andrew’s first trip to the country. Depending on how this ‘sampler’ trip goes, we may consider returning to visit the more far-flung islands.
Here’s a quick snapshot of the Republic of Indonesia:
> the governing framework is a presidential representative democratic republic, where the President is head of both state and government;
> the capital is Jakarta (near the northwestern coast of Java);
> the currency is the
Indonesian Rupiah (IDR);
> the official language is Bahasa Indonesia, with more than 700 regional languages spoken;
> the population was 273.50 million according to the 2020 national census (with Worldometer estimating that it’s currently at 281.91 million!);
> Indonesia is the fourth most populous country in the world;
> with approximately 55% of Indonesia's population residing in Java, this makes Java the most populous island in the world;
> the majority religion is Sunni Islam (86.5%%). The rest of the population identify as follows - Protestant Christian (7.0%%); Roman Catholic (2.9%%); Hindu (1.7%%); Buddhist (0.7%%); Shia Muslim (0.4%%); Ahmadi Muslim (0.2%%); Confucianism (0.1%%); and other beliefs (0.5%%).
Indonesia is considered to be part of both Southeast Asia and Oceania. It lies between the Indian and Pacific oceans and its archipelago is spread widely (spanning over 5000km from east to west, and nearly 2000km from north to south). It sits across the equator and is also located at a significant junction of the Earth’s tectonic plates – so it’s obviously susceptible to seismic and volcanic activity. Here’s hoping the volcanic gods smile on us and keep their rumblings to a minimum!
The climate of Indonesia is almost totally
tropical. Surrounded by warm waters, the land temperatures remain fairly constant. Both islands of Java and Bali have forested volcanic mountains in the interior that slope downward to coastal plains, and the only temperature variations are differences between the coastal plains, the inland areas and the higher mountain regions.
Unlike temperate countries, the main variable of Indonesia's tropical climate is rainfall (and not temperature). It has two seasons – rainy and dry. While there is regional variation in the timing of the seasons, the dry season in Java and Bali is from April to October. However, from examining Indonesia’s weather patterns for the last few years, like elsewhere in the world, the seasons aren’t exactly keeping to their schedules anymore.
Unsurprisingly, it seems the dry season is also the peak tourist season (May to September). We prefer to plan our trips in the shoulder seasons… because if we time it right, we get the best of both worlds – relatively good weather but without the crowds. We are hoping that by visiting in May, we’ll be there at the start of the dry season and it won’t be crazy busy. The travel gods haven’t always smiled on our
shoulder-season plans though, so we are also prepared for the odd rain shower or two. Plus, from all accounts, the major tourist attractions don’t seem to have any downtime anymore (especially in Bali).
Packing for this trip should have been easy given Indonesia’s warm/hot climate. However, it has proved to be slightly tricky. Firstly, even though it will be hot in Java, it’s a conservative island and Ren will have to cover up (no shoulders or knees on display) in the more regional and rural areas. And even though Bali is more moderate in its outlook (and is also used to more tourists), we will be visiting a few places at higher elevations that will require warm clothing. We’ve had to give a bit more thought to our ‘hot weather’ travel clothing choices than usual.
Being one of Australia’s closest neighbours, we feel we know a little bit about what goes on in Indonesia. However, whenever we’ve gone anywhere thinking we knew a few things about the country, it’s generally turned out that we know precious little. Nonetheless, we are looking forward to building on what little we know. Besides, getting to know a country from the inside
is very different to observing it from afar.
Our low-key obsession with Southeast Asian food is no secret, and we are extremely excited about experiencing Indonesian food. We are looking forward to understanding the culinary features of the two very different islands of Java and Bali, as well as learning to decipher the regional differences within each island.
In preparation for this trip, we have been getting our taste buds acclimatised by frequenting a couple of Indonesian cafes and food trucks at the Hobart Farm Gate market. Despite this effort, our food knowledge hasn’t really expanded much beyond the staples of
gado gado (salad of raw, blanched and steamed vegetables with eggs, potato, tofu and tempeh, served with a peanut sauce dressing),
sate (satay),
martabak telur (crispy pancake filled with egg and other savoury ingredients),
beef rendang (beef braised in a lemongrass and coconut sauce),
nasi goreng (fried rice served with a fried egg) and
mee goreng (fried noodles). Consequently, we are extremely eager to delve deeper into the cuisine… and we’re making sure we arrive with BIG appetites! 😉
For work reasons, we normally travel in the first half of the year. However, seeing as we
delayed our 2022 trip to coincide with Ren’s birthday in September… it feels slightly strange to be travelling again in eight months rather than our usual 12 months – but strange in a very nice way! 😊
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We are seriously looking forward to getting our fill of Indonesia’s landscapes, temples and fiery food! Let the travel quest commence! 😊
Ren and Andrew
Travel viewing / Films that set the scene for this trip... The Year of Living Dangerously, directed by Peter Weir (1982);
Eat, Pray, Love, directed by Ryan Murphy (2010);
Luke Nguyen, Street Food Asia TV Series, Episodes 7 and 8 (2016);
Anthony Bourdain, No reservations TV Series 2, Episode 12 (2006);
Anthony Bourdain, Parts Unknown TV Series 12, Episode 3 (2018);
Michael Portillo, Great Asian Railway Journeys TV Series, Episodes 6 and 7 (2020).
Travel reading on this trip... Lonely Planet Guide Indonesia;
An Outcast of the Islands by Joseph Conrad (Andrew);
A House in Bali by Colin McPhee (Andrew);
The Year of Living Dangerously by Christopher J. Koch (Ren);
The Rainbow Troops by Andrea Hirata (Ren);
Beauty is a Wound by Eka Kurniawan (Ren);
Man Tiger by Eka Kurniawan (Ren);
Vengeance Is Mine, All Others Pay Cash by Eka Kurniawan (Ren).
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I’m Excited!
You may have figured out already that I have a longstanding obsession with Indonesia. I’m really looking forward to reading about your travels there. If I may make a couple of suggestions for additions to your reading list: Indonesia, Etc by Elizabeth Pisani is a fascinating read. It was written by a journalist who spent a year traveling to islands I’ve never heard of. Also worth reading is Kopi Dulu by Mark Eveleigh.