Indonesia’s capital has about 10 million inhabitants, counting in the surrounding municipality, this number triples up to an astonishing 30 million. Located on the northwest coast of Java island, Jakarta – formerly called Batavia by the Dutch colonists – has evolved as a trading center […]
The region of Yogyakarta is one of the two last Sultanates in Indonesia. His Majesty Sri Sultan Hamengkubuwono X is not only the sultan, but also the democratically elected Governor of the Special Region Yogyakarta. The people of Yogyakarta are very proud of this special […]
Mandalay has been the last Royal Myanmar capital before the British conquered the realm and moved the capital south to Yangon. Until today the lively city is one of Myanmar’s cultural centers. It has a large intellectual scene and very popular pagodas. All in all, […]
Yangon, formerly called Rangoon, is the biggest city of Myanmar and was until recently the capital of the country. In 2005, the military junta unexpectedly moved the capital to the city of Nay Pyi Taw. However, Yangon still remains the undisputed commercial and diplomatic center […]
The sight is breathtaking: Thousands of temples rise from the ground in the plains of Bagan. They date back to the 11th to 13th centuries when Bagan was the center of the first Burmese kingdom. Thousands of Buddhist pilgrims visit this sacred landmark each year […]
Sumba – NOT Sumbawa! Sumba’s beauty is a well-kept secret, even amongst many Indonesians, leaving this island paradise pristine and charmingly underdeveloped. Twice the size of Bali, only few people even recognize the name, suggesting that we may refer to Sumbawa instead. We only learned […]
Tana Toraja, the Land of the Toraja people, is a small tribal area that stretches over a beautiful green valley in the center of the Indonesian island Sulawesi. Besides soothing long walks over evergreen hills the Toraja Land is reputed for complex, ancient tribal houses […]
The beautiful lush green landscape of the Toraja Land has cast her charming spell upon us and we are eager to explore the nature of this lovely place in a trekking tour. While trekking, we are again and again reminded of the importance of the […]
Tucked away in a small green valley, the people of Tana Toraja interpret their Christian belief in a very open-minded way. Besides regular church service they still practice ancient and very complex rituals around their dead ancestors. The definition of “dead” Our guide Yohanis picks […]
We arrive in Indonesia. Makassar is the first city we see, the first place where we meet the colorful and curious Indonesians and Makassar’s cuisine tops the “heat” record on our spiciness scale (sorry Thai cuisine… you have been officially dethroned). Makassar is the largest […]
