Indonesia "The Ultimate in Diversity"

If you thrive in the natural world, traveling in Indonesia will delight you. Indonesia is a huge country – about the size of Japan, U.K., Germany, Spain, Italy, and Greece combined. Large parts of it are only semi-tamed and remain a tropical paradise. Indonesia offers the naturalist an almost infinite variety of flora and fauna such as the Titan Arum – the world’s tallest flower, the Rafflesia – the world’s biggest flower, the Borneo and Sumatran orangutan, the Komodo dragon, Sumatran tigers, Javanese one-horned rhinos, and much, much more.

  

Indonesia is a trekker’s heaven that allows you to enjoy breathtaking views from atop any one of the 150+ Indonesian volcanoes or slog through the Sumatran tropical rainforest on your way to attempt to spot the elusive Sumatran tiger.

If modern society and culture is your thing, head for Indonesia’s capital - Jakarta - where you can don your tuxedo or evening gown and join the elite of Indonesian society and diplomats from around the world for an evening at the Jakarta Symphony.

  

Those into indigenous culture could get lost in a world unto itself. Immerse yourself among the 300+ tribal communities spread throughout this archipelago nation of 17,508 islands. Visit the Kabu, Bakak, Minangkabau, Dayak, or the Dani people. Drink in their culture, learn about their customs, be entertained by their traditional dance, and enjoy their traditional tribal art in the form of woodcarvings, ceramics, textiles, basket weaving, beadwork, puppets, metalwork, and jewelry. But be careful, you may have to hire a container ship to take all those memories of your Indonesia travel experience home.

  

Those who surf Indonesia are thrilled by the waves off Nusa Lembongan or one of the many other excellent surfing destinations. Indonesia hosts a number of professional international surfing competitions each year and is widely recognized for excellence by surfing professionals.

Beach lovers are sure to find their perfect beach. With over 50,000 kilometers of coastline – enough to wrap around the earth and have enough left over to go from London to New York, your perfect spot in the sun will find you.

Do you like to eat? Well, Indonesian food will capture your soul. The food here is full of flavor from chili, cumin, coriander, garlic, and a wide variety of other spicy tidbits depending on the region you are in, and whose mother's recipe is being used. Most food in Indonesia is home cooked and sold on the street in "Warungs" which are simple outside eateries, or by roving vendors who clang a bell or make some other unique noise as they make their way down the street. Don't miss the Nasi Uduk – rice cooked in coconut milk and served with meat or tofu, and sometimes vegetables.

Scuba divers will find world class diving throughout Indonesia. From the deep waters off Pulau Weh, where the Andaman Sea joins the Indian Ocean, to the incredible Lembeh Strait in North Sulawesi, to stunning Tulamben Bay in Bali, diving in Indonesia promises a rich experience exploring the natural underwater world.

If all this adventure stuff is not for you, don't despair. Indonesia offers tourists a whole host of 5-star luxury havens that will pamper you and succumb to your every desire. Stay in one of these oases of comfort and they will bring Indonesian food and culture to you, to enjoy in air-conditioned comfort.

The Indonesia travel experience is one which invites travelers to witness history in the making - a young emerging nation racing to blend the ancient economic, political, and cultural ways of the orient, with those of the modern age of globalization.