List of the countries

A little information about the country that one intends to visit or that one has visited often allows us to put into context the past or future emotions specific to each trip. A little history or anecdotes are often welcome ... This is what you can find on this page dedicated to Indonesia. But nothing like (short) videos to get a more precise idea of the places visited or to visit. Beside is a list of the videos edited from the photographic material I brought back from the trip Indonesia • Sumatra, Java and Bali (EN).

You just have to click on the image to access the page giving more information on the place treated in the video and of course, to see this video ...

Indonesia

The archipelago formed by the Republic of Indonesia is made up of some 17,000 islands. The main islands are Sumatra, Java, Borneo (Kalamatan), Sulawesi and Papua New Guinea, although the best known among tourists is Bali. The country has more than 267 million inhabitants. It is the largest of the Muslim countries.

Brief history of Indonesia

The archipelago has been inhabited for a very long time. 500,000-year-old Homo Erectus fossil bones have been found. Homo Sapiens are considered to have occupied the archipelago as early as 43,000 BC.

The current populations (of the Melanesian type) arrived here around 2000 years before Jesus Christ.

Indonesia's golden age begins with the Naval Kingdom of Srivijaya which developed through trade and Buddhist and Hindu influences. It is from this period that the sites of Borobudur and Prambanan date. This period of prosperity went from the 7th to the 13th century.

The first traces of Muslims date back to the 13th century in North Sumatra.

The first Westerners to land on Indonesia were the Portuguese who sought to have a monopoly on spices. The English and Dutch traders would come a little later and it was in 1602 that the Dutch created the VOC (Verenigde Oost-Indische Compagnie) which was to take on a capital importance in relations with Indonesia. The VOC would rule the world for more than two centuries before going bankrupt. The results of the VOC are mixed to say the least ... but have enriched Holland while Indonesia was overexploited. The eternal history of colonization ....

The Second World War put an end to the Dutch period by the role that the Japanese occupier played in the revival of the Indonesian independence movement. The independence of Indonesia was proclaimed only two days after the surrender of Japan.

The Islands in this movie

The largest of the islands is predominantly Muslim Sumatra while the most populous island is Java, also predominantly Muslim. Bali is an exception at the religious level with its 93% Hindu.Java

Java

Java is by far the most populous of the 17,000 islands that make up Indonesia with its 141 million inhabitants, which also makes it the most populous island in the world. A volcanic island which still has several active volcanoes, Java is also home to the current capital of the country Jakarta. For several years, there has been talk of moving the capital to Borneo (Kalamanta) because the city is far too congested and moreover it is threatened by rising water levels.

Apart from the capital and the volcanoes, Java also has the largest Buddhist temple in the world, Borobodur, even if the island is predominantly Muslim.

Among the most interesting cities to visit, Yogyakarta in the center of the island. This city has retained a great deal of autonomy from the central power due to the services rendered by the King of Yogyaarta to the separatists during the national liberation war against the Dutch

Bali

Of all the islands that make up Indonesia, Bali is undoubtedly the most touristic. 80% of its income is linked to tourism.

It is also the only predominantly Hindu island in a country with a very strong Muslim majority. Bali is also renowned for the high quality of its artists, whether they are stone or wood sculptors, musicians, painters or dancers.

The island has a little over 4 million inhabitants.

Sumatra

Sumatra is Indonesia's largest island, at least if you count those that are not shared with other countries.

Sumatra once had large primary forests that were home to animals such as the Sumatran tiger, Sumatran elephant, Sumatran rhino, and orangutan. All of these species are currently threatened with extinction due to the policy of large-scale deforestation to plant the infamous oil palm trees.

The island has about 58 million inhabitants, the vast majority of whom are Muslims, but there are more Christians than Hindus.

Sumatra is also of volcanic origin and Lake Toba, 100 km long and 35 wide has taken the place of the crater of a super volcano whose last eruption dates back 75,000 years.