Kampung Tugu: Portuguese Traces in North Jakarta

Jakarta is widely known as a multi-ethnic city. Yet, not many people know that on the east of Tanjung Priok harbour lies a village inhabited by people of Portuguese descent who still preserve their culture and heritage. It is from this old village where keroncong music and gado-gado originated. On my way to Rumah Tugu

Indonesia on a Plate

Sepiring Indonesia quite literally serves Indonesia on a plate. The vibrant, decorative crockery of this artistic brand brings the culture, colour and characters of the archipelago onto the dining room table. The dining ware ware caught the attention of the judges.  The plates, bowls, and cups brought Jakarta’s festivities to life: abang none (Betawi man and

Celebrating 50 Years of the Jakarta Theatre Festival

Reaching its impressive half-century milestone, the Jakarta Theatre Festival (JTF) is the oldest theatre festival in Indonesia and Southeast Asia. To celebrate its golden anniversary this 2023, the festival presents Homo Theatricus: City, Subsistence and Imagination as their annual theme, inviting audiences of all ages and backgrounds to experience theatre as part of everyday life, a

Whoosh: Inside Indonesia’s First Bullet Train

With the all-new high-speed train dubbed Whoosh, travellers from Jakarta can reach Bandung, West Java, in only 45 minutes, travelling speeds of up to 350 kilometres per hour, and featuring carriages with luxurious interiors. Indonesia now officially operates Southeast Asia’s first high-speed railway, launched on 2 October 2023, set to encourage and entice the public

Belanda Depok: The History of the ‘Depok Dutch’ 

‘Belanda Depok’ was once a pejorative, or mocking name, given to the old communities of Depok, a region found between Jakarta and Bogor, now best known as the home of The University of Indonesia. The origin of this term, meaning ‘Depok Dutch’, spans back to the early days of the Dutch colonisation of Indonesia and is an

Buumi Playscape: Learning Through Play

Currently open at two locations in Jakarta, Buumi Playscape offers experiential and interactive experiences where young children are invited to learn through play. Children may not understand the importance of their playtime, all they know is that they’re having fun! In fact, play is exploration, especially amongst young children who are led by their unquenchable

Jakarta’s Bulk Stores, A Battle for Survival

In 2018, bulk stores began to mushroom across the city, many established by young, hopeful entrepreneurs. With a growing awareness of plastic pollution, and a collective mission to reduce single-use plastic products (grocery bags, straws, sachets, product packaging), bulk stores seemed to be the perfect business trend, set to ride the swell of this new

Tumpeng Philosophy (and why we’ve been doing it all wrong)

Nasi tumpeng is iconic when it comes to Indonesia’s traditional celebratory cuisine. It has come to represent Indonesian culture and way of life through its variety of ingredients, colours, shape and its ‘serving’ tradition. Seen at birthdays, anniversaries, business openings, weddings, it is ubiquitous with celebration, but despite how commonplace it is, it turns out

Meet Charles Toto: The Jungle Chef

“The forest, for Papuan people, is a market where they can get their daily needs such as vegetables and side dishes, all for free.” – Charles Toto Compared to other large islands in Indonesia, Papua’s forest cover figure is the largest. The area reaches 34,4 million hectares or around 82% of the area of Papua.

Discovering Indonesia Through ‘Ruang Imersifa’

The newest attraction at the National Museum of Indonesia, Ruang Imserfia (the immersive room) invites visitors to enter and interact with a vibrant, 360-degree, audio-visual experience of Indonesia’s history and cultural heritage. Found on the Ground Floor of Gedung A in the National Museum of Indonesia (Museum Nasional), Ruang Imersifa is a 12 by 21

Sunda Kelapa and the Birth of Jakarta

All data and history point to the area of Kota, on the west bank of the Ciliwung River approximately eight hundred meters south of the Pasar Ikan. There, the seeds were planted that developed into the metropolitan city of Jakarta Raya, one might say the birth of Jakarta, a city which is now home to

Now Bali
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