"Indonesia- Jewelled archipelago" a Indonesia Travel Page by mallyak

A spectacular land of natural beauty, the country has more beaches than any other country in the world.Our visit close on the heels of the terrorist attacks in Bali and the earth quake in Jogyakarta had some shaking their heads .When our Garuda flight circled over the Island before landing at Denpasar, introduction to the to this natural paradise of lush rain forests , soaring volcanoe peaks and sandy sea coasts had us gaping at this awsome land scape.
Sadly this beautiful country has been struck by natural disasters but what was amazing was the people of this country went about their daily life with never ending smiles and optimistic about life in general.
One thing I noticed was the close similarities between Indonesia and India , 2 diverse countries with numerous problems but knit together by the very diversity and resilience of its people.......

We chose to stay in the village of bali far away from madenning crowd and did not make a single visit to the touristy KUTA.Ubud was beautifully laid back , very clean and perched on the gentel slopes .It is considerd the centre of "Cultural tourism'Its getting a bit crowded though , and dificult to walk without being constantly asked "transport?" by the locals .Our "no thanks" was always reciprocated with a gentle smile "perhaps another day?"There is an amazing amount to see and perhaps the 5 days we chose was not enough......

This cultural heart of java pronounced "Jogja'is an intelectual centre.it was a great contrast to Bali and more like an indian city-crowded,chaotic , dirty , dusty.... that why we loved it so much.The lack of the "touristy" touch was another very nice thing about Jogya unlike in bali were tourists seem to be more prominant than the locals. The local muslims were very friendly and for the first time in my life I had the feeling of being a celebrety bollywood actor with calls of " Hi Amitabh Bachan/ Sharukh Khan"!. Bollywood is HUGE here.
Yogya has noisy chaotic traffic but behind the main streets , a short stroll to the Kampungs , life is serene and unhurried... Oh yogya, a love affair has started.....