TAMAN MINI INDONESIA INDAH

Taman Mini Indonesia Indah (TMII) or "Beautiful Indonesia Miniature Park" (literally translated) is a culture-based recreational area located in East Jakarta, Indonesia. It has an area of about 250 acres (1.0 km²). The park is a synopsis of Indonesian culture, with virtually all aspects of daily life in Indonesia's 26 (in 1975) provinces encapsulated in separate pavilions with the collections of architecture, clothing, dances and traditions are all depicted impeccably. Apart from that, there is a lake with a miniature of the archipelago in the middle of it, cable cars, museums, a theater called the Theatre of My Homeland (Theater Tanah Airku) and other recreational facilities which make TMII one of the most popular tourist destinations in the city.

This idea to build the smaller scale of Indonesia was originally came from former Indonesian first lady,Siti Hartinah or best-known as Tien Suharto. The idea came out at a convention on 8 Cendana Street at March 13, 1970. Through this recreational site, she hoped more Indonesian people will have more national pride than before. The project called "Indonesian Miniature Project" was started by Harapan Kita Foundation in 1972. The concept of this culture-based recreational area was taken from the fact that Indonesia has unparalled richness and diversity from many different aspects.

TMII was originally located on a public area of 145 ha, as farms and fields. Later, the team was able to convert these fields into a suitable location for the construction. The topography of TMII is rather hilly, consistent with what the builders required. The team claimed the advantage of utilizing this uneven terrain was the ability to create interesting and diverse landscapes and enclosures, as well as reflecting the various characteristics of the Indonesian environment.

Sources : http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Taman_Mini_Indonesia_Indah

Tanah Lot

Tanah Lot is a rock formation off the Indonesian island of Bali. It is home of a pilgrimage temple, the Pura Tanah Lot (literally "Tanah Lot temple") and a popular tourist and cultural icon for photography and general exoticism.

Tanah Lot means "Land [sic: in the] Sea" in Balinese language. Located in Tabanan, about 20 km from Denpasar, the temple sits on a large offshore rock which has been shaped continuously over the years by the ocean tide.

Tanah Lot is claimed to be the work of the 15th century priest Nirartha. During his travels along the south coast he saw the rock-island's beautiful setting and rested there. Some fishermen saw him, and bought him gifts. Nirartha then spent the night on the little island. Later he spoke to the fishermen and told them to build a shrine on the rock for he felt it to be a holy place to worship the Balinese sea gods^.

The Tanah Lot temple was built and has been a part of Balinese mythology for centuries. The temple is one of seven sea temples around the Balinese coast. Each of the sea temples were established within eyesight of the next to form a chain along the south-western coast.

At the base of the rocky island, poisonous sea snakes are believed to guard the temple from evil spirits and intruders. A giant snake purportedly protects the temple, which was created fromNirata’s scarf when he established the island.

Sources : http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tanah_Lot

Karang Bolong Beach

The name Karang Bolong means Rock (Karang) with a Hole (Bolong). This may have been some frozen lava, formed during the eruption of Mount Krakatau. Karang Bolong beach is the beach recreation area where there is a big rock with its hole in the center, facing the open sea. The Rock forms a gate facing the sea, making it look very picturesque. There is a small forest, which has been converted into a recreation spot. There is a river flowing down to the sea where people can have a bath of fresh water after swimming in the salty sea.
Karang Bolong beach is located 50 km from Serang town or 140 km from Jakarta, on Karang Bolong Street.

Sources : http://www.indonesia-tourism.com/banten/karang-bolong.html

Pangandaran Beach

Small mainland peninsula with a national park with beaches and stunning scenery to rival the beaches of Bali on the south coast of Java. Pangandaran is one of Java's best-kept secrets as far as international tourists are concerned, but has been extremely popular with locals for along, long time. A small fishing town, it possesses one of Java's finest beaches and Pangandaran Nature Reserve teems with wild buffalo, barking deer and monkeys. The people are very friendly, this combined with the idealize surroundings make this a great place to spend a few days relaxing island-style. Pangandaran is halfway between Bandung and Yogya, about 5 hours by bus from Bandung and 8 hours from Jakarta.

This is the second beach resort area on the Indian Ocean after Pelabuhan Ratu. The site is 223 from Bandung and 400km from Jakarta. The trip by car or bus is recommendable because the road conditions are good. However, if we prefer to take the train, get into Bandung-Yogyakarta Express train and get off at the Banjar railroad station about 4 hours later. From here it will be another 50 km by bus to Pangandaran. The beach is called Penanjung, where most of the cottages and hotels are located, however, of modest ratings. Nothing luxurious should be expected. Pangandaran is especially of interest to nature lovers, as there is a wildlife reserve in the vicinity where wild birds and other indigenous animals live about freely to be enjoyed by visitors. In Pangandaran visitors will like fine white beaches, blue ocean and fine seafood. Twelve kilometers before arriving at Pangandaran visitors will see a huge rock on the beach, which is called Karang Nini.

Another place of special interest for nature lovers is a forest Conservation Park, close to the camping ground, which has basic facilities suitable for the younger set. Somewhat further out, west of Pangandaran, driving 23 km on the way to Parigi, lays Batu Hiu, meaning Shark's Rock, a coastal rock that has the shark shape.

Sources : http://www.indonesia-tourism.com/west-java/pangandaran-beach.html