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Moreover, there are over
3,500 species living in Indonesian waters, including
sharks, dolphins, manta rays, turtles, morays,
cuttlefish, octopus and scorpion
fish, compared to 1,500 on the Great Barrier Reef and
600 in the Red Sea. Tulamben Bay
in Bali boasts the wreck of a 120 meter (400 ft) US Army
commissioned transport vessel, the USAT Liberty Glo.
Beside Bunaken and Bali, Lombok, with three Gilis
(Gili Air, Gili Meno and Gili Trawangan), Thousand
Islands and Bangka are some of the most popular diving
sites in Indonesia.
Surf breaks
Surfing is also a popular
water activities in Indonesia and the sites are
recognised as world class sites. The well-known spots
are mostly located on the southern, Indian Ocean side of
Indonesia, for example, large oceanic surf breaks on
southern Java. However, the north coast does not receive
the same surf from the Java Sea. Surf breaks can be
found all the way along Sumatra, down to Nusa Tenggara,
including Aceh, Bali, Banten, Java, Lombok, Mentawai
Islands, and Sumbawa. On Bali, there are about 33 surf
spots, from West Bali to East Bali. Sumatra is the
second island with the most number of surf spots, with
18 spots. The common time for surfing is around May to
September with the trade winds blowing from east to
south-east. From October to April, winds tend to come
from the west to north-west, so east coast breaks get
the offshore winds.
Two well-known surf breaks in Indonesia are the G-Land
in the Bay of Grajagan, East Java and Lagundri Bay at
the southern end of Nias island. G-Land was first
identified in 1972 when a surfer saw the break from the
window of a plane. Since 6 to 8 foot (Hawaiian scale)
waves were discovered by surfers at Lagundri Bay in 1975
the island has become famous for surfing worldwide.
National parks
The biggest national park in Indonesia is the 9,500
square kilometre Gunung Leuser National Park in the
north of Sumatra island. Together with Kerinci Seblat
National Park and Bukit Barisan Selatan National Park,
the total 25,000 square kilometres of national parks in
Sumatra, named Tropical Rainforest Heritage of Sumatra,
has been added to the UNESCO World Heritage list. Other
national parks on the list are Lorentz National Park in
Papua, Komodo National Park in the Lesser Sunda Islands
and Ujung Kulon National Park in the west of Java.
To be noticed, different national parks offer different
biodiversity, as natural habitat in Indonesia is divided
into two areas by the Wallace line. The Wallacea
biogeographical distinction means the western part of
Indonesia (Sumatra, Java, Kalimantan) have the same
flora and fauna characteristics as the Asian continent,
whilst the remaining eastern part of Indonesia has
similarity with the Australian continent.
Many native species such as Sumatran elephants, Sumatran
tigers, Sumatran rhinoceros, Javan rhinoceros and
Orangutans are listed as endangered or critically
endangered, and the remaining populations are found in
national parks and other conservation areas. Orangutans
can be visited in the Bukit Lawang conservation area.
The world’s largest flower, rafflesia arnoldi, and the
tallest flower, titan arum, can be found in Sumatra.
The east side of the Wallacea line offers the most
remarkable, rarest, and exotic animals on earth. Birds
of Paradise, locally known as cenderawaish, are plumed
birds that can be found among other fauna in Papua New
Guinea. The largest bird in Papua is the flightless
cassowary. One species of lizard, the Komodo Dragon can
easily be found on Komodo, located in the Nusa Tenggara
lesser islands region. Besides Komodo island, this
endangered species can also be found on the islands of
Rinca, Padar and Flores.
Volcanoes
Hiking and camping in the
mountains are popular adventure activities. Some
mountains contain ridge rivers, offering rafting
activity. Though volcanic mountains can be dangerous,
they have become major tourist destinations. Popular
active volcanoes are the 2,329 m high Mount Bromo in the
East Java province with its little desert, the upturned
boat shaped Tangkuban Perahu on the outskirts of Bandung,
the most active volcano in Java, Mount Merapi and the
legendary Krakatau with its new caldera known as anak
krakatau (the child of Krakatau). Puncak Jaya in the
Lorentz National Park, the highest mountain in Indonesia
and the only mountain with ice caps, offers the
opportunity of rock climbing. In Sumatra, there are the
remains of a super volcano eruption that have created
the landscape of Lake Toba close to Medan in North
Sumatra. Mount Rinjani in Lombok West
Nusa Tenggara Province famous with it lake and the
second highes peaks in Indonesia.
Cultural tourism
Indonesia consists of at least 300 ethnic groups, spread
over a 1.8 million km² area of 6,000 inhabited islands.
This creates a cultural diversity, further compounded by
Hindu, Buddhist, Islamic and European colonialist
influences.
From the 3rd century until the 13th century, Hinduism
and Buddhism shaped the culture of Indonesia. The
best-preserved Buddhist shrine, which was built during
the Sailendra dynasty in the 8th century, is Borobudur
temple in Central Java. A few kilometers to the
southeast is the Prambanan complex, a Hindu temple built
during the second Mataram dynasty. Both the Borobudur
and the Prambanan temple compounds have been listed in
the UNESCO World Heritage list since 1991. In Bali,
where most Hindus live, cultural festivals are major
attractions to foreign tourists.
Islam has also contributed greatly to the cultural
society in Indonesia. As of 2006, about 88% of
Indonesians are Muslim. Islamic culture is prominent in
Sumatra, and a few of the remaining sultanate palaces
can be seen in Medan and Pekanbaru.
Despite foreign influences, a diverse array of
indigenous traditional cultures is still evident in
Indonesia. The indigenous ethnic group of Toraja in
South Sulawesi, which still has strong animistic
beliefs, offers a unique cultural tradition, especially
during funeral rituals. The Minangkabau ethic group
retain a unique matrilineal culture, despite being
devoted Muslims. Other indigenous ethnic groups include
the Asmat and Dani in Papua, Dayak in Kalimantan and
Mentawai in Sumatra, where traditional rituals are still
observed.
A discussion of cultural tourism is not complete without
a mention of Yogyakarta, a special province in Indonesia
known as centre of classical Javanese fine art and
culture. The rise and fall of Buddhist, Hindu, and
Islamic kingdoms in Central Java has transformed
Yogyakarta into a melting pot of Indonesian culture.
Metropolitan
Tourism
Metropolitan tourism activities are shopping,
sightseeing in big cities and enjoying modern amusement
parks. The nation's capital, Jakarta, offers many places
for shopping. Mal Kelapa Gading (the biggest one with
130,000 m²), Plaza Senayan, Senayan City, Grand
Indonesia, EX, and Plaza Indonesia are some of the malls
in the city. Another popular tourist activity is
golfing, a favorite sport among the upper classes
Indonesian and also foreigners. Some notable golf
courses in Jakarta are Cengkareng Golf Club, located in
the airport complex, and Pondok Indah Golf and Country
Club. Bali has many shopping centers, for instance, the
Kuta shopping center and the Galeria Nusa Dua. Nightlife
of Indonesia is also popular among foreigners,
especially in the big cities like Jakarta, Bandung,
Surabaya, Manado, Denpasar and Medan
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