Indonesia - A Truly Asian Experiance

The name Indonesia has its roots in two Greek words: "Indos" meaning Indian and "Nesos" which means islands. It is an appropriate description of the archipelago as there are estimated to be a total of 17,508 islands, of which only about 6,000 are inhabited, stretching for 5,150 km between the Australian and Asian continental mainlands and dividing the Pacific and Indian Oceans at the Equator.
Five main islands and 30 smaller archipelagoes are home to the majority of the population. The main islands are Sumatra (473,6O6 sq.km), Kalimantan 1539,400 sq.km), Sulawesi l 189,216 sq. km), Irian Jaya (421,981 sq. km), and last but not leastJava (132,187 sq.km), home to 70 percent of the country's population. Indonesia shares Irian Jaya with Papua New Guinea and two thirds of the island of Kalimantan with Malaysia and Borneo.



The islands and people of Indonesia constitute the fourth most populated nation in the world. As a democratic republic, Indonesia is divided into 32 provinces, special territories and classified geographically into four groups.

First are the Greater Sundas, made up of the larger islands of Sumatra, Java, Kalimantan and Sulawesi.
Second are the Lesser Sundas, consisting of smaller islands from Bali eastward to Timor. Third is Maluku which includes all the islands between Irian Jaya and Sulawesi. The fourth and final group is lrian Jaya in the extreme eastern part of the country.

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Yogyakarta - Indonesia

YOGYAKARTA (often spelled as Jogja, Jogjakarta, or Yogya) is the premier tour destination of Java island, Indonesia. A thousand years ago, Yogyakarta was the center of the Ancient Mataram Kingdom which was prosperous and had high civilization. The kingdom built Borobudur Temple which was the biggest Buddhist temple in the world, 300 years before Angkor Wat in Cambodia. The other archaeological heritages are Prambanan Temple, Ratu Boko Palace, and tens of temples spread out in Yogyakarta (see Archaeological Sights).

For an unknown reason, the Ancient Mataram Kingdom moved its capital to East Java in 10th century. The glorious temples were abandoned and some were buried by the eruptions of Mount Merapi. Slowly, the area of Yogyakarta became a dense forest again.

Six hundred years later, Panembahan Senopati established the Islamic Mataram Kingdom in this area. Once again Yogyakarta became a witness of the rise of a powerful kingdom that ruled Java Island and the surrounding area. The Islamic Mataram Kingdom had left ruins of the fort and the kingdom cemetery in Kotagede that is now known as the center of silver handicraft in Yogyakarta (see Historic & Heritage Sights).

Giyanti Agreement in 1755 divided the Islamic Mataram Kingdom into Kasunan Surakarta that is centered in Solo and Kesultanan Yogyakarta (Sultanate of Yogyakarta) that built its palace in Jogja City. Kraton (the palace) still stand up to now and function as the home of the sultan and family, completed by hundreds of royal servants who are willing to follow the traditions in the middle of the changing era. In Kraton (the palace), there is a cultural performance every day; such as shadow puppet, gamelan (traditional musical instruments), Javanese classical dance, etc. (see Calendar of Events).

Yogyakarta at the present time is a place where traditions and modern dynamics can walk side by side. In Yogyakarta, there is a Kraton (palace) with hundreds of royal servants who hold the traditions faithfully, but there is also Gadjah Mada University which is one of the reputable universities in Southeast Asia. Most of the citizens of Yogyakarta live in a strong agricultural tradition, but there are also many college students that live in a modern lifestyle. There is a traditional market in Yogyakarta which stand side by side with modern mall.

At the north end of Yogyakarta, you will see the Mount Merapi stands as high as 9738 feet above sea level. This mountain is one of the most active volcano in Indonesia. The impressions of it's eruption in 2006 can be witnessed in the village of Kaliadem, 30 km from the city of Jogja. The Mooi Indie scenery of green paddy field and Mount Merapi as the background can still be seen on the outskirts of the Jogja City (see Nature & Outdoors).

In the southern part of Yogyakarta, you will find many beaches. The most famous beach is Parangtritis with the legend of Nyi Roro Kidul (Queen of the South), but Yogyakarta also has beautiful natural beaches in Gunung Kidul. You can see Sadeng Beach which was the ancient mouth of the Bengawan Solo River before a powerful tectonic force lifted the surface of the southern part of Java so that the flow of the river turned to the north like today. You can also visit Siung Beach which has 250 points of rock climbing, Sundak Beach, etc (see Beaches).

Malaysia has the tallest twin towers in the world, Yogyakarta has the towering 47m high Prambanan Temple that was built 1100 years before. Singapore has a modern living, Yogyakarta has traditional agricultural citizens. Thailand and Bali have beautiful beaches, Yogyakarta has natural beaches and Mount Merapi that will tell us how powerful the nature is.

The unique combination of ancient temples, history, traditions, culture, and natural forces make Yogyakarta worth to visit. YogYES.COM site will help you to plan a visit to Yogyakarta and enjoy the best charms of this place. We provide rich information about things to see and do, star hotels, cheap hotels, restaurants, food stalls, travel agents, car rentals and all the information you need to travel to Yogyakarta / Jogja.


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Spain eye 2018 World Cup

MADRID (AFP) – Buoyed by their win in the World Cup this summer, Spain are set to push for co-hosting the 2018 tournament with neighbouring Portugal, Secretary of State for Sports Jaime Lissavetsky said Tuesday.

"Spain's next challenge is to organise the 2018 World Cup," Lissavetsky said in an address to the Spanish Football Federation's (RFEF) general assembly meeting.

Spain and Portugal hope to pool their resources -- as Japan and South Korea did in 2002 -- for 2018 after Brazil hosts the next edition in 2014.

Belgium and the Netherlands are also preparing a joint 2018 bid and other candidates are England, the United States and Russia with Australia now concentrating its hopes on 2022 after initially expressing interest in 2018.

FIFA is to elect the winning bid on December 2 at a meeting of its executive committee.

RFEF chairman Angel Maria Villar said that "Spain and Portugal are in the race" for 2018, but admitted that it would likely prove difficult to see off the opposition -- Spain hosted the event as recently as 1982. But he stressed that in the event of failure there would be a renewed bid for 2022.

FIFA's inspection committee started Monday looking at the bidders' dossiers, starting off with Japan, a candidate for 2022.

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Lindsay Lohan

BEVERLY HILLS, Calif. – Lindsay Lohan is due back in court Tuesday to surrender for a 90-day jail sentence that is likely to be whittled down by overcrowding and other credits.

Her stay will be longer than the 84 minutes she spent at a suburban Los Angeles jail in 2006 and marks the beginning of a new phase of punishment for drug and alcohol cases filed that year.

Los Angeles Superior Court Judge Marsha Revel sentenced the "Mean Girls" star to jail, three months in rehab and increased scrutiny by probation officials on July 6 after determining the actress violated her probation by missing seven alcohol education classes since December.

Lohan, 24, burst into tears after hearing the sentence, which came after she tearfully apologized to the judge for not strictly following the terms of her probation.

Dozens of cameras and reporters converged on the courthouse Tuesday morning to chronicle Lohan's arrival and her return to custody.

On Friday celebrity attorney Robert Shapiro signed on to the case after Lohan moved into a sober living facility that he founded. By Monday night, the Los Angeles Times and celebrity website TMZ.com, citing anonymous sources, reported that Shapiro had resigned from the case.

Shapiro met with Revel in a closed meeting late Monday afternoon. The prosecutor handling the case, Danette Meyers, was not present and court officials said there had been no change in requirements for Lohan's surrender.

In an e-mail to The Associated Press sent Monday evening after the meeting, Shapiro said his only comments would be made in open court.

Lohan, a prolific user of the microblogging site Twitter, posted a message roughly 12 hours before her court appearance referencing her looming incarceration.

"The only 'bookings' that I'm familiar with are Disney Films, never thought that I'd be 'booking' into jail eeeks," Lohan posted.

The jail and rehab stints have left some of the actress' projects in limbo, including her planned portrayal of porn star Linda Lovelace in a biopic.

Once considered an up-and-coming star, Lohan has in recent years been better-known as a tabloid staple and for the criminal case she has struggled to put behind her.

Her probation had to be extended for a year to give Lohan more time to complete her alcohol education courses and Revel ordered weekly attendance in December.

But the actress didn't complete the sessions as ordered and missed a court date in May, setting a stage for her return to jail. She is expected to serve her time — probably a quarter of her sentence or less — in isolation at a women's jail in the industrial suburb of Lynwood.

The facility has hosted several female celebrities, including Paris Hilton, Nicole Richie, Michelle Rodriguez, Khloe Kardashian and very briefly, Lohan.

Sheriff's officials have said Lohan would be placed in an isolation cell at the jail, where she will spend most of her time and take her meals.

She will be forced to wear a jail-issued jumpsuit and be given a set of simple toiletries that all inmates receive: toothbrush, toothpaste, soap, comb, deodorant, shampoo and shaving implements. Hilton received one for her own secluded 23-day stay in 2007 for reckless driving charges.

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Dual-Screen Windows Tablet

KOMPAS.com - Toshiba Australia has launched the first major assault on the tablet market since the iPad with the announcement of a dual screen device called the Libretto W100.

Due to land in Australian stores next month, the Libretto W100 is the first tablet to be built on the Windows 7 operating system, and it boasts two touch screens and a reversible keyboard so it can switch from clam-style notebook into e-book reader.

The Libretto will sell for $1599 in Australia - significantly more than the iPad - which Toshiba executives justify on the basis that the device offers more than a passive "consumption" experience.

The launch of the iPad in May ushered in a new era of internet-connected tablets and while many competitors are expected to launch products in coming months, the Android operating system is yet to attract mainstream endorsement, in spite of its growing success in the smartphone market.

AsusTek Computer also recently announced a tablet computer that will run on Microsoft's Windows 7 operating system, set for release later this year or early 2011.

Foad Fadaghi, research director at Telsyte, said it was not surprising to see Microsoft tablets lead the way in the tablet market.
“Microsoft have had tablets for many years and there is already a certain amount of built-in technology such as touch,” he said.

Powered by Windows 7 Home Premium, with an Intel U5400 processor and 2GB of RAM processor, the Libretto will also have a USB port – a feature that was absent on the Apple's iPad.

It also aims to give popular book readers like Amazon's Kindle a run for their money with its dual touch screens, but has yet to announce agreements with content providers.

The Libretto is wireless-enabled with a built-in webcam and integrated Bluetooth, and although it weighs less than a kilo, the extra functionality results in a thicker device than the iPad.

Fadaghi predicts that tablet computers will arrive in all shapes and sizes with “a multitude of brands out there with different consumers' different preferences for platforms".

“We anticipate a number of Android tablets and we will see many and lesser-known brands built on the Android platform because it is an open source platform and can be used on any sort of hardware."

The first of these to arrive in Australia will be Notion Ink's ADAM which is a high-definition 10-inch tablet with camera and USB and black-and-white e-reader display. According to its local distributor, SPT Australia, it will ship here in the coming months.

Cisco Systems, the world's largest maker of networking equipment, has also announced plans to launch an Android tablet called Cius, early next year.

With front and back facing cameras, video conferencing on the go will be the main business of the tablet, according to Cisco.

Not to be left out, rumours have been circulating about Research in Motion's BlackBerry tablet. Running on the company's own operating system, it is expected to ship with a seven-inch display and back and front-facing cameras, according to CNet.

Although Hewlett-Packard has been keeping its cards close to its chest, CNet also reports that a trademark for the term PalmPad was lodged by the company late last week.

Considering the company has canceled development of Windows 7 and Android tablets in recent months, industry watchers have concluded the PalmPad will be based on the Palm WebOS, which it recently bought.

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SEA GAMES 2011

JAKARTA, KOMPAS.com - President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono said in his view, out of four Indonesian provinces considered as possible host for the Southeast Asian Games (SEA Games) in 2011, South Sumatra was the most ready and prepared for the task. The president made the statement at a limited cabinet meeting to discuss preparations for the organization of the SEA Games 2011 at his office here on Tuesday.

"I have decided to choose a province which is not only ready but also has the spirit to host the event. And in my judgment South Sumatra governor has the needed determination and spirit to be a good host of the SEA Games 2011," the President said.

However, the head of state also called on all parties to join hands in supporting the event and to make it a success.

"Time is fleeting. One year from now is not very far away. Therefore, all parties should have give their cooperation to support the sports event," the president said.

He said there would be preparations in the security field and therefore the people should be informed and invited to give their inputs.

"Traffic and security arrangements will certainly have be made. Therefore the local people should be involved and the authorities concerned should listen to their inputs so that the event can be organized successfully," the president said.

Earlier, the government had named four provinces as candidates to host the SEA Games 2011, namely Jakarta, West Java, Central Java, and South Sumatra. The games are scheduled to take place in November 2011 and are expected to be participated in by 6,000 athletes, 4,000 officials, domestic and foreign reporters.

President Yudhoyono at the meeting at his office also listened to explanations from a number of figures responsible for organizing the event, among others Youth and Sports Affairs Minister Andi Malarangeng, South Sumatra Governor Alex Noerdin, and Indonesian National Sports Committee (KONI) chairperson Rita Subowo. Also present at the meeting were Public Works Minister Djoko Kirmanto, Transportation Minister Freddy Numberi, Culture and Tourism Minister Jero Wacik, Minister/State Secretary Sudi Silalhi, and Cabinet Secretary Dipo Alam.

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