About Indonesia

Indonesia is geographically located between Asia and Australia and the total land area is 1,905,443 square kilometers with over 80,000 kilometers of coastline. Countries with land borders with Indonesia are Malaysia at the western part of Indonesia, Timor Leste at southeastern part and Papua New Guinea at eastern part of Indonesia.

Indonesia is divided into 33 provinces and the total population of the country is more than 220 million people with more than 300 ethnic groups.

Languages

The official language is Bahasa Indonesia. However English is widely understood and spoken even there are people who have difficulties in an oral conversation. Besides Bahasa Indonesia, there are numerous local, traditional or provincial languages and dialects. If your passion is learning languages from different parts of the world, Indonesia is recommended.

Religion

Even Indonesia is internationally known as biggest country with Muslim or Islam population in the world, other religions are well-established and protected by our law. A significant presence of Christians, Hindus and Buddhists is easily seen in Indonesia. (Bali is predominantly Hindu.)

Weather

Indonesia is tropical country and stretch along equatorial with temperatures ranging between 21 and 34 degrees centigrade. Average humidity is 60-90% and there is only known two major seasons; summer season and rainy season with heaviest rainfall between November and February.

Time zones

GMT + 7 hours (West) in Sumatra, Java and Western Borneo

GMT + 8 hours (Central) in Sulawesi, Lesser Sunda Islands, Bali and Eastern Borneo

Money and credit Cards

The official currency is Indonesian Rupiah. Coins and Notes are widely circulated as mode of payment. Coins available in denominations of 50, 100, 200, 500, 1,000 and notes in denominations of 1,000, 2,000, 5,000, 10,000, 20,000, 50,000 and 100,000.

Major credit cards (Visa, MasterCard, Amex, JCB), Australian and American dollar travelers’ cheques are accepted in most hotels and authorized money exchange. Tips: always seek for larger authorized money exchange to avoid any fraud.

Etiquette

When greeting someone, it is customary for both men and women to shake hands with the right hand. Doing anything with left hand (give-receive, take, eating) is considered impolite, except if you are left-handed.

Pointing or summoning someone with your index finger is considered impolite and open palm is advisable when giving directions. Care should be taken not to climb over places of worship or local monuments.

Dress Code

Dress appropriately. As humidity may reach 90%, light, a casual cotton clothes is advisable and it’s best practice amongst Indonesians. Indonesians are very conscious of their dress code and it is particularly important to be properly dressed when visiting government offices.

Scanty clothing is not advisable in public places. Shorts are not permitted in mosques and women should have their head and arms covered. In Bali, waist sashes should be worn when visiting temples.

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