1.
Indonesia
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Indonesia, officially the Republic of Indonesia, is a unitary sovereign state and transcontinental country located mainly in Southeast Asia with some territories in Oceania. Situated between the Indian and Pacific oceans, it is the worlds largest island country, with more than seventeen thousand islands. At 1,904,569 square kilometres, Indonesia is the worlds 14th-largest country in terms of area and worlds 7th-largest country in terms of combined sea. It has an population of over 260 million people and is the worlds fourth most populous country. The worlds most populous island, Java, contains more than half of the countrys population, Indonesias republican form of government includes an elected legislature and president. Indonesia has 34 provinces, of which five have Special Administrative status and its capital and countrys most populous city is Jakarta, which is also the most populous city in Southeast Asia and the second in Asia. The country shares land borders with Papua New Guinea, East Timor, other neighbouring countries include Singapore, Vietnam, the Philippines, Australia, Palau, and the Indian territory of the Andaman and Nicobar Islands. Despite its large population and densely populated regions, Indonesia has vast areas of wilderness that support the second highest level of biodiversity. The country has abundant natural resources like oil and natural gas, tin, copper, agriculture mainly produces rice, palm oil, tea, coffee, cacao, medicinal plants, spices and rubber. Indonesias major trading partners are Japan, United States, China, the Indonesian archipelago has been an important region for trade since at least the 7th century, when Srivijaya and then later Majapahit traded with China and India. Local rulers gradually absorbed foreign cultural, religious and political models from the early centuries CE, Indonesian history has been influenced by foreign powers drawn to its natural resources. Indonesia consists of hundreds of native ethnic and linguistic groups. The largest – and politically dominant – ethnic group are the Javanese, a shared identity has developed, defined by a national language, ethnic diversity, religious pluralism within a Muslim-majority population, and a history of colonialism and rebellion against it. Indonesias national motto, Bhinneka Tunggal Ika, articulates the diversity that shapes the country, Indonesias economy is the worlds 16th largest by nominal GDP and the 8th largest by GDP at PPP, the largest in Southeast Asia, and is considered an emerging market and newly industrialised country. Indonesia has been a member of the United Nations since 1950, Indonesia is a member of the G20 major economies and World Trade Organization. The name Indonesia derives from the Greek name of the Indós, the name dates to the 18th century, far predating the formation of independent Indonesia. In 1850, George Windsor Earl, an English ethnologist, proposed the terms Indunesians—and, his preference, in the same publication, one of his students, James Richardson Logan, used Indonesia as a synonym for Indian Archipelago. However, Dutch academics writing in East Indies publications were reluctant to use Indonesia, they preferred Malay Archipelago, the Netherlands East Indies, popularly Indië, the East, and Insulinde
2.
Christiaan Benjamin Nieuwenhuis
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Christiaan Benjamin Nieuwenhuis, known as C. B. Nieuwenhuis, was a photographer in the Dutch East Indies. He was born in Amsterdam in 1863 and his surname was Niewenhuis. He volunteered for the militia in Batavia, Java in December 1883 for a six year stint as a member of the Royal Military Band, in December 1889, he extended his contract for one more year. He left the army in December 1890, in Batavia, he seemed to have worked at the Koene & Co. photo-studio and later left to Padang on West-Sumatra where he founded his own photo studio in February 1891. He died in Padang in April 1922
3.
West Sumatra
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West Sumatra is a province of Indonesia. It lies on the west coast of the island of Sumatra, the latest official estimate for January 2014 shows a population of 5,098,790. West Sumatra is sub-divided into 12 regencies and seven cities and it has relatively more cities than other provinces in Indonesia, except Java province. It borders the provinces of North Sumatra to the north, Riau and Jambi to the east and it includes the Mentawai Islands off the coast. The history of West Sumatra is related to the history of the Minangkabau people, archaeological evidence indicates that the area surrounding the Limapuluh Koto regency forms the first area inhabited by the Minangkabau. Limapuluh Koto regency covers a number of rivers which meet at the eastern part of the Sumatran coastline. The Minangkabau ancestors were believed to have arrived via this route and they sailed from Asia via the South China Sea, crossing the Malacca Strait and later settled along the Kampar, Siak and Indragiri rivers. Some lived and developed their culture and traits around the Limapuluh Koto regency, the first westerner to reach West Sumatra was the French explorer Jean Parmentier in 1529. However, the westerners who came for economic and political reasons were the Dutch, the Dutch commercial fleet was seen along the southern coast of West Sumatra between 1595 and 1598. Apart from the Dutch, other European nationalities also came to the such as the Portuguese. The integration with migrants in the ensuing periods introduced cultural changes and their settlement area gradually became diminished and eventually they spread to other parts of West Sumatra. A portion of them went to the Agam regency while others went to the now Tanah Datar regency, from those areas onward, further spread of the population occurred north of the Agam regency, in particular, the Lubuk Sikaping. Most of them settled in the area such as the coastline and some in the southern parts in Solok, Selayo. The history of the West Sumatra Province became more accessible at the time of the rule by Adityawarman and this ruler left considerable amount of evidence of himself, although he did not proclaim that he was the Minangkabau King. Adityawarman ruled Pagaruyung, a region believed by the Minangkabau to be the center of its culture, Adityawarman was the most important figure in Minangkabau history. Apart from introducing a government system by a monarch, he also contributed significantly to the Minangkabau world. His most important contribution was the spread of Buddhism and this religion had a very strong influence in the Minangkabau life. The evidence of such influence found in West Sumatra today includes names such as Saruaso, Pariangan, Padang Barhalo, Candi, Biaro, Sumpur, since the death of Adityawarman in the middle of the 17th century the history of West Sumatra seems more complex
4.
Padang Panjang
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Padang Panjang, is located in the cool highlands of West Sumatra, inland from the provincial capital Padang. It sits on a plateau beneath the volcanoes Mount Marapi and Mount Singgalang and it has an area of 23 km² and a population of about 50,000. It is located at 0°27′S 100°25′E, the main road through Padang Panjang links coastal Padang and the highland capital, Bukittinggi. The town is home to the Minangkabau Cultural Documentation and Information Center. Since 2008, Padangpanjang is the only town/city in Indonesia without cigarette adverts, in public area, public transport and children area, smoking is prohibited. In other area/building smoking can be only in a smoking room. In 2014, some pulmonologist medical doctors want to transfer to other towns, Padang Panjang travel guide from Wikivoyage
5.
Padang
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Padang is the capital of the province of West Sumatra in Indonesia. It is the largest city on the western coast of Sumatra, before Indonesias independence, Padang was one of the major cities in the Dutch East Indies. It has an area of 695 square kilometres and the population of 1,000,096 in 2014, Padang is one of the cleanest big cities in Indonesia. Up to 2009, Padang has received the Adipura award in the category of large city 17 times, Padang is exactly at the antipodes of Esmeraldas, Ecuador. Since the 16th century Padang has been a trade centre, during the 16th and 17th centuries pepper was cultivated and traded with India, Portugal, the United Kingdom and the Netherlands. In 1663 the city came under the authority of the Dutch, the city came under the British Empire twice, the first time from 1781 to 1784 during the Fourth Anglo-Dutch War, and again from 1795 to 1819 during the Napoleonic Wars. Afterwards the city was transferred back to the Netherlands, up to approximately 1780 the most important trade product was gold, originating from the gold mines in the region. When the mines were exhausted, the emphasis turned to other such as coffee, salts. In 1797 Padang was inundated by a tsunami with an estimated depth of 5–10 meters, following an earthquake, estimated to be 8. 5–8.7 Mw. The shaking caused considerable damage and the deaths of two people, while the tsunami resulted in houses being washed away and several deaths at the village of Air Manis. The boats moored in the Arau river ended up on dry land, in 1833 another tsunami inundated Padang with an estimated flow depth of 3–4 meters as a result of an earthquake, estimated to be 8. 6–8.9 Mw, which occurred off Bengkulu. The shaking caused considerable damage in Padang, and due to the tsunami the boats moored in the Arau river broke their anchors and were scattered, the population of Padang in 1920 was 28,754, the second largest city in Sumatra behind Palembang. At the time of independence in the 1940s the city had around 50,000 inhabitants, coffee was still important, but copra was also a major item produced by farmers in its hinterland. The population growth since then has been partly a result of growth in the area of the city, in 1950 there was development of the Ombilin coal field with Padang as its outlet. This was seen by observers as reflecting the economic as well as political colonisation of Indonesia. On 30 September 2009, a 7.9 magnitude earthquake hit about 50 kilometres off the coast of Padang, there were more than 1,100 fatalities,313 of which occurred within Padang. There are many public transport within city and intercity, there are several transportation modes in Padang such as taxi, bus, minibus, ojek and Trans Padang. Load factor 128% in morning and dusk, the city is served by the newly opened Minangkabau International Airport in Ketaping, Padang Pariaman
6.
Mentawai Islands Regency
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The Mentawai Islands are a chain of about seventy islands and islets off the western coast of Sumatra in Indonesia. Siberut at 4,030 square kilometres is the largest of the islands, the other major islands are Sipura, North Pagai and South Pagai. The islands lie approximately 150 kilometres off the Sumatran coast, across the Mentawai Strait, the indigenous inhabitants of the islands are known as the Mentawai people. The Mentawai Islands have become a destination for surfing. The Mentawai Islands have been administered as a regency within the West Sumatra province since 1999, the regency seat is Tua Pejat, on the island of Sipora. Padang, the capital of the province, lies on the Sumatran mainland opposite Siberut, the regency is divided into ten districts, tabulated below from south to north with their 2010 Census populations. This includes five endemic primates, the Mentawai or kloss gibbon, Mentawai macaque, Siberut macaque, Mentawai leaf monkey and they are highly endangered due to logging, unsustainable hunting, and conversion of rainforest to palm oil plantations. Some areas of the Mentawai Islands rain forest ecoregion are protected, red junglefowl, the Asian palm civet and crab-eating macaque are also native. The Mentawai Islands lie above the Sunda megathrust, an active zone responsible for many great earthquakes. This megathrust runs along the side of Sumatra island, forming the interface between the Eurasian Plate and Indo-Australian Plate. Earthquake and tsunami activity has been high since the 2004 Indian Ocean earthquake, in 1833, the region was hit with an earthquake, possibly similar in size to the 2004 Indian Ocean earthquake, another large earthquake struck in 1797. On October 25,2010, an earthquake in southern Sumatra led to a tsunami that devastated villages in South and North Pagai. Mentawai ethnic group Anthropology of the Mentawai Islands Native Planet, The Mentawai Mentawai Islands rain forests
7.
Payakumbuh
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Payakumbuh is the second largest city in West Sumatra, Indonesia, with a population of over 122,000 people and an area of 80.43 km². It is in the Minangkabau Highlands,120 km by road from the West Sumatran capital city of Padang and 180 km from the Riau capital city of Pekanbaru, the whole area is directly adjacent to the Lima Puluh Kota Regency. It is located near the volcano Mount Merapi, Mount Sago, Payakumbuh means grassy swamp in the Minangkabau language. In 2011, Payakumbuh was the cities with highest economic growth in West Sumatra, innovations in the sanitation, waste management, healthy traditional markets, street vendors coaching, and urban drainage, deliver this city was awarded the Urban Innovation Management in 2012. In 2013, Payakumbuh received the Adipura award in the category of city for the seventh time. Payakumbuh is known for flying duck races, foods like batiah, small sweet rice cookies, gelamai, a coconut palm sugared snack. Payakumbuh produces a range of agriculture products including rice, milk, cattle. Payakumbuh and surrounding villages, namely Mungka, Simalanggang and Batuhampar are origin of Negeri Sembilan people of Malaysia, literally translated, the city name means grassy swamp. It suggests that the area was originally swampy, Payakumbuh is connected to Padang and Pekanbaru by road, a dysfunctional railway line also exists. For inner-city transport, Payakumbuh employs a transportation system known as Sago. In addition to transport options within the city include bendi, a form of horse-cart, the city administration is divided into 5 districts,8 kanagarian, and 76 villages. A mayor leads the city administration, the varieties of food, the Muslim clothes stores, and natural scenery are some of the attractions of city. Attractions within and surrounding the city include, Harau Valley, a valley with big cliffs, with the rocky surface and dark brown color, these cliffs are like a giant wall. Lots of people do the climbing in this area. Museum Rumah Kelahiran Tan Malaka, the house where Indonesian founding father Tan Malaka was born, ngalau Indah Caverns and Caves, the old caves with fantastic stalactite and stalagmite. There are great views back over Payakumbuh city and the surround, a beautiful mosque with Minangkabau architecture
8.
Sawahlunto
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Kota Sawahlunto or Sawah Lunto is a city in West Sumatra, Indonesia,90 kilometres from Padang. The city covers 276 sq. km, and had a population of 59,821 in 2014, Sawahlunto is one of the mining towns in West Sumatra. It was first established as a town in 1882 by the Dutch along with mining operations. Coal was discovered in the century by Ir. de Greve. It was then suggested to the Dutch that coal should be mined in the area because coal was needed for industry, after the discovery of coal the area was frequently visited by geologists. Coal mining was pioneered in the area after the surrender of the area to the Dutch in 1876. Mining was initiated in the area after Independence, activities were undertaken by PT Tambang Batubara Ombilin. PT TBO was later liquidated and became a subsidiary of PTBA which is located in Southern Sumatra, since reforms in the region, the area has experienced a growth in mining community because people felt compelled to participate in coal mining. Coal mining was not restricted within the boundaries of the community, the mayor at that time was Ir. Amran Nur, with Erizal Ridwan S. T. as his representative, after golden period of mining and mine sites closed, Sawah Lunto became a ghost town and the population declined. In 2004, Sawah Lunto policy is to make Sawah Lunto as a tourist city, in 2014,29 percent income came from tourism, while from farming only got 23 percent. Sawahlunto was also known as a town with a geographical size of 27 Ha or 273.45 km². Administratively Sawahlunto is divided into 4 districts,10 sub districts and 27 villages and 95 km away from Padang and it is a 2-hour drive from Padang. Sawahlunto has an elevation of about 650m above sea level. The landscape is made up of steep hills which act as a hindrance to the development of the town. The old town centre spanned 5. 8km2, relatively flat lands can be found in Kecamatan Talawi district. The area that runs north to south has a relatively steep topography at an angle of elevation of approximately 40%. On the other hand, the area is relatively gentle sloping
9.
Bukittinggi
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Bukittinggi, is the second largest city in West Sumatra, Indonesia, with a population of over 117,000 people and an area of 25.24 km². It is in the Minangkabau Highlands,90 km by road from the West Sumatran capital city of Padang, the whole area is directly adjacent to the Agam Regency, and is located at 0°18′20″S 100°22′9″E, near the volcanoes Mount Singgalang and Mount Marapi. At 930 m above sea level, the city has a climate with temperatures between 16. 1° to 24. 9°C. The city is the birthplace of some of the founders of the Republic of Indonesia, such as Mohammad Hatta, Bukittinggi was formerly known as Fort de Kock and was once dubbed Parijs van Sumatera. The city was the capital of Indonesia during the Emergency Government of the Republic of Indonesia, before it became the capital of PDRI, the city was a centre of government, both at the time of the Dutch East Indies and during the Japanese colonial period. Bukittinggi is also known as a leading tourist city in West Sumatera and it is sister city with Seremban in Negeri Sembilan, Malaysia. The Jam Gadang, a tower located in the heart of the city, is a symbol for the city. The city has its origins in five villages that served as the basis for a marketplace, the city was known as Fort de Kock in colonial times in reference to the Dutch outpost established here in 1825 during the Padri War. The fort was founded by Captain Bauer at the top of Jirek hill and later named after the then Lieutenant Governor-General of the Dutch East Indies, Hendrik Merkus de Kock. In 1856 a teacher-training college was founded in the city, the first in Sumatra, a rail line connecting the city with Payakumbuh and Padang was constructed between 1891 and 1894. During the Japanese occupation of Indonesia in World War II, the city was the headquarters for the Japanese 25th Army, the headquarters was moved to the city in April 1943 from Singapore and remained until the Japanese surrender in August 1945. During the Indonesian National Revolution, the city was the headquarters for the Emergency Government of the Republic of Indonesia from 19 December 1948 to 13 July 1949. During the second Police Action Dutch forces invaded and occupied the city on 22 December 1948, the city was surrendered to Republican officials in December 1949 after the Dutch government recognised Indonesian sovereignty. The city was officially renamed Bukittinggi in 1949, replacing its colonial name, from 1950 until 1957, Bukittinggi was the capital city of a province called Central Sumatra, which encompassed West Sumatra, Riau and Jambi. In February 1958, during a revolt in Sumatra against the Indonesian government, the Indonesian government had recaptured the town by May the same year. A group of Muslim men had planned to bomb a cafe in the city frequented by tourists in October 2007. Bukittinggi is divided into three districts, which are divided into five villages and 24 kelurahan. The districts are, Guguk Panjang Mandiangin Koto Selayan Aur Birugo Tigo Baleh Bukittinggi is connected to Padang by road, up until early 1980s there was a railway service from Padang Panjang that used to serve the city
10.
Sumatra
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Sumatra is a large island in western Indonesia that is part of the Sunda Islands. It is the largest island that is entirely in Indonesia and the sixth-largest island in the world at 473,481 km2, Sumatra is an elongated landmass spanning a diagonal northwest-southeast axis. The Indian Ocean borders the west, northwest, and southwest sides of Sumatra with the chain of Simeulue, Nias. On the northeast side the narrow Strait of Malacca separates the island from the Malay Peninsula, on the southeast the narrow Sunda Strait separates Sumatra from Java. The northern tip of Sumatra borders the Andaman Islands, while on the eastern side are the islands of Bangka and Belitung, Karimata Strait. The Bukit Barisan mountains, which several active volcanoes, form the backbone of the island, while the northeast sides are outlying lowlands with swamps, mangrove. The equator crosses the island at its center on West Sumatra, the climate of the island is tropical, hot and humid with lush tropical rain forest once dominating the landscape. Sumatra was known in ancient times by the Sanskrit names of Swarnadwīpa and Swarnabhūmi, the first word mentioning the name of Sumatra was the name of Srivijayan Haji Sumatrabhumi, who sent an envoy to China in 1017. Arab geographers referred to the island as Lamri in the tenth through thirteenth centuries, late in the 14th century the name Sumatra became popular in reference to the kingdom of Samudra Pasai, which was a rising power until it was replaced by Sultanate of Aceh. Sultan Alauddin Shah of Aceh, on letters written in 1602 addressed to Queen Elizabeth I of England, referred to himself as king of Aceh, the word itself is from Sanskrit Samudra, meaning gathering together of waters, sea or ocean. European writers in the 19th century found that the inhabitants did not have a name for the island. The Melayu Kingdom was absorbed by Srivijaya, Srivijaya was a Buddhist monarchy centred in what is now Palembang. Dominating the region trade and conquest throughout the 7th to 9th centuries. The empire was a thalassocracy or maritime power that extended its influence from island to island, Palembang was a center for scholarly learning, and it was there the Chinese Buddhist pilgrim I Ching studied Sanskrit in 671 CE before departing for India. On his journey to China, he spent four years in Palembang translating Buddhist texts, Srivijayan influence waned in the 11th century after it was defeated by the Chola Empire of southern India. At the same time, Islam made its way to Sumatra through Arabs, by the late 13th century, the monarch of the Samudra kingdom had converted to Islam. Marco Polo visited the island in 1292, and Ibn Battuta visited twice during 1345–1346, Samudra was succeeded by the powerful Aceh Sultanate, which survived to the 20th century. With the coming of the Dutch, the many Sumatran princely states fell under their control
11.
Pariaman
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Pariaman, is a coastal city in West Sumatra, Indonesia. Pariaman has 83,151 inhabitants in 2014, an area of 73.36 km2, according to the limited early sources available, by the sixteenth century Pariaman was an important port city serving the Minangkabau settlements in the interior highlands of central west Sumatra. Traders from western India and later from Europe visited the port, trading in pepper, gold, in the early seventeenth century the port came under control of the Sultanate of Aceh, to the north, an Acehnese governor was stationed in the town. The port formally came under Dutch control in 1663 by treaty with Aceh, in 1671 the Dutch built a lodge here and later, around 1684, a fort. Continuing clashes with local rulers and competition with other European trading companies resulted in the port being abandoned by the Dutch in 1770. By the early twentieth century the port was less prominent on the coast, as Padang, after Indonesian independence, Pariaman was a naval headquarters for a province called Central Sumatra. It became a city on 11 Apr 2002. The city is divided into four districts, Pariaman Selatan, Pariaman Tengah, Pariaman Timur. The four districts are of similar area, about one-half of the population lives in Pariaman Tengah. The city is surrounded by the regency of Padang Pariaman. The contemporary economy is agricultural with 79% of land in farming. Minangkabau International Airport, West Sumatras major airport, is located near the city, although the population of Pariaman is predominantly Sunni, a famous and popular festival of Shia origin named Tabuik, is held annually in the city every 10 Muharram, the Day of Ashura. This practice was brought to the city in 1818, when soldiers from India settled in Pariaman. They had been disbanded when the British handed the area back to the Netherlands as part of the Anglo-Dutch Treaty of 1814, the Tabuik festival commemorates the martyrdom of the grandsons of Muhammad, Hasan ibn Ali and Hussein ibn Ali. The Buraq, a winged horse that took Muhammad on his night-long journey to heavens, i. e. the Miraj. It presumably represents the horse of the Imam Hussein at the Battle of Karbala, but is portrayed with a womans head, wings. In the festival, two such effigies or Tabuik, one for Hasan and one for Hussein, are carried through the city, named Tabuik Pasa and Tabuik Subarang, they are swayed accompanied by tambur music and tasa drums. In the afternoon, both Tabuik are moved to the coast and before sunset they are immersed into the sea
12.
Pagaruyung Palace
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Pagaruyung Palace is the istana of the former Pagaruyung Kingdom, located in Tanjung Emas subdistrict near Batusangkar town, Tanah Datar Regency, West Sumatra, Indonesia. The palace has been destroyed by fire for several times, in 1804,1966 and 2007 and it has been rebuilt again and today function as museum and popular tourist attraction. The original Pagaruyung palace was entirely from timber masonry, however the current building frame was built using modern concrete structure. Nevertheless, the Istano Basa Pagaruyung was quite faithfully restored using traditional technique and materials adorned with 60 carvings that signify Minang philosophy, the palace has three stories with 72 pillars and the typical Rumah gadang gonjong horn-like curved roof made from 26 tons of black ijuk aren palm fibers. The original Pagaruyung palace was built on Batu Patah Hill and was burned down during a riot in Padri War back in 1804, the palace was rebuilt again, but destroyed again in fire in 1966. The building was being rebuilt again in 1976 as the replica of the original Pagaruyung palace, the restoration of the palace marked with the erection of tunggak tuo on 27 December 1976 by West Sumatra Governor Harun Zain. After the completion, the palace has become well-known to the public as a museum and this building was not built on the original site, but moves south from the original site. The palace was destroyed by fire on the evening of February 27,2007 after the roof was struck by lightning and it was estimated only 15 percent of valuable artifacts survived the fire. Today the surviving artifacts were stored in Balai Benda Purbakala Kabupaten Tanah Datar, the pusaka or heirloom of Pagaruyung Kingdom was stored in Silinduang Bulan Palace, located about 2 kilometer from Pagaruyung Palace. Restoration of the building has six years and an estimated Rp 20 billion to complete. The building was completed and inaugurated by Indonesian President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono in October 2013, media related to Pagaruyung Palace at Wikimedia Commons
