Taman Mini in Jakarta -- Surprises continue.... 迷你文化村

We were chauffeur-driven around Jakarta in this luxury car. Thanks to the host.

Taman Mini is definately not 'mini' in size. This time we have to hire a motorbike to go around. It has more than 10 museums, a few theme parks and a good number ( more than 20, I think ) of pavillions show-casing unique architectural design of different races and tribes reside in Indonesia.

The all- famous Balinese style.

Restoration works are seen here and there.

How true!!

The very unique Sulawesi style.

Man doing wooden Sulawesi model house. Most of the people here can communicate in English.

Dog and workers, all taking a nice nap in the shade.

This one is for a friend of mine who loves animals.

That's the bike we hired.

Beautiful carpet in a little mosque.

How fast can you climb up this ladder ?

We never have a 'mini' park of this huge size in Malaysia. Appreciate the Indonesian government that put in so much effort in show-casing their rich culture. Facilities are easily available, toilets are very basic and simple but never stink, people are friendly , walking around leisurely. (Another surprise ! )

迷你文化村一点也不迷你，大到让我们吓了一跳。租了一辆电动摩托车走了四个半小时，电池也耗尽了，也不过走马看花一轮。佩服印尼政府的用心，也感谢主人家建议我们到此走一走， 看一看。（又一惊喜）

Dinnner was at 'Ikan Bakar Cianjur' , a restaurant serves western Jawanese food, specialises in grill and fried fish. What surprises me is the simple looking 'nasi liwet and 'nasi uduk' that tasted heavenly good! ( another surprise for today!)

这家餐厅超棒的！看似平平无奇的白饭，竟然十分美味。今天以这顿饭作为句号。（又一惊喜。）

History -- is to be respected . Our first day in Jakarta, Indonesia 耶城首日-- 意外的震撼

Read this in the Museum Nasional Indonesia. Sorry I couldn't help but copied the whole two paragraphs here. Our leaders got a lot to learn from this:

".....Masing masing kelopak etnis, di tiap wilayah yand berbeda,mengembangkan ciri masing-masing dalam persentuhannya dengan berbalgai pengaruh yang datang. Percampuran dan pengembangan kebudayaan menemui bentuk dan skala yang berbeda-beda, di tiap wilayah ataupun di tiap suku bangsa yang ada di Indonesia. Proses saling pengaruh yang melibatkan respon-respon local genius kebudayaan setempat itu,lantas mewujud pada keragaman adat,tradisa,perangat sosial,teknologi,karya seni,bahasa,ataupun aksara.

Keanekaragaman tersebut merupakan suatu kekayaan budaya bagi negeri kepulauan ini. Perbedaan-perbedaan yang ada,justru menjadi bagian dari jati diri dan kebanggaan identitas manusia dan budayanya.perbedaan itu hanyalah sebuah nuansa keragaman,dalam kesatuan wilayah kebangsaan yang bernama Indonesia.Berbeda untuk menyatu,Bhinneka Tungal Ika."

Our host wasted no time by sending us from airport straight to the National Museum. Yes, museum is the place to understand a country's history and culture. I was so amazed with the way Indonesians respect their history by recognizing contribution from all races and the true tolerance they demonstrated in every aspect. You can find so many Hinduism and Buddhism relics, statues etc here There is no reason to hide all these just for the sake of protecting your own sense of superiority to others. (This really made me wonder what role our very own museum plays. )

" Keanekaragaman budaya adalah keindahan Indonesia " meaning : Multi-culture is the beauty of Indonesia. They really mean it and are proud of it !

异中求同----这是印尼给我的第一个印象。

在豪华的购物中心门口，是贫穷人家的住所。每一所回教堂附近，政府必兴建一座教堂以示公平对待各族人民。同一条马路，漂亮的轿车与残旧的三轮车，你走你的阳关道，我行我的独木桥，相安无事。耶加达塞车塞得不得了，在一遍混乱拥挤中，不闻车笛声不耐烦地响起，只有默默的礼让。没人用不同的眼光看待不同肤色的人，大家眼中只有一种 --  人。

兴都教与佛教的影响，在在可见。不会刻意淡化，也无需抹去。历史若被扭曲，失去真面目，其价值荡然无存。

School children  doing their field-work. No need to argue 'batik'  belongs to Malaysia or Indonesia. We saw students wearing it, waiters wearing it, tour guides wearing it, office staff wearing it.... it's everywhere !!
不必为峇迪属于何国争个你死我活？事实摆在眼前。峇迪布的存在，处处可见。学生制服，工商界人士穿着，餐厅桌布摆设等等，已溶入生活。我们没得fight.

At the monument park. You can rent bicycle, tandem or even motor bike at almost every  park  which is too big for lazy people to walk around. You can hardly find these services in Malaysia save for some big resort hotels.
每个大型广场都能租借到代步公具，方便之极。

To really show their tolerance, the Indonesian government built one church or cathedral  beside  every mosque . Christians or Catholics back home will be so glad if they can get an approval to build just one more in Malaysia.
国家回教堂旁，就有一座教堂。

Compare the simplicity of their National Mosque with their  lavish and extravagant counter-part  in Malaysia.
能容纳廿万人的国家大回教堂，外观简单平实，没有如我国般的奢华。

Our tour-guide. His service provided is free and he's so proud to show us around. (of course we tipped him la.)
还鸣鼓唤祈祷呢。

Today's experience is a big surprise to me.
今天的收获，是印尼给我的一大惊喜。