Info Indonesia

Busan, also spelled as Pusan, is the second largest city in South Korea, after Seoul. Situated in South Gyeongsang, Busan has a population of nearly eight million people. As the nation’s major as well as the largest sea port, Busan has a plethora of sea routes that serve as gateways to Japan as well as to the other prominent parts of the world.

Lying adjacent to the Korean Straits and Japan, this bustling city is also credited to be the first international city in Korea, and connects continents such as Asia, North America, and Europe. Located on the coast of the East Sea, Busan boasts of a stunning landscape comprising beautiful shorelines, gorgeous beaches, secluded islets, towering mountains, and lush green areas. Hence, it is not a wonder why Busan is sometimes referred to as ‘the San Francisco of Korea.’

From towers, forts, and shrines to scenic attractions covering hot springs, Busan presents a host of attractions for people touring the place. In other words, sightseeing in Busan has been categorized into such as seashore sightseeing and interior land sightseeing.

Included in the seashore sightseeing are incredible islands and beaches such as Haeundae, Songjeong, and Gwangalli Beach. All of these beaches are a haven for enjoying a number of water sport activities such as jet skiing, boating, diving, banana boat rides, and much more. When comes to the interior land sightseeing, it covers downtown Busan, interesting museums, ancient shrines, historical monuments as well as ruins, stadiums, and cultural centers.

Some of the most popular museums in the area are Fisheries Museum, which is the first of its kind in the museum; Busan Marine Natural History Museum – the country’s largest marine natural history museum; Busan Museum of Modern Art, which has on display artworks done by artists of Busan as well as Yungnam areas; Korean Tea Museum, exhibiting more than 100 varieties of teas; and Suyeong Historical Relics Folk Art Center, which contains such cultural displays as Suyoung Nonchong-nori and Jwasuyoungbang-nori.

If you are a spiritual traveler, then your trip to Busan would not be complete without taking a tour to such shrines in the area as SamGwang Temple, which is one of the most remarkable Buddhist shrines in the area; Tongdosa Temple, which is probably the prominent of all Buddhist temples in the country; and Beomeosa Temple Complex, with a Buddhist nunnery. Equally fabulous is the historical sites in the country such as Kumjongsanong, which is the country’s largest walled mountain fortress. A segment of a park, the fortress is attached with a Buddhist Temple, apart from several pavilions and botanical gardens.

Further, your visit to Busan would be incomplete without taking a visit to some of its beautiful parks and gardens such as Busan Aquarium – a marine park featuring more than 250 species of marine animals; Yongdusan Park, which is one of the most scenic areas in the city with more than 70 species of trees; Olympic Park, which is a treasure trove of several magnificent sculptures.

Geumgang Botanical Garden, one of the largest botanical gardens in the country; and UN Memorial Park, which commemorates the soldiers of more than 15 countries who sacrificed their lives in the Korean War. For those looking for fun-filled vacation, Busan comes with a number of amusement parks like APEC Theme Park; Amusement Garden in Grand Children’s Park; Taejongdae Amusement Park; and Jayu Land.

Other not to miss attractions in Busan are the Busan Tower, which is about 118 meters high and located within Yongdusan Park; Jalgalchi Fish Market, a must-visit spot in the city; Tongnae Hot Springs, boasting of two huge pools, of which one is hot spring water and another with cold water; Dongbaek Island, an ancient island which is home to camellias as well as pine trees; and Dalmaji Hill, a picturesque area located to the southeast of Haeundae Beach. Above all, Busan hosts a variety of festivals and events including sea festivals, fishing festivals, polar bear swimming festival, tourism festival, and film festival.

In short, Busan has everything for an enjoyable vacation. Hence, in order to cater to the growing number of tourists, Busan boasts of a number of accommodation options. Many of the top notch hotels and resorts in the area allow tourists to choose from a variety of rooms such as standard, deluxe, apartment style, and suits.

Palembang located on the southern most rim of the South China Sea, close to one of the worlds busiest shipping lanes linking the Far East with Europe, the regions historical background is rich and colourful.

Temperatures at sea level range from 24 to 33 all year round. Humidity is high. At higher altitudes the temperature drops accordingly. Those who like to scale mountains and there are quite a few mountains to scale in Indonesia need to bring warm clothes for the nights and plenty of water to drink to avoid dehydration.

Indonesia has only two seasons the rainy and the dry season. South from the equator the rainy season generally lasts from November to April. North from the Equator it is from May to October.

The architectural legacy of Dutch colonization is still visible in the city. Deep water port facilities are built along the Musi River, which flows through the city.

This city is famous in Indonesia for its Pempek fish cakes.

The Musi Bridge is the largest bridge in Indonesia.

Masjid Agung Grand Mosque. This mosque has been renovated a few times already. Now it is a very large and beautiful mosque. In some sections of the mosque you can see old style architecture. It is located in front of the main roundabout in Palembang which you will pass coming from the Musi Bridge.

Palembang has attracted tourists from all over the world with its magnificent past and present offering great opportunities for travellers to visit places that are rich in history, culture, and tradition. It is a vibrant city and the surrounding areas spectacular.

No vaccinations are required, except for yellow fever if you arrive within six days of leaving or passing an infected area. It is advisable to get vaccinated against cholera, typhoid and paratyphoid and dont forget a tetanus shot. If you intend to stay for long periods outside the big cities, gammaglobulin injections are recommended. This will reduce the risk of getting infected with hepatitis.

The Culture and Tourism Ministry has set a target of 116 million local tourists visiting various tourist objects in the country in 2007.This target is higher than that of last year which was set at 114 million, Director for Domestic Tourism Promotion Titien Soekarya stated. Titien said that Indonesia had big tourism potentials which had not yet been exploited so far. Most of local tourists only visited the tourist objects in while Indonesia is really rich in attractive places and cultures.

Surrounded by three great water bodies, namely, Indian Ocean, Arabian sea and Bay of Bengal South India has stunning grandeur and beauty with lush green tropical vegetation in the coastal areas. The tropical climate is less harsh than in the North India. The place is rich in flora and fauna, biodiversity, habitats and ecosystems. South Indian states are Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka, Kerala and Tamil Nadu. These states are very fertile and rich in natural resources. Due to sheer natural beauty of its beaches, hill stations and landscapes South India has become a great destination for tourists. With the hordes of tourists’ inflow, South India Tourism has seen a spectacular growth over last two decades.

Dravidian is the name attributed to a linguistically distinct group of people in South India. Believed to be the first original settlers of ancient India, the group has maintained traditional customs and rites, while with the influence of modernity, some have developed the lifestyles of a modern society.

On South India Tours one can easily detect the uniqueness of culture, language and lifestyles of people. The Dravidian family of languages, namely, Malayalam, Kannada, Tamil and Telugu are distinctly different from the North Indian languages such as Hindi, Punjabi, Bengali and Gujarati. Thanks to their affinity with the old culture, not only South Indians have a distinct language system, their history, literature, architecture, music, spiritual inclination, dress, cuisine and a world view all are way different than those of North Indians.

The history of the South India is believed to have begun with the Sangam age (200 BC-300 AD). The Sangam Age had a number of empires namely Cholas, Pandyas, Pallavas, Cheras, Chalukyans and Vijayanagar. The Cholas who ruled between 300 BC and 1250 AD were the earliest and most famous and perhaps influential among the South Indian dynasties. They were on the eastern Coramandal coast presently in Tamil Nadu. They climaxed between the ninth and thirteenth centuries when they ruled the entire South India, including east and some part of the western coast. They also conquered Ceylon (presently Srilanka), Srivijaya, Malaya and the Maldives islands. With a powerful navy and marine trade and commerce they extended their business to the Far East. Not surprisingly, their art and architecture have left a deep impact in Sumatra and Java islands of Indonesia and in some parts of Malaysia. With any package tour to South India one can visit many Chola style temples scattered throughout the Southern India whose stone inscriptions have helped to reconstruct and decipher the mysteries Indian history.

The Cheras was another ancient powerful dynasty mainly in Tamil Nadu which ruled the South India for most of its early history. They ruled the Malabar coast in Kerala State. The Pandyas were in the south central part. Although these dynasties being obstreperous and hostile to each other remained in a constant conflict with each other, the language, arts and literature prospered in the period. The Vijyanagar Empure (1336-1565 AD) started with resistance to the Muslim invasion of the Hoysala region by Malik Kafur. And only within half a century, the Vijayanagar Kingdom became one of the most powerful empire that ruled for nearly 200 years. Prosperous with strong army and maritime base, they also flourished art and literature. Their Hampi ruins are scattered over an area of 14 square miles regarded as world’s biggest open-air museum. For witnessing the history frozen in stone, do visit Hampi on your South India Tours. They are not only an ancient treasure trove, but also offer much to learn to the scholars of modern art and architecture.

The South India culture had a fascinating aspect in its concept of matriarchal society. One can see even today the celebration of the femininity and motherhood at its best. In literature and philosophy of South India women are considered very powerful. A married woman is considered as well powerful as auspicious. She is regarded as the source of shakti or mother-feminine power which protects and empowers her husband and children.

South India boasts of its own music called Carnatic music. Until 12th century AD, the history of Indian music was the same for entire India. When by influence of Muslims and cultural confluence, the Indian music divided into two systems – the North Indian “Hindustani music” and the South Indian “Carnatic music” Continued to develop without external influences, the Carnatic Music is nearly totally unified with different schools based on the same ragas, same solo instruments, mainly the veena, flute, violin, the mridangam and the ghatam.

The South India has also its own cuisine. The staple food is rice and fish, while coconut forms an important ingredient in virtually all the dishes. The curries tend to be hotter and spicy. Rice is combined in diferent ways and proportions with lentils to make dosas, idlis, vadas and uttapams. Sambhar, rasam, dry and curried vegetable and pachadi are the main preparations. Coffee is popular in Tamil Nadu. The typical traditional meal in is served on a “vazhaillai,” a freshly cut banana leaf. If your are planning a tour to South India, savor the local delicacies which are famous through out the world due to their uniqueness and spices.

Culturally, North India and South India have complimented to each other. While in the South India, the ancient cultural mores are preserved and upheld with utmost endearing care while being at the forefront of knowledge and technology, the North India has contributed immensely by enriching the Indian society by assimilating, accepting and absorbing the outside influences.