Every province's houses
Architecture from Sumatra to Papua.
Chainwit. — CC BY 4.0 · Gunawan Kartapranata — CC BY-SA 3.0 · RasyaAbhirama13 — CC BY-SA 4.0
A vast cultural park in East Jakarta, whose name means beautiful Indonesia in miniature, gathering the traditional houses of every Indonesian province, with their varied architecture and ornament from Sumatra to Papua, around a lake holding a model map of the archipelago. It is the easiest way to see this sprawling country's diversity in a single day. Besides the regional pavilions, the park has many museums, among them the Indonesia Museum, an insect museum and a transport museum, bird and flower gardens, houses of worship of the different faiths including a mosque, and a cable car crossing above the lake and map. The park has been extensively renovated in recent years. Entry is about twenty-five thousand rupiah per person on weekdays and about thirty-five thousand at weekends, plus a vehicle fee, with most museums and the cable car ticketed separately. The park is huge, so rent bicycles or ride its internal buses. Allow at least half a day, and start with the cable car to see the park from above, then choose the pavilions that interest you. The drive from central Jakarta can be long in traffic, so set off in the morning.
Architecture from Sumatra to Papua.
A model in the lake, seen from the cable car.
Many museums and a bird park.
East Jakarta, about 20 km south-east of the centre
Very much: it is spacious and varied, with a cable car, gardens and museums children love, and the fee is token. Take your time and do not try to see everything in one day.