Indonesian fried fish dumplings

Batagor

24 Apr 2015 | From Handi of Indonesia

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Batagor (Baso - meatballs; Tahu - tofu; Goreng - fried) is Sundanese Indonesian fried fish dumplings usually served with peanut sauce. It is traditionally made from tenggiri (wahoo) fish meat. Sometimes other types of seafood such as tuna, mackerel, and prawn also can be used to make batagor. Just like siomay, other complements to batagor are steamed cabbage, potatoes, bitter gourd and tofu. Batagor is cut into bite size pieces and topped with peanut sauce, sweet soy sauce, chili sauce and a dash of lime juice. Because being fried, batagor have crispy and crunchy texture. Since the serving method is identical, today batagor and siomay often sold under one vendor, with batagor offered as variation or addition to siomay.

Batagor is ubiquitous in Indonesian cities. It can be found in street-side food stalls, travelling carts, bicycle vendors, and restaurants. Batagor was invented in the 1980s in Bandung, and the most famous variety is Batagor Bandung. It has been adapted into local Sundanese cuisine.

Labuanbajo harbour town

Sunset in Labuan Bajo

17 Apr 2015 | From Handi of Indonesia

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Labuan Bajo is a fishing town located at the western end of Flores in the Nusa Tenggara region of east Indonesia. Once a small fishing village, Labuan Bajo in Flores is now a busy bustling center of tourism. It is the launching point for trips to Komodo Island and Rinca Island, home to the famous komodo dragons. The town is quite small and can easily be traversed on foot. Within a few hours of Labuan Bajo can be found several waterfalls, trekking and many diverse beaches.

Tradition and Life expressed in Dance

Balinese Dancers

10 Mar 2015 | From Niken of Indonesia

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The lifestyles of Balinese people is expressed in their dance. Not only do we learn about the Balinese religion from their dance creations but also we can come to understand the flow of cultural events and activities that belong to everyday life. The very essence of the Balinese culture is dance and drama, which is performed during temple festivals and in ceremonies. The dances performed in hotels is a small fraction of what Balinese dance has to offer.

Balinese dances are a very ancient dance tradition that is a part of the religious and artistic expression among the Balinese people, native to Bali island, Indonesia. Balinese dance is dynamic, angular and intensely expressive. The Balinese dancers express the story of dance-drama through the whole bodily gestures; fingers, hands and body gestures to head and eyes movements.

Traditional Wayang Dance

Wayang wong

10 Mar 2015 | From Niken of Indonesia

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Wayang wong, also known as Wayang orang (literally 'human wayang)', is a type of classical Javanese dance theatrical performance with themes taken from episodes of the Ramayana or Mahabharata. Performances are stylised, reflecting Javanese court culture.

Wayang wong dance drama in the central Javanese Kraton (royal court) of Yogyakarta represents the epitome of Javanese aesthetic unity. It is total theatre involving dance, drama, music, visual arts, language, and literature. A highly cultured sense of formality permeates every aspect of its presentation.

In the old days, wayang wong was only performed in the four palaces of Yogyakarta and Surakarta as clasical court dance. In the development, it spread beyond the palaces and become popular among the people. In the course of time, it spread to become a popular and folk form as well.

World's Biggest Buddhist Monument

The Borobudur

10 Mar 2015 | From Handi of Indonesia

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Borobudur temple is the world's biggest Buddhist monument. It is located in Magelang, Central Java, Indonesia. The monument was listed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Borobudur is the place for Buddhists to say their prayers and one of the most atrractive places in Indonesia.

A 9th-century Mahayana Buddhist Temple, the monument consists of six square platforms topped by three circular platforms and is decorated with 2,672 relief panels and 504 Buddha statues. A main dome, located at the center of the top platform, is surrounded by 72 Buddha statues each of which is seated inside a perforated stupa.

Built in the 9th century during the reign of the Sailendra Dynasty, the temple was designed in Javanese Buddhist architecture, which blends the Indonesian indigenous cult of ancestor worship and the Buddhist concept of attaining Nirvana. The temple also demonstrates the influences of Gupta art that reflects India's influence on the region, yet there are enough indigenous scenes and elements incorporated to make Borobudur uniquely Indonesian.

Teddy dream

A dream come true

16 Dec 2014 | From Irsalina of Thailand

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Loving you is more than just a dream come true...

I think there are two reasons why Irsalina decided to send me this postcard. Firstly, she enjoys crocheting and considers herself a yarn addict. She would definitlely love to have that crochet teddy as her little yarn friend. And secondly as the words in the postcard implies, she is happily in love with her boyfriend of six years and hopes to get married soon.

I have never tried crocheting, and I never had a teddy bear (but there are some stuffed toys from friends that lie higgledy-piggledy on my bed). At this moment, I can't say that I am happily in love with someone. But definitely, this postcard is appreciated :)

Traditional Indonesian Umbrella - finally, I have you in my collection ;)

The Indonesian Payung

22 Oct 2014 | From Juned of Indonesia

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I instantly fell in love with this postcard the first time I saw it. I love the colours, its traditional vibe, and how the lady seemed to blend with the perfectly arranged umbrellas.

It was at Postcrossing Facebook where I saw this postcard. I was randomly browsing the page when I saw this postcard in one of a post's comment. My umbrella-themed postcard collection was just starting then. I asked the Postcrosser if she may have a spare copy but unfortunately she haven't got any. Or perhaps she did mot want to swap with me. That was several months ago. I even tried to ask some Indonesian Postcrossers in Postcrossing for this postcard. But those I've asked seem to have no extra copy.

Then some months later, I was given my first Indonesian address for the official Postcrossing. It wasn't my first time sending a postcard to Indonesia (I have made swaps before) but it was my first in the official Postcrossing track. I was somewhat excited. Not that I asked him for a postcard swap in my letter or have any intentions of it, but it made me think of the umbrella postcard again. When he received my postcard though, he asked me for a postcard swap. A month later, he surprised me with this postcard!  

The payung is a traditional lacquered decorated wax paper umbrella or parasol in Indonesia. In our country, the Filipino translation for umbrella is 'payong'. These traditional payungs are known for their vibrancy in colour, meticulous details and quality of workmanship, and impressive designs. They are used as souvenirs or gifts, or with traditional dances such as the Tari Payung or Umbrella Dance - a Minangkabau’s traditional dance. Minangkabau is one of regencies in Indonesia, which is located in West Sumatra.

The photograph shown in the postcard is taken by Agus Leonardus, a photographer and lecturer at Nikon School Indonesia.

Indonesia's festival masks

Malangan Mask - East Java, Indonesia

23 Apr 2014 | From Irene of Indonesia

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Mask, or topeng, is not only for decorations but is a part of the Indonesian culture, fine arts, and traditional performances.

Malang masks are unique and colorful. They are different from any other mask art found in Java. The red colour symbolizes courage, the black colour symbolizes determined ambitions, the yellow colour symbolizes wisdom, the white colour indicates purified character and the green colour indicates peace.

Indonesia is rich in traditional dances. What separates the mask dance from others is that all the dancers representing some characters wear masks.

Beautiful sunset on Kuta Beach

Kuta Beach in Bali

3 Dec 2013 | From Fida of Indonesia

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Kuta is the best known tourist resort area on the island of Bali in Indonesia and has a great surfing beach. Kuta Beach is a seaside resort located side by side with other beaches such as the Legian, Seminyak, and Tuban. Kuta beach’s length is about 8 km through the beach from the North to the South of Bali. Kuta Beach is a beach with a wide spread of white sand and beautiful scenery. 

Kuta beach is the most visited beach compared with other beaches in Bali. The high interest of tourists visiting the Kuta Beach is due to the location in the Kuta area which is near the crowd and easy to reach.

My First Postcard from Indonesia

Gitgit Waterfalls

29 Nov 2013 | From Fida of Indonesia

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Gitgit Waterfall is one of the famous and beautiful tourist destinations in Bali. Gitgit waterfall is located in the plateau area with the height about 35 meters and it is surrounded by tropical tree and emits the constantly natural water debit during the year. Waterfall voice around the charming nature was amazing and it was the separate attraction which can be enjoyed by each visitor who comes to visit. There are some plantations protecting the rain forest around the waterfall and in this place we often met the wild monkey to get the water from this waterfall.