Many people arrive in Jakarta without a clear plan of where they will go in Java. In many ways, this is a mistake because this first impression of Java can be a very poor one and can encourage travellers to move as quickly as possible across the island. But with a bit of research, you … read the full post

Suck on a lemon, then a lime, then a lemon again, the lemon will seem much sweeter; take a slice of kencur, a root essential to Balinese cooking, bite down on it a little and it will leave your tongue anaesthetically numb; take slices of ginger and smear over sunburn for relief — it’s cool … read the full post

After almost a week in Bali I had still only managed to acquire one two-word phrase of Indonesian, which is more than a little sad really. Fortunately, terima kasih is a phrase with a lot of mileage; it got me all the way from Denpasar to the magnificent volcanic highlands at Munduk and back again, … read the full post

Bandung is one of those cities that people visiting Java tend to skip through rather quickly, mainly because the surrounding activities all seem like too much of a hassle to get to. Kawah Putih to the south of Bandung is a case in point, but those with persistence will find a crater lake of staggering … read the full post