Indonesia

Capital City - Jakarta
Currency - Indonesian Rupiah
Population - 237,556,363 (2010 census)
National Language - Bahasa Indonesian
Type of Government - Unitary Presidential Republic
Leaders - Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono (President); Boediono (Vice President)
Country's Motto - "Bhinneka Tunggal Ika" - Translates to mean "Unity in Diversity."

Location - The Republic of Indonesia is a chain of 13,600 islands in Southeast Asia.  Roughly 3/4 of the country is made up of five main areas: the islands of Sumatra, Java and Sulawesi, as well as Kalimantan (which borders southern Borneo) and Papua (western New Guinea).  Though the island of Java comprises only 7% of the country's total area, it contains more than half of Indonesia's population.

Climate - Hot and humid monsoon climate.

Religion - Religious freedom is protected in Indonesia; however, the goverment only formally recognizes the following six religions: Islam, Protestantism, Roman Catholicism, Hinduism, Buddhism, and Confucianism. Indonesia is the world's most populous Muslim-majority nation, with 86% of the nation declaring itself Muslim. Of the remainder, 9% consider themselves Christian, 3% are Hindu and 2% are Buddhist.


Cuisine - The cuisine of Indonesia is a broad mixture of Chinese, European, Middle Eastern and Indian elements.  Staples items include rice, chicken, fish, coconut milk and a variety of spices.

Most Famous Landmark - Borobudur: The world's largest Buddhist shrine.  Built in the 9th century, in Magelang, Central Java, this monument was constructed with the labor of several thousand workers over the course of almost 100 years.  Peasant laborers transported 2 million stones to this site with only ropes, hammers, rolling logs and muscle.  Even more incredibly, the carvings within the stones depict 1,200 images of Indonesia life as well as 400 carved Buddhas - in the end, the three mile journey takes the pilgrim along a path which represents humanity and the road to Nirvana.

If You Learn Only One Thing About Indonesia, It Should Be This - The Balinese cat is not originally from Indonesia - it is actually from Siam and was merely called Balinese because its slow movements emulate an exotic Bali dancer.  Animals that do originate from Indonesia include the kimodo dragon, the maleo bird and the orangutan.