Indonesia — a hot country in Southeast Asia, sometimes poor, sometimes rich, but surprisingly beautiful. And the beauty here can be seen everywhere — both in huge cities like Jakarta, and in villages lost somewhere on numerous small islands, whose inhabitants sometimes do not even have passports.
Interesting facts about Indonesia
- Indonesia is the largest country in Southeast Asia in terms of area and population
- Indonesia is the largest island nation in the world. Of the 17,800 Indonesian islands, only half have a name, and even fewer land areas are inhabited.
- 719 languages spoken by Indonesians
- There are at least 400 active volcanoes in Indonesia, since almost the entire territory of the state is part of the Pacific Ring of Fire — this area has the most volcanic eruptions and earthquakes on the planet (interesting facts about volcanoes).
- Indonesia is one of the world’s largest producers of nutmeg.
- The flora and fauna of Indonesia is so rich and It is diverse that scientists annually discover up to 200 new species of plants and animals. Although the Indonesian islands make up only 1.3% of the earth’s land mass, they are home to about 17% of the world’s species.
- The fauna of Indonesia is the richest among all countries in the world. At the same time, 39% of local mammals and 36% of birds are found nowhere else on the planet (interesting facts about birds).
- Kawah Ijen Lake with turquoise water is located in the caldera of one of the Indonesian volcanoes. The shores of this reservoir are a rich natural sulfur deposit.
- The brown boiga snake lives on Guam – although this reptile is almost non-venomous, it has had a devastating effect on the fauna of the entire island. Initially, there were no snakes on Guam at all, but now their population reaches 2000 per square kilometer – this is one of the highest rates in the world. The snakes have wiped out 9 of the island’s 11 animal species and are often the cause of short circuits.
- In the Indonesian village of Taban, tourists are treated to a snack made with local soil. The same soil is used to make bricks.
- There is a “wood man” in Indonesia — he suffers from a rare disease, as a result of which thousands of warts and growths, similar to tree bark, cover the skin of a man.
- This country is the world leader in the export of palm oil, frog legs and the most expensive coffee on the planet. To make Kopi Luwak, coffee beans must pass through the esophagus of small animals – musangs.
- Indonesia is one of the 20 largest countries in the world in terms of economy, but more than half of Indonesians live on less than $ 2 a day.
- There are about 3 small earthquakes every day in Indonesia (interesting facts about earthquakes).
- Indonesian Java is the most populated island in the world. It is home to more than 145 million people.
- Indigenous people of Bali traditionally file their six front teeth, demonstrating the rejection of six major sins.
- One of the largest flowers on the planet, Arnold’s rafflesia, is found only on two Indonesian islands, and nowhere else in the world. A bud weighing up to 8 kilograms smells like rotting meat to attract flies.
- Another unusual Indonesian plant is amorphophallus titanic, which has one of the largest inflorescences in the world. A giant flower with a three-meter leaf emits a mixture of smells of rotten fish and stale eggs, and outwardly resembles a piece of rotten meat.
- In the middle of the 17th century, a representative of the Netherlands exchanged Manhattan for the Indonesian island of Ran. Although the future part of New York (and then New Amsterdam) was almost 30 times the size of an island in Indonesia, the Dutchman was pleased with the deal, because the most valuable spice, nutmeg, grew on Run Island.