Traveling with the Jones

Practically lying on the equator, Java Island is the world’s most populous island with an estimated population of 143.1 million people. Home to 57 percent of the Indonesian population, the island was the center for Hindu-Buddhist empires.

One the world’s most densely populated places, Java holds must of Indonesia’s history as well as its center of politics, economic growth, and culture.

6 Fun Facts About Java, the Indonesian Island

Mount Merbabu surrounded by rice fields on the island of Java, Indonesia. Photo by Merbabu Sawah.

1. By land mass size, Java is the world’s 13th largest island, and fifth largest Indonesian Island. It was formed mainly by volcanic eruptions and has an east-west chain of them along the island.

2. Java is split into four provinces: East Java, Central Java, West Java, and Banten. Javanese and Indonesian are spoken there.

The 9th century Borobudur Buddhist stupa in Central Java is the world’s largest Buddhist monument, built in the 8th century by the Sailendra dynasty. Photo by Gunawan Kartapranata

3. The Indonesian Constitution guarantees freedom of religion but the government only recognizes six official religions (Islam, Protestantism, Catholicism, Hinduism, Buddhism and Confucianism).  On the island of Java, more than 90 percent of the people are Muslim on a broad continuum between abangan (more traditional) and santri (more modernist). Some parts of south-central Java are strongly Roman Catholic and Buddhist.

4. With more than 450 different bird species, Java is a bird watcher’s paradise.

5. During the colonial periods of the 17th century, the Dutch introduced commercial cultivation of sugarcane, rubber, tea and coffee plants in Java. In the 19th and early 20th century, Javanese coffee gained global popularity. This is why the name “Java” is commonly considered synonymous with coffee.

Central Jakarta during monthly Car Free Day, on the last Sunday every month. The Thamrin-Sudirman Avenue from National Monument to Senayan area is closed from cars and any motorized vehicles from 6 AM to 12 AM, except for TransJakarta Bus Rapid Transit system. Photo by Gunawan Kartapranta.

6. Located on the northwest coast of Java, Jakarta is the capital of Indonesia and its largest city. With a population of more than 10 million, Jakarta is one of the world’s most densely populated cities, leading to Car Free Days on certain Sundays, and the world’s longest bus rapid transit routes.

Java is definitely a place to experience for its diverse culture, history, and landscape.

Learn more about Java, Indonesia with these resources:

Insight Guides: Indonesia

50 Things to Know About Travelling to Indonesia: The Island of Java: Where Cultures, Culinary and Nature Meet
The Magus of Java: Teachings of an Authentic Taoist Immortal
Raffles and the British Invasion of Java

This post is written by Megan Bryde, a forever student of the world while also finishing up her bachelors in English at Truman State University this semester.

Involved in too many activities, she sings as loud as she can, writes, cooks, bakes, and drinks a lot of coffee. Check out her blog to see more about what she does.

Megan is currently completing an internship with VentureTime Travel and aspires to be teaching English someday.

If you enjoy interesting facts about far-flung destinations, check out these other Fun Facts posts:

• 24 Fun Facts About Cochin “Kochi” India
• 18 Fun Facts About Phuket, Thailand
• 9 Fun Facts About Komodo Island, Indonesia
• 9 Fun Facts About the Tourist Sites in Sydney, Australia
• 15 Fun Facts About Cornwall, England

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Last month we sailed on Royal Caribbean’s Allure of the Seas from Ft. Lauderdale to the Western Caribbean. Falmouth, Jamaica was one of the port stops.

Since I’d recently climbed Dunn’s River Falls, I decided to take  the 1700’s Great House and  Plantation Tour with Lunch offered through Royal Caribbean’s shore excursions. 

While Falmouth is known today for being the home of one of the world’s fastest men, Olympic sprinter and world record holder Usain Bolt, it was famous in the late 1,700’s and early 1800’s as a wealthy port town. All of the sugar and rum from the nearby plantations that made Jamaica the world’s leading sugar producer at the time were shipped from this port.

Lydia with Chukka Tours (pictured above) was our fabulous tour guide as we boarded our bus and headed from the port along some bumpy roads to the Good Hope Estate, where the views of Jamaica are spectacular.

Good Hope was a sugar plantation started by by Colonel Thomas Williams in the year 1744. The Great House was built in 1755 for his young new wife, Elizabeth Williams. 

Unfortunately, she got sick and died on April 2, 1762 at age 24. She is buried in the lower corner of the house. 

Our tour took us inside the Great House, which as seen many uses over the years. The furniture, such as shown above in the Blue Room, is from the time period but not original to the home.

The tour also takes you around the plantation.  The Martha Brae river runs through the estate. Today the river is a popular for tubing adventures.

In the late 1700’s, the river was channeled into canals which powered the wheel to extract the sugar from the canes, greatly increasing the amount of sugar that could be produced.

After the tour, we enjoyed a delicious jerk chicken lunch. One of the many fun facts that we learned from our guides: pimento, used in making jerk chicken, is known as allspice in most places outside of Jamaica. 

Chukka tour buses returned us to the port of Falmouth.  The Chukka tour company does a terrific job, and all of its guides and drivers that we experienced on this tour were entertaining and informative.

Have you visited Jamaica via a cruise ship? What activities or tour did you enjoy on shore? Please share in comments below.

You might want to check out these posts on other Caribbean tours and shore excursions…..

• Eating and Drinking Our Way Through San Juan, Puerto Rico with Spoon Food Tours – Part 1
• Para-sailing from Cozumel, Mexico
• Exploring “The Baths” of Virgin Gorda, British Virgin Islands via a Seabourn Shore Excursion
• Snorkeling and Climbing Dunn’s River Falls from Falmouth, Jamaica
• Labadee, Royal Caribbean’s Private Resort in Haiti

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Jeju Island is one of South Korea’s nine provinces. Officially known as the Jeju Special Autonomous Province, Jeju Island offers a temperate climate that rarely drops below freezing. Visitors enjoy Jeju Island it for its unique environment, eccentric gardens, and relatively low cost.

5 Fun Facts About Jeju Island, South Korea

1. Jeju’s traditional history lies solely on a legend. The legend tells of the first progenitors of the Jeju people who founded the Kingdom of Tamna. According to legend, three demi-gods emerged from Samseong-Hycol  (the northern slopes of Mt. Halla) in which they had found a box which contained a lion watching over another box in the shape of an egg. The lion from Beoknang told them that the king’s daughters had no one to marry though they were of age and heard that the three demi-gods were about to be legendary founders of the Tamna State. The three demi-gods married the three daughters of the king and from that point on had established their homes and families from that time onward.

2. Jeju Island is a volcanic island. A key landmark is Halla Mountain, commonly known as Halla-son. At 6,400 ft high, Halla-son is the tallest mountain in South Korea.

3. Because of the isolated nature of the island the people of  Jeju have developed a culture and language that is fairly distinct from Korea’s mainland.

4. Going against the traditions of the Confucian patriarchal structure, the Jeju society has a small population with a matriarchal family structure,  and is especially found among the haenyeo (“sea women”), who were often the heads of families, because of the controlled the income on men’s labor. These women would free-dive to harvest abalones, conchs and other marine products. In the 1960’s 21% of women on the island were free divers, providing 60% of the island’s fisheries revenue.

5. You may see a Bangsatap, which is a round tower made of many stones. There are many and you can mainly see them in the country. They are traditionally made to protect oneself from bad luck in their village.

Enjoy the tours, enjoy the hotels, and enjoy the atmosphere. Jeju Island will definitely be one of the best experiences of your life.

Have you visited Jeju Island? What was your favorite place to see? What do you recommend?

This post is written by Megan Bryde, a forever student of the world while also finishing up her bachelors in English at Truman State University this semester.

Involved in too many activities, she sings as loud as she can, writes, cooks, bakes, and drinks a lot of coffee. Check out her blog and LinkedIn page to see more about what she does.

Megan is currently completing an internship with VentureTime Travel and aspires to be teaching English someday.

Enjoy learning about far away destinations? Here are some other destinations to consider:

• 7 Fun Facts About Fuerte Armador, Panama
• 21 Fun Facts About Mormugao, Goa, India
• 20 Interesting Facts About Haiti
• Destination Discovery: Bear Island, Norway
• Destination Discovery: Akureyri, Iceland
• A Walk Around Downtown Perth, Australia

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