3 World Heritage Sites to visit in Indonesia
World Heritage Sites to visit in Indonesia – Part 2
- Cultural Landscape of Bali Province
- Tropical Rainforest Heritage of Sumatra
- Ombilin Coal Mining Heritage of Sawahlunto
Cultural Landscape of Bali Province
Cultural Landscape of Bali Province: the Subak System as a Manifestation of the Tri Hita Karana Philosophy, consists of Subak Landscape of Pakerisan Watershed, Subak Landscape of Catur Angga Baturkaru, Supreme Water Temple Pura Ulun Danu Batur, Lake Batur, and Royal Temple of Taman Ayun.
Subak is the water management system for the paddy fields on Bali island, Indonesia. It was developed in the 9th century.The system consists of five rice terraces, and their water temples that cover 19,500 ha. The temples are the focus of a cooperative water management system of canals and weirs, known as, subak.
The ‘subak’ reflects the philosophical concept of ‘Tri Hita Karana’, which brings together the realms of the spirit, the human world and nature. This philosophy was born of the cultural exchange between Bali and India over the past 2,000 years and has shaped the landscape of Bali. The subak system was enlisted as a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 2012.
Among the many fields that stretch almost all across the island, the Jatiluwih Rice Terraces in the heart of Tabanan Regency, is the best example of Bali’s outstanding picturesque rice fields and represent the Subak system as Bali’s Cultural Landscape.
The Jatiluwih rice terraces, lie at an altitude of 700 meters, comprise over 600 hectares of rice fields that follow the flowing topography of the Batukaru mountain range. In Balinese, Jatiluwih can be literally translated to Jati (really) and Luwih (beautiful). It takes 2- hour drive from Kuta and 1.5 hours from Ubud.
A full-day tour usually include Jatiluwih as the main attraction alongside other prominent highlights of Batukaru Temple, Alas Kedaton Monkey Forest, together and picturesque Tanah Lot sea temple.
Tropical Rainforest Heritage of Sumatra
The 2.5 million hectare Tropical Rainforest Heritage of Sumatra site comprises three national parks: Gunung Leuser National Park, Kerinci Seblat National Park and Bukit Barisan Selatan National Park.
The site is listed as a UNESCO World Heritage site, for its outstanding scenic beauty, outstanding example representing significant on-going ecologica, and biological processes,and it contains the most important and significant natural habitats for in situ conservation.
The site holds the greatest potential for long-term conservation of the distinctive and diverse biota of Sumatra, including many endangered species.
The protected area is home to an estimated 10,000 plant species, including 17 endemic genera; more than 200 mammal species; and some 580 bird species of which 465 are resident and 21 are endemic.
Of the mammal species, 22 are Asian, not found elsewhere in the archipelago, and 15 are confined to the Indonesian region, including the endemic Sumatran orang-utan.
The site also provides biogeographic evidence of the evolution of the island.
Ombilin Coal Mining Heritage of Sawahlunto
Built for the extraction, processing and transport of high-quality coal in an inaccessible region of Sumatra, this industrial site was developed by the Netherlands East Indies’ government, in the globally important period of industrialization, from the late 19th to the beginning of the 20th century.
The workforce was recruited from the local Minangkabau people, and supplemented by Javanese and Chinese contract workers, and convict labourers from Dutch-controlled areas.
It comprises the mining site and company town, coal storage facilities at the port of Emmahaven, and the railway network linking the mines to the coastal facilities.
The Ombilin Coal Mining Heritage was built as an integrated system that enabled the efficient deep-bore extraction, processing, transport and shipment of coal. It is also an outstanding testimony of exchange and fusion, between local knowledge and practices and European technology.
