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Indonesia
Indonesia, the largest archipelagic state, is a country in Southeast Asia. With a population of 222 million people in 2006, it is the world’s fourth most populous country and most populous Muslim-majority nation (85% of the population). It is not, however, an Islamic state. From 17,508 it has, only about 6,000 are inhabited. These are scattered over both sides of the equator. The five largest are Java, Sumatra, Kalimantan (Indonesian part of Borneo), New Guinea (shared with Papua New Guinea) and Sulawesi.
Jakarta is the nation’s capital and largest city (followed by Surabaya, Bandung, Medan, Semarang) as well as the most populous city in Southeast Asia. It is one of the provinces (the others are Aceh, Yogyakarta, Papua and West Papua) having greater legislative privileges and a higher degree of autonomy from the central government than the other provinces. The city is humid throughout the year with daily temperature range of 25° to 38°C (77°-100°F); Absolute maximum is 43.8 °C (110.8 °F) and absolute minimum is 21.5 °C (70.7 °F).
In total, Indonesia consists of 33 provinces which are subdivided into regencies (kabupaten) and cities (kota) which are further subdivided into sub-districts (kecamatan), and again into village groupings (either desa or kelurahan). It is very diverse in terms of culture, having around 300 ethnic groups, each with cultural differences developed over centuries, and influenced by Indian, Arabic, Chinese, Malay and European sources.
Although Indonesian is the national language of Indonesia, it has more than 500 local languages and dialects. Sundanese and Javanese are two major languages in Java, with dialects that add to the collection of language(s) in Indonesia. In addition to cultural differences, Indonesia is a country that really supports tolerance among people from different religious beliefs.
Bandung
Bandung, the fourth largest city in Indonesia, is the capital city of West Java, one of the provinces on Java Island. Bandung has relatively year-around cooler temperature than most other Indonesian cities the average temperature is 23.6 °C (74.5 °F) throughout the year. The city lies on a river basin and surrounded by volcanic mountains. The average annual rainfall ranges from 1,000 millimeters in the central and southeast regions to 3,500 millimeters in the north of the city.
Most of Bandung populations are of Sundanese descent. Javanese is largest minority, from nearby provinces and eastern part of Java. Notable minorities include Chinese Indonesians, Indian Indonesians, and Korean Indonesians. Sundanese language is spoken as the first language and is commonly used as informal language for communication in streets and markets, while Indonesian - Indonesia's national language and a lingua franca among its many ethnic units - is used as a second language and the language of government, businesses, and instruction at schools.
Bandung has served for popular weekend-break destination for people living in Jakarta for many reasons. The cooler climate of highland plantation area, the varieties of food, and the cheaper fashion shops located in factory outlets and distros, golf courses, and the friendliness of local people have become the main attraction of the city.
The primary means of public transportation is by minibus, called angkot (from angkutan=transportation and kota=city). They serve certain routes throughout the city and are operated privately. To find exact angkot routes, information are available through the drivers or at terminals.
In the north of Bandung, Bosscha Observatory has been the only and the oldest observatory in Indonesia. Construction of the observatory began in 1923 and was completed in 1928. In 1922, the first international publication from Bosscha Observatory was published and in 1959, the observatory was included as a part of the department of astronomy in the Institut Teknologi Bandung.
Institut Teknologi Bandung
Institut Teknologi Bandung (ITB) – Bandung Institute of Technology – is a state, co-educational research university located in Bandung, Indonesia. It is one the Indonesia’s centers of excellence in science, technology, and art. Established in 1920, it is the oldest technology-oriented university in Indonesia.
The university cultivates professional and social activities by supporting its students’ unions, the student government councils that exist in every department. Each students' union has its own distinctly designed jacket that, among other traditions, serves as part of its member identity. There are also a number of student activity units/clubs supporting ITB student interests in rounding out their educational experience. It is not uncommon that the students and alumni are identified by the clubs to which they belong (or used to belong) at ITB, in addition to their class year and major.
ITB is a member of LAOTSE (Links to Asia by Organizing Traineeship and Student Exchange), an international network of leading universities in Europe and Asia exchanging students and senior scholars.
The ITB main campus, to the north of the downtown Bandung, and its other campuses, covers a total area of 770,000 square meters. Students and faculty housing, and administrative headquarters are not on the main campus but are within easy reach. Facilities on the campus include book shops, a post office, student cafeteria, and medical clinic. The architecture of ITB is a fine mixture of the traditional and the modern, and the beauty of the buildings is enhanced by the surrounding lawns and gardens.
In addition to lecture rooms, laboratories, workshops and studios, ITB has an art gallery, sports facilities and a student activities' center. Also near the campus is the ‘Salman Mosque’ for worship and religious activities of the ITB Muslim community. For implementation of academic and research activities there are seven academic support facilities, namely, the Central Library (with approximately 150,000 books and 1000 journal titles) on campus, Sports Center, Language Center, and the Bosscha Observatory (a facility of the Department of Astronomy) in Lembang, 11 kilometers to the north of Bandung.