10 fun facts about Indonesia...

... you never knew before 

About Indonesia, as about any country, there are many funny and strange facts. Even in Germany there is one or another custom, which many people in the world would consider crazy.

I have now spent a few weeks here in Indonesia and got to know new things, which I did not see on the Internet. 

So today we have 10 fun Indonesian facts that you probably didn't know about. 

 

1.    Rice instead of fries in the McMenu 

That rice is eaten at any time, three times a day I was already aware after the first day. But when I saw rice in the McMenu, it was too much for me. It is offered right on the menu and optionally they offer fries. Normally the rice is chosen.

 

2.     Ketchup vs. "Kecap" 

Watch out when you order ketchup with your chicken in Indonesia. The word "Kecap" has the same pronunciation here.

3.     Luwak coffee 

The name comes from a small species of animal called musang (creeping cats). This small mammal eats coffee cherries and excretes them again. This excrement is then used to produce the most expensive coffee in the world. This coffee called "Kopi Luwak", you can try in many tourist areas, such as Bali or Lombok. It is sold in small packages and often taken as a souvenir for friends.

 

4.     Dutch words in everyday language use

In Indonesia, the official language is Bahasa Indonesia. Indonesia was a Dutch colony many years ago, and this is still evident in some of the words used in the culture. In the following I show you a few examples:

 

5.     Cigarette and alcohol advertising 

Unlike here in Germany, ads for smoking are frequently played here. Almost every second clip is about a cigarette ad. Hardly imaginable in Germany. There is no alcohol-related advertising here. In itself, little to no alcohol is drunk in Indonesia, which explains the non-display of advertising.

 

6.     Television censorship 

Watching TV in Indonesia can be funny. If you could watch German TV here, the students would quickly think we were crazy. On some channels, movies are so censored that anything remotely "sexy" is not shown. This even goes as far as censoring the genitals of sculptures. Simply unimaginable in Germany. 

 

7.     Eggs and flour for birthday 

The custom in some religions in Indonesia says that on your birthday you get raw eggs smashed on your head and then covered with flour is showered. That can end on the one or other birthday then already times in a beautiful chaos.

 

8.     After-shower instead of toilet paper

In Indonesia you will hardly ever find toilet paper in the toilets. You can see the normal, still good condition of a toilet on the picture. Often you will just find a urinal. In Asia it is forbidden to throw paper into the toilet. For this reason, often none is offered. If there is toilet paper, you throw it into the wastebasket next to the toilet and not into the toilet. Cleaning is done with the so-called after-shower or a spoon with water, as you can see in the picture. This change can be very unusual for some people. 

 

9.     The fourth floor is not present 

In some Asian countries, it is common that apartment buildings do not have a 4th floor. Even our hostel did not have one. By itself, our rooms are on the 4th floor. However, the rooms are marked with 5th. In fact, there is the floor, but in the numbering, for example in the elevator, no 4 appears. This is due to an old superstition. In pronunciation, the 4 resembles the word "death", which is why Asians avoid this number in public numbering.

 

10.  Handing things over with the right hand only 

The left hand is considered unclean in Indonesia, as the hand is used to clean up business on the toilet, as there is a lack of toilet paper in some areas. That is why everything is handed over with the right hand. If you accidentally hand over something with your left hand, you apologize directly to the person.

See you soon!

Love, Patricia ♡