WHILE Bali is always likely to be the most favoured Indonesian destination for those inclined to get away from it all, for travellers who want to find out what makes Indonesia tick, the place to start is Jakarta.
Cultural variety makes up a big part of the appeal of the Indonesian archipelago, and while Jakarta is first and foremost Javanese, all indigenous aspects of the country's life are represented in the capital.
The city has its high-rise office blocks, hotels and shopping centres, but where Hong Kong has built up, Jakarta has built out.
The urban sprawl of eight million now covers the best part of 700 square kilometres.
Jakarta is a microcosm of the whole country.
Insofar as Jakarta can be said to have a centre, that centre is Merdeka Square.