Visiting Ampera Bridge in Palembang City South Sumatra ---One of the greatest kingdoms in Indonesian history, the Buddhist Empire of Sriwijaya prospered along the banks of Musi River in South Sumatra over a thousand years ago. Located on the southern-most rim of the South China Sea, close to the one of the world’s busiest shipping lanes linking the Far East with Europe, the Region’s historical background is rich and colorful. Sriwijaya kingdom practiced a bustling and productive trade with ancient China during its golden years.Stretching from the foothills of the mighty Bukit Barisan mountain range, this province is relatively flat but very fertile, with numerous rivers cutting across the landscape and meandering their ways to the sea. Coffee and tea plantations are scattered across the province, but South Sumatra’s enormous wealth comes from oil, natural gas, coal, tin and quartz reserves.
The History of South Sumatra
In 672, the Chinese scholar, I Tsing, recorded that a thousand monks and scholars could be seen translating and studying Sanskrit in Palembang, the capital of South Sumatra. This shows that more than a thousand years ago, Palembang under the reign of Sriwijaya kingdom was prosperous and rich in culture. Many relics and remnants of this mighty kingdom can still be found in this area.
Entry Points to South Sumatra
Getting There: Many domestic Airlines serve to Palembang. Garuda Indonesia airlines serves flight from Osaka, Tokyo, Jeddah, Riyadh, Guangzhou, Shanghai, Singapore and Perth as well as major cities in Indonesia to Palembang. Air Conditioned busses from Java and Sumatra are also available.
Characteristic of People and Culture in South Sumatra
Palembang people are known for their frankness and gregarious manner. They can create works of art, beautiful and exquisite with their patience and strength. Songket, made of silk combined with gold thread, will fascinate traditional cloth collectors because of its rich designs and elegance. It’s also a great keepsake to buy, although the price of this first grade hand-woven songket might be quite expensive.
Palembang is also famous for its wood carving motifs, influenced by Chinese and Buddhist designs. The carvings are dominated by decorations in the form of jasmine flower and lotus seen in the furniture and lacquers. South Sumatra Various Cuisines
Palembang’s famous fruits are pineapple and duku (Lansium domisticum). The taste of Palembang pineapple is fresh and rather tangy, while duku tastes sweet and sometimes bland. Palembang also offers unique, tasty dish, mostly made of fish. One of them welknown as Pempek Palembang.
