Indonesian’s Way of Life

Just about two or three decades ago, in the cities clothing in western style is worn by Indonesian men. Native influence is seen only in their black velvet caps they wear on their heads. Indonesian women wear batik-patterned warp-around skirts, long-sleeved jackets, and scarves called selendang over their shoulders.

Nowadays, most of Indonesian men or women that live in the cities more prefer wearing t-shirt and jeans, just make something no differ with western people. Of course, what that just have mentioned, just be valid when applied for informal conditions. In formal conditions, nor Indonesian men or women, prefer wearing international well known formal coat.

The style of Indonesian houses varies from island to island and from rural regions to cities. In Java, for instance, most houses are one-story square-shaped structures with bamboo walls, while on Borneo the Dayak people build their homes on stilts.

A great majority of Indonesians are farmers who till small plots of land. In large parts of the country rice is the main crop, but on the drier eastern islands maize (corn) or, in some cases, sago (a starch) is the staple crop. In addition to these crops, vegetables, fish eggs, chickens, and spices make up the daily diet.

Farm families are generally larger than city families. The entire family must work for their daily bread. Young girls help their mothers sew and thresh rice in the afternoons, after they have finished school and religious training. A boy of 8 will help his father weed and plow in the rice paddies. On Muslim religious holidays there are grand festivities, in which all the families of a community take part.

Just about two or three decades ago, in the cities some people work in small local industries, where food is processed, leather tanned, and the famous batik cloth with color designs in woven and dyed. Many men are employed by the government. Their families get up very early every morning so that the men can get to the government offices by 7 a.m. The mother then goes to market, and the children go to school. At 2 p.m., when the workday is over, the entire family eats a big meal and then sleeps for a few hours. In the evening, after eating a smaller, informal meal, people usually get together with friends. Nowadays, people work in such very varieties kind of work in many sectors of industries.

As a result of foreign contact, art in Indonesia has flourished. Hindu and Buddhist influences are seen in many temples, such as those on the island of Bali and the Borobudur in central Java. Drama is often in the form of puppet plays called wayang, in which puppets are used to enact stories from such ancient Hindu epic literature as the Mahabharata and Ramayana. The wayang, accompanied b music played on native instruments by a gamelan (orchestra), are very popular. Local dances base on legends also attract many spectators.

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