South Kalimantan

The Meratus mountains divide South Kalimantan into two distinct regions. The eastern part of the province is filled with mountains covered with dense tropical rain forests, home to the "Orang Gunung" or Mountain Peoples. Collectively called the Dayak, they form the minority of the region's population. The southern section of the province is much flatter with large rivers meandering through lowlands to vast mangrove swamps along the coast, helping to make South Kalimantan an exceptionally fertile land. Many villages and settlements have been built along these rivers, by the indigenous majority, the Banjar.

South Kalimantan is full of colorful and distinctive traditional arts and cultures which can be seen in its people's way of life, art, dance, music, ancestral dress, games and ceremonies. Exquisite traditional and commercial handicrafts are all made from local raw materials which include a variety of precious and semi precious stones, gold, silver, brass, iron and a wide variety of woods including bamboo and rattan. South Kalimantan, is one of the largest wood producers in Indonesia. Extensive forests with a wide variety of trees such as ironwood, meranti, pinus and rubber have helped to make the province a unique and rich natural resource.

The provincial capital, Banjarmasin, lies a short distance from the mouth of the Barito River at its confluence with the Martapura River. The rivers are literally the life blood of the city everything revolves around them. They are lined with tightly packed stilt houses. A lot of business is done on the waterways : floating markets flourish selling an enormous variety of goods including a tropical selection of fresh fruit such as Kesturi, a rare aromatic species of mango, durian, rambutan, butter fruit, pineapple, watermelon and banana.

South Kalimantan is well connected with cities all over the Indonesian Archipelago through Syamsuddin Noor airport, which is about 25 km from Banjarmasin. This busy airport handles DC-9's, allowing Merpati Nusantara, Bouraq and Sempati dan Dirgantara Air to service the province. South Kalimantan can also be reached by sea at Trisakti and Banjarmasin. For interior travel there are roads, but the waterways are the preferred form of travel.

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