BOGOR, Indonesia -- During the colonial era, Bogor was a was once a hillside escape for Europeans seeking relief from the heat and disease of Jakarta [formerly known as Batavia]. While still a pleasant escape from urban chaos, the city is also an important center for research. Much of that is centered around the city's beautiful and world-famous botanical gardens. This palm-lined lane is one of several paths through the gardens.
Indonesia: Java: Bogor: Friday is not a good day to do business in Indonesia. The director of the Herbarium Bogoriense was out in the field, their library was closed, and all the offices shut down about 1100 hrs. This is because Friday is the main day of worship for Moslems. I did buy two PROCEA [sic; actually PROSEA] (Plant Resources of Southeast Asia) volumes on commercial timber (major and minor ones). I almost copies something on the plant geography of Java, but because of strange pagination the wrong right pages were copied. The library at the Bogor Botanical Gardens closed at 100 as well, so I couldn't do anything there. I found a bookstore and bought a copy of The Ecology of Sulawesi as well as [James A.] Larsen's The Boreal Ecosystem. It's out of print and a bizarre find in Indonesia. I also learned where the agricultural and forestry school is. I was guided by a pleasant finance and management student named Falak Alatus, from Aceh Province [in Sumatra]. Since everything was closed, however, I learned little about the forests of Lore Lindu Park [in Sulawesi]. I may have to stick around until Monday for that.
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