Ryan Ver Berkmoes - Indonesia

The numbers astound even as they boggle: 17,000 islands (or is it 20,000?), 8000 inhabited (or is it 11,000?), 300 languages spoken (or is it 400?); the list goes on.

The worlds fourth most populace country 240 million and counting is a sultry kaleidoscope that runs along the equator for 5000km. It may well be the last great adventure on Earth. From the western tip of Sumatra to the eastern edge of Papua is a nation that defies homogenisation. A land of so many cultures, peoples, animals, customs, plants, features, artworks and foods that it is like 100 countries melded into one (or is it 200?).

And were talking differences that arent just about an accent or a preference for goat over pork, we are talking about people who are as radically different from each other as if they came from different continents. No man may be an island but here every island is a unique blend of the men, women and children who live upon it. Over time deep and rich cultures have evolved, from the mysteries of the spiritual Balinese to the utterly non-Western belief system of the Asmat people of Papua.

Venturing through the islands of Indonesia youll see a land as diverse and unusual as those living upon it. Look at Sulawesi on a map, say what you think, and youll save yourself the cost of an ink blot test at a shrink. Or view Sumatra from the air and be humbled by a legion of nearly 100 volcanoes marching off into the distance, several capable of blowing at any time.

Dramatic sights are the norm. Theres the sublime: an orangutan lounging in a tree; the artful: a Balinese dancer executing precise moves that make a robot seem loose-limbed; the idyllic: a deserted stretch of blinding white sand on Sumbawa set off by azure water and virescent jungled hills; the astonishing: the mobs in a cool and glitzy Jakarta mall on a Sunday; the humbling: a woman bent double with a load of firewood on Sumatra; the solemn: the quiet magnificence of Borobudur.

As diverse as Indonesia is, perhaps whats so remarkable about the place is how often it is the same. Sure there may be those 300 spoken languages (or was it 400?) but virtually everybody can speak one language: Bahasa Indonesia, a tongue that helps unify this sprawling, chaotic collection of peoples with a past thats had more drama than a picnic on Krakatau in say, 1883. Destructive colonialism, revolution, mass slaughter, ethnic warfare, dictatorship and more have been part of daily life in Indonesia in just the past 100 years. Thats one of the reasons why the national elections of 2009 are so remarkable: they were unremarkable.

More than a dozen parties waged high-energy campaigns. Rallies throughout the myriad islands were passionate and vibrant. Yet what happened in the end? President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyonos incumbent Democratic Party won. In the midst of global economic chaos (time for another Krakatau allusion), Indonesians chose to go with the status quo. This is a remarkable development for a nation where the looting of a single KFC by protestors with a, er, beef, is portrayed in the West as a complete breakdown of civil order.

But it wasnt that long ago, barely a decade, when there was blood in the streets from Lombok to the Malukus as religious and political factions settled scores and simply ran amok. Having a boring election is balm for a nation with such recent bad memories. And it is balm for anyone worried that the worlds largest Muslim nation (numerous large religious minorities aside) could somehow come under the influence of radical groups dedicated to reversing the so far relatively successful Indonesian experiment in modest secularism. Although memories of bombings earlier in the decade in Bali and Jakarta had faded significantly, the 2009 Jakarta hotel bombings, which killed nine, reminded all that Indonesia will continue to have security challenges.

Yet look again at the boring election. The optimistically named Prosperous Justice Party (Partai Keadilan Sejahtera; PKS) which campaigned with a goal of bringing Islamic Shariah law to Indonesia received 8% of the vote after it and poll watchers had predicted a share of as much as 15%.

It was a heartening moment for those who believe Indonesia must continue to be a nation of all its people, no matter which of the 300 (or 400?) languages they prefer. Yet one election does not make anyone think there are not scores of challenges ahead. Just ask a yoga instructor on Bali. A quasi-governmental body, the Ulema Council, has issued a ban on the seemingly innocuous and uncontroversial practice of stress management on the grounds that the ancient Hindu elements of yoga are incompatible with the Muslim faith.

This only added to fears stoked by the passage in 2008 of a so-called anti-pornography law that potentially made many traditional forms of behaviour across the archipelago illegal from wearing penis gourds on Papua, to the modest gyrations of traditional Javanese dancers (to say nothing of the brazenly topless on Balis beaches). With recent memories of religious and ethnic violence still sharp in many places, anything that could stoke new divisions is anathema to many. Thus the general relief after the boring 2009 elections.

In contrast, however, is the excitement expressed across Indonesia at the results of a different election, this one far way in the US. Youd have to find yourself a pretty remote rock in the Bandas to maybe find an Indonesian who couldnt tell you that President Barack Obama moved to Jakarta in 1967 with his mother and step-father and attended primary school there for four years (). The presidents memories in interviews may seem to focus on his love of bakso (meatball) soup but for locals he might as well have lived in the country his entire life. You simply cannot underestimate the pride felt over the ascent of one of theirs. Certainly it means there will be a honeymoon in relations between the worlds number three and number four most-populated countries. (On a side note: Obamas election coincided with a massive surge in popularity of American-style reality TV shows.)

Indonesia with its 17,000 islands (or was it 20,000?) is also, unfortunately, challenged by concerns that make political worries pale. Modern life in a place that hadnt changed in previous eons has come at a huge cost. Pollution, illegal land use, deforestation, rampant corruption (it places at 125 on Transparency Internationals corruption perceptions index; neighbours Malaysia and Singapore are at 47 and four respectively) and poverty (US$50 a month is big wages here) imperil the very fabric of the nation. Plus theres the ever-present possibility of natural disaster, as seen by the 2004 tsunami and the 2006 Yogya and 2009 Sumatra earthquakes.

Yet, visiting this ever-intriguing, ever-intoxicating land youll see these problems, but more often youll see the promise. And more often youll live the promise of the last great adventure on Earth. Sitting in the open door of a train whizzing across Java, idling away time on deck on a ferry bound for Kalimantan, hanging on to the back of a scooter on Flores or simply trekking through wilderness youre sure no one has seen before, youll enjoy endless exploration of the infinite diversity of Indonesias 17,000 islands (or was it).