On October 4, I'm boarding an Air Qatar flight from Berlin to Jakarta.
The flight, which takes me halfway around the world, marks the beginning of a two-week blogger trip sponsored by the Ministry of Tourism and Creative Economy of the Republic of Indonesia.
The goal of our trip is simple: highlight the amazing experiences available to visitors of this island nation.
I first visited Indonesia in 2008, during my trip around the world.
At the time, I focused on Bali, because so many people painted it as the picture of paradise.
But Bali features a predominantly Hindu population and culture, which is not at all indicative of the world's largest Muslim nation.
I always knew there was more to Indonesia then Bali, and this will be my chance to discover it.
Our itinerary focuses on 5 of the country's top attractions (in this order):
1. Tanjung Puting National Park - An ecotourism destination in Borneo, with orangutans!
2. Yogyakarta and Borobudur - Yogyakarta is the center of Javanese fine art and culture, and Borobudur is the world's largest Buddhist temple.
3. Mount Bromo - This 2,300 meter tall volcano is one of the most popular destinations in the country. We'll be leaving the hotel at the painfully early hour of 3 AM to catch the sunrise.
4. Komodo Island - I turned down a friend's invitation to join him on the trip from Gili Trawangan to Komodo Island to see the endangered dragons in 2008, so I'm looking forward to getting there this time. I did see a few at the Bali Zoo, but it's not the same as seeing them in the wild.
5. Bali - Our trip wraps up with a few days in Bali, where I hope to squeeze in a little rest and relaxation, or at least a one hour aromatherapy massage, before flying back to Berlin.
Throughout the trip, I'll be providing live updates via social media. I hope you'll follow along, whichever way you choose!
I'll also be shooting video, which will be edited into two short movies and put out in November, along with the regular array of written stories and photos.
We've got an exciting group of international bloggers coming together for this trip. Amazingly, I already met five of them at the TBEX conference in Costa Brava last month.
