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The heart and lungs of Jakarta, Medan Merdeka is a square kilometre of sun-scorched grass in the centre of the city. It was here in the 1940s that Sukarno whipped his supporters up into a revolutionary frenzy, and here that the biggest demonstration of the May 1997 riots took place. At the centre of the square stands the Monas , a soaring 137-metre marble, bronze and gold torch, commissioned by Sukarno in 1962 to symbolize the indomitable spirit of the Indonesian people, and known to ex-pats as "Sukarno's last erection". You can take a lift up to its top for a city view (daily 8am-5pm; Rp3000); the ticket includes entry to the National History Museum (daily 8am-5pm; Rp500) in Monas's basement, a series of 48 dioramas that depict the history of Jakarta. The National Museum (Tues-Thurs & Sun 8.30am-2.30pm, Fri 8.30-11.30am, Sat 8.30am-1.30pm; Rp750), on the western side of Medan Merdeka, is a fabulous place and a great introduction to Indonesia; the Indonesian Heritage Society conducts tours in English (Tues-Thurs 9.30am). The eclectic range of items from all over the archipelago are grouped together into categories such as musical instruments, costumes and so on. Many of the country's top ruins have been plundered for their statues, which now sit, unmarked, in the museum courtyard. Other highlights include huge Dongson kettledrums, the skull and thighbone of Java Man, found near Solo in 1936 , and the cache of golden artefacts discovered at the foot of Mount Merapi in 1990. The dazzling white, if rather unprepossessing, Mesjid Istiqlal looms over the northeastern corner of Medan Merdeka. Completed in 1978, it is the largest mosque in Southeast Asia and can hold up to 250,000 people. For a donation, and providing you're conservatively dressed, the security guards will take you on an informal tour. At the foot of the minaret sits a 2.5-tonne wooden drum from east Kalimantan, the only traditional feature in this otherwise state-of-the-art mosque.
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