Bengkulu

Bengkulu province sits on the southwestern coast of Sumatra, facing the Indian Ocean. With about 2 million people, it is one of Indonesia's smaller and least-visited provinces. The province is best known for the Rafflesia arnoldii (the world's largest single flower, blooming up to a metre across), the British colonial-era Fort Marlborough, and the long, empty beaches of its Indian Ocean coast. Sukarno, Indonesia's first president, was exiled here by the Dutch in the late 1930s.

Geography

Bengkulu covers about 20,000 square kilometres, mostly mountainous to hilly with the Bukit Barisan range running parallel to the coast. The Indian Ocean coast is long but with limited natural harbours. The Bukit Barisan Selatan National Park, shared with Lampung, protects significant Sumatran tiger, elephant, and rhinoceros habitat.

History

The British East India Company controlled Bengkulu (then Bencoolen) from 1685 to 1824 as part of their pepper trade. Fort Marlborough, built in the early 1700s, is the largest surviving British colonial fort in Southeast Asia. The British exchanged Bencoolen with the Dutch for Malacca in 1824 under the Anglo-Dutch Treaty.

The Dutch exiled Sukarno here from 1938 to 1942 during the colonial era — the house where he lived is now a museum. His wife Fatmawati, who sewed Indonesia's first national flag, was from Bengkulu.

What to see

• Fort Marlborough: large restored British-era fort, with museum
• Sukarno's house of exile: museum at the address where Sukarno lived
• Anak Dara cemetery: British colonial cemetery
• Bengkulu Beach (Panjang Beach): long, sandy, surf-quality
• Mount Bungkuk and Rafflesia areas: the Rafflesia arnoldii blooms here unpredictably; ask locally
• Kerinci Seblat National Park: northern part accessible from Bengkulu
• Pulau Tikus: small island offshore from Bengkulu with reef snorkelling
• Curug Sembilan and other waterfalls: in the western hills

Rafflesia

The Rafflesia arnoldii — the largest single flower in the world, up to one metre across, named after Stamford Raffles who first reported it scientifically in 1818 — blooms in the Bengkulu forests. The flower has no leaves, stems, or roots and is a parasite on Tetrastigma vines. Blooms last only a few days and produce a strong rotting-meat smell. Spotting one in bloom requires local guidance and some luck.

Culture

The province is mixed: Rejang (the original highland people), Serawai, Bengkulu Malay, and substantial Javanese and Minangkabau populations. The province is mostly Muslim (96%).

The Tabot festival, held annually in commemoration of the death of the Prophet's grandson Hussein at Karbala, is the most distinctive cultural event — a 10-day Shi'a-influenced ritual unique to Bengkulu (and a related event in Pariaman, West Sumatra).

Practical

• Airport: Fatmawati Soekarno Airport in Bengkulu, with limited flights mainly from Jakarta
• Roads: limited; the coastal road south to Lampung and north to Padang is improving but still slow
• Best time: dry season (May-September)
• Climate: hot, humid, equatorial
• Tourist infrastructure: very limited; expect basic accommodation outside Bengkulu city

Bengkulu is for visitors who specifically want to escape the tourist mainstream. The combination of British colonial history, dramatic coast, and rare Rafflesia flora gives it a distinctive identity, but tourist infrastructure is minimal.