World-Class Tourist Attractions and Nostalgia Bring Obama Back to Indonesia

Jakarta Globe, July 02, 2017

Barack Obama at Prambanan Temple near Yogyakarta on Thursday (29/06).
(Antara Photo/Fitri Atmoko)

Jakarta. Nostalgia brought former United States President Barack Obama back to Bali, Yogyakarta and Jakarta for a holiday with his family this week. The visit has also highlighted many world-class tourist attractions in Indonesia, including the great Buddhist and Hindu temples of Java.

Obama, the 44th US President, was born in Hawaii but spent some of his childhood in Indonesia after his mother Ann Dunham married an Indonesian man, Lolo Soetoro, in 1965.

His stepfather Lolo, who was geographer, returned to Indonesia in 1966 to help create maps of Papua.

Along with his mother, Obama, who was six years old at the time, moved to join his stepfather in Jakarta in 1967 and lived in the country until 1971.

When they lived in Indonesia, Obama's family frequently traveled to Yogyakarta where his mother, who was an anthropologist, carried out a research on village industries.

Obama, with his wife Michelle and his two daughters, visited the Buddhist temple Borobudur and the Hindu temple Prambanan near Yogyakarta and Becici Peak during their trip, visits which Obama indicated brought up strong feelings of nostalgia.

The trip has even made some international headlines. American fashion and lifestyle bible Vogue published an article about the holiday titled "President Obama’s Trip to an Ancient Indonesian City Had a Deeply Personal Meaning."

The family spent three days in Yogyakarta after spending five days in Bali, before delivering a speech at the 4th Indonesian Diaspora Congress in Jakarta.

Tourism Minister Arief Yahya said Obama's visit is a perfect endorsement for the country's Wonderful Indonesia tourism campaign since it highlights Indonesia's top tourist destinations, including the resort island of Bali, the royal city of Yogyakarta and the capital city of Jakarta.

"[Obama's visit] brings great media value and should attract many people to visit Indonesia. Thank you Obama," Arief said in a statement sent to the Jakarta Globe on Saturday (01/07).