Jakarta

Most American travelers come to Jakarta en route to somewhere else in Indonesia (not least because there is no airport hotel of note). The city is primarily a political center and a business destination. Situated at the northwest corner of the island of Java, Indonesia's capital began as a 12th-century port that served the Kingdom of Sunda. Today, it is a massive, congested and vibrant metropolis. Measures are being taken to green the city and to ameliorate its chronic air pollution, as well as to mitigate the concrete sprawl. Successive eras of colonial rule, from Portuguese through Dutch, have left an eclectic physical and cultural landscape. The Kota area in the north has the highest concentration of colonial architecture. In the Old Batavia district, a restoration effort has turned a colonial Portuguese church and warehouse into living museums. But, overall, modern high-rise towers dominate the city’s skyline.