About Banjarmasin

Banjarmasin (aka Bandjermasin or Bandjarmasin) is the capital of South Kalimantan, Indonesia. It is located on a delta island near the junction of the Barito and Martapura rivers. As a result, Banjarmasin is sometimes called the "River City". Its population was 625,395 at the 2010 Census. Banjarmasin, together with its neighbour city, Banjarbaru become the center of the ninth metropolitan area in Indonesia, named Banjar Bakula, which also consist of the area of Banjar Regency, Barito Kuala Regency, and Tanah Laut Regency.

Banjarmasin is served by the Syamsudin Noor Airport, located about 25 km outside the town. The town is also served by a port, named Trisakti Harbour. A fairly important deepwater port, Pelabuhan Trisakti Banjarmasin is the trade center of the Barito basin; exports include rubber, pepper, timber, petroleum, coal, gold, and diamonds. Passenger ships and ferries to and from Java also carry their operation here.

Main economic sectors in order of their contribution to Banjarmasin’s GDP (2005): transportation and communication (26.1%), processing industries (24.9%) and trade and commerce (16.5%). Main processing industries are: plywood, rattan and rubber manufacturing.

Banjarmasin's waterfront of Martapura River

The city is laced with flood-prone waterways, and many houses are built on rafts or stilts over the water. Many of such waterways are also used for travel, using relatively small rowboats (only major rivers are accessible by larger speedboats, tugboats, longboats, and barges).

The large majority of the population is Muslim (96%). Other religions include Protestants, Catholics, Hindus and Buddhists. The city is the home of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Banjarmasin.

Read the full article at Wikipedia.