Who loves taking care of birds? Well, I don’t. But I love listening to them singing. Thanks God that even though I live in a town, I can hear them singing in the morning. This time, I’d like to show you that Semarang has a market especially for those bird lovers. They can find any kinds of birds, not to mention owl (reminds me of Harry Potter’s owl). The market is called as Karimata market.
I often bike passing the place, but I don’t have enough courage to drop by since 70 percent of visitors/ shoppers are male visitors. They come from all walks of life, young and old. Actually, bird is not the only thing sold there, but there are other things: other pets (cats), birds food, birds cage, fish, plants, and some tools.
Well, if you drop by in Semarang, and love birds, you can consider dropping by at Karimata market. The place is located near Kampung Kali and the tress are always shading the location. Therefore, you don’t need to worry about the scorching sun in Semarang.
What is the special thing from Simpang Lima, especially on Sunday morning? Hmmm…. Those people who happen to drop by in Semarang must have been to this place especially on Sunday morning. Simpang liam actually is just like a common park that people can find in the heart of a city. It becomes special on Sunday morning since there are thousands of bric-a-brac sold there. ‘Awul awul’ market that’s how some people call it since the price is considered ‘awul2 or very cheap, or at least negotiable. A friend of mine who was born but dwell in upper town of Semarang has never been there was surprised to see how almost anything can be found there.
Let’s see the first seller, a cassette seller. So far, I have found at least two or three cassette sellers. They sell old cassettes, and most of them are old or second hand. People can get one for Rp. 7000-Rp.12.ooo depending on the rarity and the demand of the cassette. Once a friend told me that he got Iwan Fals—a legendary ballad singer—for more than Rp.70.000!!! From my observation, with the spread of mp3 in internet, they still get some loyal customers. I myself, used to be one of their customer.
Let’s move on to the second seller, clothes sellers. Kinds of clothes in various designs, stylish, fashionable are spread everywhere in Simpanglima. People can find outfits for babies, kids, teenagers, adults, including accessories such as slippers, shoes, belts, hair pin, head band, brooch, rubber band, necklace, rings, bling bling, glasses, hand bag for ladies, well, you name it. You can get a very great bargain as long as you can do negotiation. But, some sellers apply fixed price for their stuff. Time and place sometimes matter here. I mean, sellers apply much cheaper price for their stuff when the market is about to close, around 8.30. and the place, well, Simpanglima is very spacious so that everyone can choose their place to sell their goods. Some of them who take in the center of Simpanglima have a tendency to sell much cheaper since the place is not too strategic.
I recommend you not to have breakfast if you want to take a walk on Sunday morning in Simpanglima. Why? There are lots of food offered there. Nasi ayam, chicken satay, soto, meatball, kacang hijau, gudeg, pecel, not to mention the snacks. Hundreds of snacks can be found there. Take example: oily food (mendoan—kind of fried tempe), tahu isi, bakwan; crackers, traditional food such as leker, klepon, gethuk; even some modern food offered, too: burger. One food that can recall my memory is manisan. I don’t know what is made from, but the color looks tempting, pink, light blue and others.
Simpanglima can be a good place to increase book collection since there are some second hand books, magazines, comics. They are in an amazingly good shape. Once I got a novel that I used to read when I was kid; Noni, Famous Five, The Three Detectives, etc. some of them are used to be people’s private collection of book rental. I found people’s name on it or the address of book rental that no longer exists.
Semarang theaters are not really up to date with the latest movies. Whereas, some of Semarang people, especially youngsters are movie freaks. However, the income rates is so good that they cannot afford to buy the original DVDs. That’s why, many pirated DVDs are spread around Smpanglima. And the consumers? They are mostly youngsters and young adults. The latest movies can be sold out in hours. Mp3 CDs are the second stuff people seek. Karaoke VCD is another option. The price? People can get one for Rp. 5000 (a half dollar!)
Simpanglima on Sunday morning might be the perfect place for parents to introduce kinds of pets to their kids. I often see parents with their kids—about two to five years old—point at some pets in their cage, such as rabbits, fish, hamster, chicken, and cocoon.
Not only pets become the attraction for kids, but also kinds of playing ground with various toys to play with. Look at the pictures how kids got their great happiness when they got on them: odong2, ATV, small train, etc. Not to mention great variety of dolls, puppets, bubble soap, etc.
In brief, Simpanglima is a great place to visit for everyone. Thousands of things are offered there. Just pick one and get a good bargain…
The name ‘Sky Garden’ represents a place that is located somewhere high. That’s true since it’s located upper part of Semarang. People said that it used to function as a hotel in 1970-1980’s that had quite complete facilities: great garden, large rooms, swimming pool, and others. Years passed, this two floor building is surrounded by many new buildings that have more stylish design. It’s not clear when this place was abandoned and who supposed to be responsible for the maintenance.
Some rumors spread in Semarang public, stating that this used-to-be luxurious hotel is eerie. Some sightings are often seen there. In the former years, a private television made use of the place in its program. Scary programs were used to be popular and Sky Garden building was of course the right place to shoot. Well, if only there were people who care about some old buildings in Semarang and make a little renovation, we could preserve them to the next generation of Semarang dwellers.
Those who dwell in Semarang must be familiar with the existence of Sam Po Kong temple which is located in Gedung Batu, Simongan, western part of Semarang, Central Java. It is a Buddhist temple where Buddhists from many other places mostly come in Chinese celebrations. Among many temples in Semarang, Sam Po Kong is claimed to be the biggest in Semarang and happens to have a lot of background story.
The location to get to the place is quite is easy since it’s accessible to some public transportations. It takes only about twenty minutes from the airport. From my observation, it has been renovated a couple of times since I visited the Buddhist temple couple of times. The rules for visitors have changed, too, such as entrance ticket (I didn’t have to pay to get in) that costs Rp. 3000, the intention to go there must be certain: for touring or worshipping, touring tourists are not allowed to get in to explore, tourists who worship will have to buy a box of incense that costs Rp. 10.000. Therefore, I can recommend you who want to explore and want to get the great angles to take pictures, just have worship as your intention and pay for at least one dollar. You can be satisfied both for great pictures and exploration; even though you are not a Buddhist (you can try to find to know your prophecy done by a local oracle)
As I mentioned earlier that the temple has a lot of background story, not only the temple itself that has many interesting parts but also the founder, Admiral Cheng Ho. Cheng Ho was the first Chinese Muslim who transited in Semarang coast in 14th The Cheng Ho’s transit seemed to give a great influence to the people who lived around the place. Later after he left, the cave was buried due to landslide that happened in 1704. The local people then dug the place and established altar to respect the Muslim Admiral, and built Cheng Ho statue and his followers. The place then turned to be a place for fortune telling using cards. century. At first, the temple was just a cave that was used as altar for worshipping for this Persian born Commander and his followers.
The building has many interesting parts that you can feel as if you were in China. An open veranda will welcome as soon as you get in. the place is used for those who want to take pictures wearing Chinese outfit. There are various models that visitors can choose, say from the serial martial art Mandarin movies, including the weapons and hair accessories, to Queen and Emperor clothes are available there. Well, if you used to be a big fan of Andy Lau, Felix Wong, and Tony Leung who skyrocketed with Chin Yung’s trilogy—The Legend of Condor Heroes, The Return of Condor Heroes and Heaven Sword and Dragon Sabre—you can just pay Rp. 75.000 to rent the outfits and take pictures. Wearing Chinese outfit and temple as the background of the pictures will be a perfect combination. You don’t need to go to Shanghai to get the sense of China.
The most of the temple is decorated with dragon reliefs with red and yellow as the main color of the entire temple. Some statues that represent Cheng Ho’s followers are standing with colorful outfits, expressions and actions. Mostly they are ready with their weapons, sword, spear, bludgeon, etc. Lampions in red are the main ceiling decorations in various sizes. Not to mention the candles that are written names of donators.
There are mainly seven separated big temples, but visitors can easily see four of them from the entrance, namely The Temple of Sea Goddess, The temple of Earth God, Kyai Juru Mudi Temple and the biggest is Sam Po Kong temple. The first temple, The Temple of Sea Goddess is being renovated. The second one, The Temple of Earth God is place where people can ask their prophecy. Standing in front of the temple are a couple of guards. There are two devils standing, guarding Kyai Juru Mudi temple (so sorry, I forget the philosophy of the two devils here). The three other temples are Kyai Jangkar Temple, Kyai Tumpeng temple, and Kyai Tjanduk Bumi temple. The places of the three temples appear isolated so that only few visitors go there.
The memorable cave is located behind the four main temples that has been renovated. On the wall, written relief in three languages, Chinese, Indonesian and English. The relief can tell more than words that bring people to Cheng Ho’s experience in the past.
Another interesting thing you can do here is finding your luck in the future. Buying incense for Rp. 10.000 can be a perfect reason for people who don’t seem to worship in this place since they have to deal with many questions by the guards. Female Muslims wearing Muslim headdress are allowed to go in. For those who are not Buddhist don’t need to worry for doing ritual and pray since all the things can be represented by Biokong. What people do is just buy the incense and give it to the Biokong who will pray and do ritual for them. The ritual is done inside and outside the temple. Later the Biokong will explain anything written in the paper as the future prediction.
Well, overall, Sam Po Kong temple is a great place to visit for those who drop by in Semarang. Chinese panorama spread as soon as people pass the temple. All religion followers are treated similarly as long as they know the ‘trick’ to get in. Enjoy.
I have lived nearby the canal since I was in the third grade of Elementary school. So far, my housing complex has been flooded once in 1981 when the dam was broken. There were a lot of victims. Not to mention some desperate people used the strong wave to commit suicide. From my experience, I saw two crowds standing next to the flood plain watching the SAR evacuated the ceased body. During the rainy season, I can also find some people sitting on their motor bike or standing, enjoying the strong wave that looks so scary. In dry season, I sometimes saw some kids make use of the dry surface to play football.
The canal is strategically located that many people—mostly from out of town—use the flood plain to build houses that later are used for business; furniture, plants sellers, food stalls, garage, etc. some of them even cut trees for building their business places. Well, it’s indeed strategic for business on the contrary they don’t care about their own and others’ safety from flood.
Starting last year, the local government tried to normalize the use of the flood plain and removed the sellers by relocating them in different places. Some agree with some conditions—they get their equal indemnity, another strategic place—by the time the local government removes them. The normalization intended by the government is the aim of establishing Jatibarang reservoir by the help of Japan Bank for International Cooperation (JBIC) which was intended to start in October 2009. If everything goes well as planned, the project will cost Rp. 237,7 billion. The project’s purpose is not only for people’s safety but also to build a beautiful place for everyone along the flood plain. From information I got, the local government intends to make it as a place for familiesto spend their leisure time together. Let’s wait and see.
The word Baitur is from Arabic language, meaning House—Bait, Rahman is from one of Allah Almighty’s characters, meaning The Caring. This mosque has a lot of histories from the very first time it was established. It was in 1958 when Candi Mosque Foundation proposed an appeal to establish a great mosque in Central Java. The foundation proposed Pancasila square as the selected location. Later in April 30 1963, the appeal was approved by Central Java governor Moechtar. The process of establishing the mosque was broken off due to Communist Party rebellion in 1965.
The process of building the great mosque continued three years later after the rebellion. In 1968, Candi mosque Foundation turned to be Baiturrahman Mosque Foundation. As soon as the stake completed, it was officially launched on February 27, 1969. But the problem was still there, obstructed the construction of the feather of the Semarang people’s cap. Due to financial problem, the construction was put off on July 7, 1973. the local government finally appointed Central Java Development Inc to finish the project. The development was finally completed and officially launched by Mr. Soeharto, the second president of Indonesia on December 15, 1974.
The form of the mosque is like an open structure in front of Java mansion—mostly called as pendopo in Javanese. At the top of the storey is used for female congregation with 500 people available. Meanwhile, the male congregation is put under the storey with 2500 people capacity. The lower storey is commonly used for social benefits such as wedding hall, meeting hall, library, and office.
Additional building, tower, was established in 1985, such as elementary school, kindergarten school, and Indonesian Council of Religious Scholars office. These days, the mosque was surrounded by secular buildings, such as hotel, malls, skyscraper building and theater. A gossip was once heard that the mosque would be relocated to another location, but it’s still there, gracefully dashing unmoved.
Writers' note:
The picture was taken in January 1, 2010. It was Friday morning and there were a lot of street bendors offering their goods in front of Baiturrahman mosque. The crowded situation is common on Sunday morning or any other public holidays.
Tugu Muda or Youth Monument is a five-angle-longitudinal plane through the center. The monument consists of 2 parts; they are the base and the head. Relief was carved along the base. To make it more impressive, water reservoir and Greenery Park are put around the stone-made monument. Tugumuda is located in the hart of Semarang, the capital city of Central Java, surrounded by prominent buildings, such as Lawang Sewu (the Netherlands relic), Governor Official Residence, Manggala Bakti Museum and Catholic Cathedral.
The idea of founding this monument is to commemorate Five-Day-Battle happening in Semarang. October 28, 1945, Central Java Governor, Mr. Wongsonegoro launched the foundation stone in the target place which was next to the town square. However, Allied and Japanese Forces attacked in November 1945, the project was cancelled. In 1949, Indonesian Youth Corporation (Badan Koordinasi Pemuda Indonesia/ BKPI) seized the initiative to continue the project. Due to the fund problem, the idea was again unfinished. In 1951, Semarang Mayor, Hadi Soebeno Sosro Wedoyo formed Tugu Muda committee. This time, the target location to build the monument was where Tugu Muda is now located.
Salim was the one who designed the monument, and Hendro, an artist, was responsible for the relief. The material—the stone—was imported from Kaliurang, Yogyakarta and Paker. Boediono, the Central Java Governor launched the foundation stone in November 10, 1951. The official announcement was authenticated by the first President of Indonesia, Soekarno in May 20, 1953 when Indonesian people commemorated The Awakening Day. There have been some renovations done by the local government, such as park, water reservoir and fountain.
The local government made the monument more attractive by placing some fountains around the pond with more or less 5 meter height. That’s why, it looks so exotic that attract the people to drop by, especially those who are passing Semarang to take some pictures. Some months ago, from the writer’s notification, there were a lot of vehicles were parked around the monument that blocked the traffic. It made the police regulate the visitors’ parking.
Writer's note: Some information is taken from the following link
Being occupied by Dutch for hundred years, Indonesian people still had difficulty to pronounce Dutch language. We can see it from the name of a bridge located close to Johar traditional market. The bridge is called “brug” which means bridge in Dutch. Since Indonesian people find it difficult to pronounce ‘brug’, so they modify it into ‘berok’. Therefore, the name of the bridge is Jembatan Berok. Jembatan itself in Indonesian means bridge. Those people who understand the meaning of it would find it funny.
The bridge links Pemuda street into Mpu Tantular street formerly called as Gouvernementsbrug. The location was located in west gate or gouvernementsort Vijfhoek fortress.
The fortress was once built in the range of Oud standt (OldTown) and Bodjong (present called as Pemuda). The fortress was reconstructed in 1842, while the bridge remains there as public traffic lane.
Formerly the bridge was constructed made of wood with simple construction. But then there was another permanent reconstruction. The bridge was rebuilt by cement. In 2009, from my point of view, there is another construction into more permanent, large enough for vehicles to pass by.
Notes: for some people who live near by the bridge, or whose jobs location bear by the bridge, they mostly make use of river under the bridge for daily use, such as wee wee or loosen the bowels (poo)
