Riding on the Transjakarta busway

World-class cities have subway/MRT. That's what Jakarta is trying to achieve too, hence the MRT development that's currently in progress - aimed to start operation by 2018.

But while we're waiting on that, we can use the next best thing that's available - the Transjakarta busway.

They are in operations daily from 05.00 in the morning until 22.00 at night, and cover the primary (and busiest) roads in Jakarta, in hope to give Jakartans a comfy and reliable public transportation that can make them ditch their cars and/or motorcycles at home.

The first corridor (Blok M-Kota) began operation exactly 10 years ago, and along with time, the busway's grown into 12 corridors.

If you see a gray building in the middle of the road like this one below...

The typical exterior of a Transjakarta busway stop & its bus (this one is the Monas stop)

...that means you've found a busway stop. And that orange thingy in front of the stop is the bus!

Now how do we ride one?

• Find the corridor that will pass by your destination,
• buy a ticket (worth IDR 3500, or even only IDR 2000 at 05.00-07.00 in the morning),
• wait for the correct bus to arrive at your stop (at most stops, there are doors on the right and there are doors on the left - one bus going to one way and the other going to the opposite direction - make sure you choose the right bus),
• get inside the bus & enjoy the ride,
• and drop off at any stop in that corridor.

So whether it's near or far, even when you switch to other corridors midway, you pay the same price (as long as you don't exit from the busway stop).

For today's trip, I started my ride from Monas stop (the one that's right in front of Museum Gajah) and would drop off at Sarinah stop. While waiting for the bus, let's take a few photos...

The typical interior of a Transjakarta busway stop: there's a vending machine, a TV, and chairs to wait for the bus

Panoramic view of the interior of a Transjakarta busway stop

After waiting for a few minutes, finally my bus came. But dang! It was 12 o'clock at noon and that means peak hours...

Packed & packed! A view inside a Transjakarta bus during peak hours

During morning (when people go to work), noon (when people go out for lunch), or late afternoon (when people go home from work), expect the kind of view like the above photo...

People will pack inside the bus, the Air Conditioner won't feel cold anymore (even if it's on), and BEWARE of pickpockets... ALWAYS keep your wallets safe and hold your bags on your chest. Even if you wear a backpack (like me) - switch your backpack into a frontpack when you're inside the bus. Better safe than sorry.

Yes, be cautious for bad people, but still - enjoy the ride and enjoy the view of the busy city from Jakarta's (current) signature public transportation.

And remember, just like any other good public transportation: no food or smoking inside the bus please! And do give up your seats for the elders, disabled, or pregnant women. God bless you! Enjoy the ride!

-redPacker

Now where should we have lunch?

It was almost midday - the sun had been shining hot and I chose to explore a memorial park-slash-outdoor museum at this time and heat. Smart.

Of course I got hungry afterwards!

Now I really needed a place with food and Air Conditioner...

To go out well with the day's theme on historical landmarks, how about having lunch in a place that also had historical value?

And I knew exactly the place for that!

The place was around 3 blocks away from Museum Taman Prasasti. Well I could've walked there if I hadn't been this heated and hungry. But with this condition...

Let's take the busway (Transjakarta) then!

Hop on to the next post to read more about the pride of Jakarta's public transportation (a title it will hold for another few years, perhaps until the MRT is fully operational in this city).

-redPacker

[JKT #2] Museum Taman Prasasti (Inscription Park Museum) - USEFUL INFO

Panoramic view of the tombs (and the angels) in Museum Taman Prasasti

Interested in visiting Museum Taman Prasasti? Here are a few info that will be useful in planning your trip:

Where is it?

• Address: Jalan Tanah Abang I No. 1, Kelurahan Petojo Selatan, Kecamatan Gambir, Central Jakarta
• Nearest Transjakarta (busway) stop: MONAS (corridor 1: Blok M-Kota, or corridor 2: Harmoni-Pulo Gadung), or PETOJO (corridor 8: Lebak Bulus-Harmoni).

The location of Museum Taman Prasasti & its nearest busway stops: Monas (left map) & Petojo (right map)

When is it open?

• Opening days: Tuesdays-Sundays (except on public holiday)
• Opening hours: 09.00-15.00

How much is the entrance fee?

• IDR 5000 (adults), kids & college students get cheaper rates.

Can we take photos/videos?

• YES.

Are there any guided tours?

• Nothing official, but you can ask a museum staff to give you a tour. As long as he's not busy, he'd be happy to guide you.

Anything else for consideration?

• Although it's a cemetery, it wasn't scary at all. When I visited it, I was literally the only visitor around... There was a cat and 3 museum staff, and that was it. But I survived and enjoyed it very much.
• So if you heard any not-so-positive rumors about this place... Don't take it seriously and please, reserve your judgments until after you've visited the place.

If there's anything else you'd like to know, post it on the comment box or tweet me at @redpacker101. I'll help in any way I can.

Enjoy the trip to the oldest cemetery park in Indonesia! :)

-redPacker

[JKT #2] Museum Taman Prasasti (Inscription Park Museum) - PART 2

...For the 'park' assumption, I was right - it was totally outdoor with the form of a memorial park.

As for the 'prasasti' assumption...

• Don't even think to find a prasasti like Mulawarman, Talang Tuo, or Tugu - like the ones in Museum Gajah. Museum Taman Prasasti is actually a cemetery.
• And not just a regular cemetery - it's a Dutch colonial era-cemetery that's been around since more than 200 years ago.
• AND it's one of the oldest modern cemeteries in the world (if not the oldest), on par with those (more) well-known old cemetery parks in France or USA.

Say what now?!

So it really does have the Angels and Demons-slash-Ravenswood vibe...

Flash-forward to until after I recovered from a moment of awe, I bought the ticket (worth IDR 5000, by the way) and chatted with the museum staff.

And more knowledge to come:

• The cemetery was officially opened in 1797 - hence the title of 'one of the oldest modern cemeteries in the world'. Some even say that it's the oldest modern cemetery in the world.
• It was originally established to bury Dutch noblemen and high-ranking officials in Batavia (the Dutch colonial name for Jakarta), but along with time it was also used to bury other foreigners (e.g. Olivie Raffles - the wife of the famous Stamford Raffles) and even Indonesians (e.g. the famous activist who died young - Soe Hok Gie).
• The cemetery was closed in 1975, and was officially opened as a museum in 1977.

So what sets this cemetery apart, that made the government feel the needs to make it a museum?

Here are some photos and you can see (and judge) for yourself...

Angels guarding the tombs

The tomb of Indonesian activist Soe Hok Gie (at the rightmost of the photo)

A beautiful statue-tomb of a Batavian pastor

There's even a Japanese tomb - it's of the soldiers who died fighting the Allies during World War 2

Panoramic view of the tombs (and the angels) in Museum Taman Prasasti

Where else in Jakarta can you find a cemetery as beautiful as this? Hell, I thought I could only find cemeteries like this in Europe or America. But there's one right here in the middle of the city!

So come explore and enjoy it to the max :)

-redPacker

[JKT #2] Museum Taman Prasasti (Inscription Park Museum) - PART 1

The clock was showing 10.30 in the morning - until less than half an hour ago it had been raining - luckily when I got out of Museum Gajah, it had almost stopped. And when I arrived in front of Museum Taman Prasasti, the sun had been shining again.

If you see a white building in this shape...

Museum Taman Prasasti as seen from Jalan Tanah Abang 1

...that means you've reached the museum too!

Different from Museum Gajah or Monas, I've never previously been to Museum Taman Prasasti, and in fact I wasn't familiar with this museum at all - apart from its name and its location.

I assumed I know what's inside it: as the museum's name uses the word 'prasasti' (meaning 'writings in stone', or kind of), I assumed the museum contains a lot of prasasti like in Museum Gajah, but perhaps the collection is more varied as it focuses on prasasti only (as opposed to Museum Gajah which contains a wide variety of artifacts - not only prasasti).

Aand my second assumption is that the museum would be more outdoor-sy, as it uses the word 'taman' (meaning 'park').

Fueled with these two (shallow) assumptions, I walked closer towards the museum...

...and when I entered the front yard, I saw this on my right side:

A Dutch colonial cannon in the front yard of Museum Taman Prasasti

But when I turned to the left...

The museum sign in the front yard of Museum Taman Prasasti

...I thought "Ha? Why these statues have the whole Angels and Demons-slash-Ravenswood vibe in them?" They totally didn't fit the 'prasasti' stereotype that I had in mind.

A bit confused, but I continued anyway to the main door, and got a glimpse of what's actually inside the museum.

And guess what it is?

-redPacker

Otw to Museum Taman Prasasti (Inscription Park Museum)

When I was chatting with one of the staff in Museum Gajah, I told him that my next destination after Museum Gajah would be Monas. It was then when I got the info: that the elevator to the top of Monas was currently being repaired, and that I'd still be able to explore the museum at the bottom of Monas, but hey, the Monas experience wouldn't be complete without getting to the top of it and enjoy the view of Jakarta from above, right?

Thanks to the staff who informed me on this update, I'll delay my trip to Monas until after the elevator's running again. I've been to Monas anyway (although just like my previous trip to Museum Gajah - it was years and years ago).

So then I decided to explore another museum in the nearby area - Museum Taman Prasasti (Inscription Park Museum). Although it's called a museum, it's actually more of a memorial park. You'll find out what I mean when we get there.

So how do we get there?

From Museum Gajah, I walked to the north along Jalan Medan Merdeka Barat, passing by (in order of nearest-farthest to Museum Gajah)...

Kementerian Komunikasi & Informatika (Kemkominfo) / Ministry of Communication & Information

Kementerian Perhubungan (Kemhub) / Ministry of Transportation

Kementerian Koordinator Bidang Perekonomian / Coordinating Ministry of Economy

Mahkamah Konstitusi / Constitutional Court

Radio Republik Indonesia (RRI) / Radio of the Republic of Indonesia

Kementerian Koordinator Bidang Kesejahteraan Rakyat (Kemko Kesra) / Coordinating Ministry of People's Welfare

Yes, these are all active government offices. You'll find a lot more around the area, as central Jakarta (especially the area around Monas) is like the Washington, DC of Indonesia.

After passing by Kemko Kesra, I reached the end of Jalan Medan Merdeka Barat. From here, turn left towards Jalan Tanah Abang 1 and you'll see Museum Taman Prasasti in a few minutes.

Ready to explore the next destination? Let's hit it!

-redPacker

[JKT #1] Museum Nasional / Museum Gajah (National Museum of Indonesia) - USEFUL INFO

Panoramic view of arca park in the middle of the original building of Museum Nasional / Museum Gajah

Interested in visiting Museum Nasional / Museum Gajah? Here are a few info that will be useful in planning your trip:

Where is it?

• Address: Jalan Medan Merdeka Barat No. 12, Kelurahan Gambir, Kecamatan Gambir, Central Jakarta
• Nearest Transjakarta (busway) stop: MONAS (corridor 1: Blok M-Kota, or corridor 2: Harmoni-Pulo Gadung). The museum is right next to the busway stop.

The location of Museum Nasional / Museum Gajah & its nearest busway stop (Monas)

When is it open?

• Opening days: Tuesdays-Sundays (except on public holiday)
• Opening hours: 08.00-16.00 (Tuesdays-Thursdays & Sundays), 08.00-11.30 & 13.00-16.00 (Fridays), 08.00-17.00 (Saturdays)

How much is the entrance fee?

• Indonesians: IDR 5000 (adults), IDR 2000 (kids)
• Foreigners: IDR 10.000 (adults & kids)

Can we take photos/videos?

• YES, except on the 4th floor of Gedung Arca (the new/additional building).

Are there any guided tours?

• YES (as we can see on the photo below), and it's free!
• The scheduled guided tours are available in 4 languages.
• Tours in other schedule and/or languages are available on request.

The free guided tours schedule of Museum Nasional / Museum Gajah

If there's anything else you'd like to know, post it on the comment box or tweet me at @redpacker101. I'll help in any way I can.

Enjoy the trip to the National Museum of Indonesia! :)

-redPacker

[JKT #1] Museum Nasional / Museum Gajah (National Museum of Indonesia) - PART 2

Done exploring the front side of Museum Gajah, it was around 8.30am... (and still) thinking: "The museum's not open yet." But hey, I'll go to the front counter anyway to make sure the museum's gonna be open today (just in case).

So I went to the front counter (which is located behind the elephant statue, inside the original building), and there was a staff standing by there. I asked him "The museum's gonna be open today, right?" and then he grinned and replied proudly "We're already open, Miss."

And cue to a signboard behind him...

The opening hours & entrance fee details of Museum Nasional / Museum Gajah

Not much I could say really, other than "Oooooow." #enlightenedmoment

Turns out the museum opens at 8am. Well, what's better than a bit of positive surprise, right? Hehehe. But still, #willdoresearchmorethoroughlynexttime

So I bought a ticket, worth IDR 5000. It's less than a dollar! Only about USD 50 cent, give or take. Although for foreigners it's IDR 10.000, or around a dollar... Still, very VERY cheap compared to most museum entrance fees in other countries, right? (foreigners who happen to read this post will mostly agree with me, hehe)

Already got the ticket, already got the museum brochure... so the next thing I wanted to know was "Can we take photos inside the museum?"

...and the staff said yes!*

Yeah, now let's go explore the inside of Museum Gajah!

Actually I've been to Museum Gajah before, but it was waaay back when I was a kid, perhaps around 15 years ago. Gedung Arca didn't exist yet, and all that I remember from the original building was that there were a lot (and I really mean a lot) of arca (stone statues/sculptures) in the museum.

But hey, Museum Gajah is not only about arca. They have a bunch of other artifacts and the most comprehensive collection of Indonesian history and heritage - which is why if you want to learn all about Indonesia in one place, this is one of the most important places to visit. They're not called the National Museum for nothing, guys.

So how many areas can we explore inside the museum?

In the original building, we have the whole floor that covers things like:

• Indonesian ethnography (showcasing the diverse and rich heritage of Indonesian ethnic groups like the Javanese, the Bataks, the Balinese, the Asmats, etc).
• Foreign ceramics that were found in Indonesia.
• Countless arca (some original, some replica) in the outdoor area in the middle of the building.

In Gedung Arca, there are 4 floors that we can explore, which cover things like:

• 1st floor: Man & environment (pithecantropus erectus & other cavemen found in Indonesia, etc).
• 2nd floor: Science & technology (prasasti/stone writings, law system, astronomy, etc).
• 3rd floor: Social organization (social life in Indonesia, etc).
• 4th floor: Gold & ceramic collection (from kingdoms in Indonesia, sunken ships, etc).

Basically almost everything about Indonesian history & heritage is covered here, so take your pick and explore this museum away!

-redPacker

*except the 4th floor of Gedung Arca

[JKT #1] Museum Nasional / Museum Gajah (National Museum of Indonesia) - PART 1

So after a short walk from Markas Paspampres, I reached the end of Jalan Tanah Abang 2 and saw Monas from across the street! Okay, now let's find a zebra cross...

...or maybe not. Yet.

At the end of Jalan Tanah Abang 2, on my right is the glorious Museum Nasional (National Museum of Indonesia), or as most Indonesians (including me) also like to call it Museum Gajah (Elephant Museum), due to the presence of an elephant statue in front of the museum, that serves as its icon.

I was planning to go there after Monas, as it was still 8am and I thought Museum Gajah wasn't open yet at that time (I thought it was open at 9am). But hey, let's take some photos of the front side of the building first before crossing the street to Monas...

Gedung Arca, the additional building of Museum Nasional / Museum Gajah

Museum Gajah consists of 2 main buildings:

1. The original one is an old Dutch-style colonial building, which was erected in 1862 and established by the Dutch colonials to hold research and collection of Dutch Indies (the future Indonesia) history and heritage. It was officially open for public in 1868.
2. The new one (as we see on the photo above) is called Gedung Arca (Statue/Sculpture Building) and was added at the beginning of the 21st century. This is the building that is right at the end of Jalan Tanah Abang 2.

The original building of Museum Nasional / Museum Gajah

And here's the original building, which is already more than 150 years old and still keeps most of its original form intact. Too bad its front side is currently on renovation... but of course hopefully when it's done it will look even more gorgeous than before.

Yep that's the cute little elephant in front of the building, the one I mentioned previously. Let's take a closer look at it, shall we?

The 4 sides of the elephant statue in front of Museum Nasional / Museum Gajah

Right, this cute little elephant has been standing here since 1871 (wow, I bet its feet must've been stiff from all that standing... hehe) as a gift from the then-Thai king, Rama V, who visited the museum that year.

If we see closely below the elephant (click on the photo above to view it in full size), there's a writing on each side with different languages:

1. The front side is in Dutch (the language of the colonial government who ruled Indonesia at that time), written: Geschenk van... bla bla bla.
2. The right side is in Thai (the native language of the government who generously gave this gift to the museum).
3. The left side is in Arabic (a well-known language in Dutch Indies, as there were a lot of merchants from the Arab world, and obviously the majority of Indonesian people are also Muslims).
4. Aand the back side (AKA the butt side) is in Indonesian, written: Hadiah dari Yang Mulia (A Gift from His Majesty)... bla bla bla.

Really, the butt side? Such a way to show who was in charge and who was the oppressed at that time.

So basically we can also see a glimpse of history by looking closely at this cute elephant.

-redPacker

Passing by Markas Paspampres (HQ of Indonesian Security Service)

Okay, here goes!

For the first days of the quest, I was originally planning to explore southern Jakarta first, as they're closer to where I live (hehe).

But then last Friday morning I had to go to Slipi (in western Jakarta) due to a necessity, so I made last-minute changes and turn my course of the day to central Jakarta, which were closer to where I was that morning.

From Slipi, I ditched my car on Jalan Tanah Abang 2 and started walking from there. My first destination was supposed to be Monas (the Eiffel of Jakarta), so I needed to walk straight through that street, which would take me to Jalan Medan Merdeka Barat (from which I'd only need to cross to reach Monas).

As I was walking along Jalan Tanah Abang 2...

...I saw this building:

Markas Paspampres (Pasukan Pengamanan Presiden)

It's the headquarter of Pasukan Pengamanan Presiden (Paspampres), the Indonesian version of the US Security Service, whose main duty is to protect the President & Vice President of Indonesia (and their families), and foreign Heads of State during their time on Indonesian soil.

No wonder it's located there, as it's not too far away from Istana Merdeka, the official residence & office of the President of Indonesia, which is located on the north side of Monas.

So yeah, I'd love to come inside and explore the place, so I approached the officer who was guarding the gate...

...which was this guy who was opening the gate right here:

Markas Paspampres (Pasukan Pengamanan Presiden)

I asked him if I could explore the HQ and take some photos. He asked if I was from the press, I said nope, and basically he said that I need a permit to be able to enter the compound, and that a non-press is unlikely to get a permit.

He called the division in charge of media relations (which is called Staf Intel or the Intel Staff), and confirmed what he said to me earlier: that even a press needs to make an appointment first and won't easily get a permit, let alone a non-press like me... Hix.

Anyway, I was ready to let go of the curiosity to go inside at the moment, and set sight to continue my journey to Monas. But then a member of the Intel Staff came to the gate and the gate officer 'trasferred' me to him (thanks for that sir, I appreciate the effort).

So now I was meeting this Staf Intel officer, and once again explaining my purpose, etc. He informed me the same things that the gate officer previously told me, but then adding that it's still possible to get a permit for another day in the future. That day was just impossible for me because Paspampres was having a rehearsal for the inauguration of a new Paspampres group.

Currently Paspampres is divided into 3 groups:

1. Group A is responsible for the safety of the President and his family.
2. Group B is responsible for the safety of the Vice President and his family.
3. Group C is responsible for the safety of official guests and their families, with another part of the group is responsible for the training and development of Paspampres personnel.

Aand there's gonna be a Group D (of which that day's rehearsal was held for its inauguration), who will be responsible for the safety of ex-Presidents and ex-Vice Presidents within a certain time, as needed.

After explaining that, he asked for my contact information and we exchanged phone number (wow, a Paspampres number in my contacts) and chatted for a while, like how he was assigned in Medan before being assigned to Paspampres a few years ago, etc. (wow again - my first time having a chat with a real soldier)

So yeah, having done chatting with mr. Paspampres, I bid farewell to the soldiers I met there and continued my journey to Monas.

I didn't get to go inside that day, but I managed to know a few things I previously didn't know about Paspampres (...honestly, I didn't know anything about them other than that they protect the President & Vice President). Well it was enough new knowledge for that morning.

Here's hope for a chance to explore the HQ in another day... :)

-redPacker