In a city of over ten million people there are, of course, many fabulous sites to see and enjoyable things to do. Jakarta is the capital city of the seventeen thousand islands that make up Indonesia, and has all that a megapolis has to offer- museums, amusement parks, cultural centers, and metropolitan shopping malls. Located on the northwest corner of the island of Java, Jakarta is an exciting blend of ancient traditions and modern industry. There are over 583 languages and dialects spoken throughout the islands. My favorite way to ease into a new and unknown culture is by checking out its museums.
You can spend a pleasant day gazing at the over 100,000 cultural objects housed at the Central Museum of Jakarta. Located at JI. Merdeka Barat 12, it is right next to the National Library and its collection of more than 700,000 books. Jakarta’s central museum is one of the finest in Southeast Asia with an unrivalled collection of Indonesian artifacts, Han, Tang and Ming porcelain, as well as numerous export ceramics from China, Thailand and Vietnam. If you turn left as you enter the museum and ascend the stairs you will stumble upon the treasure room. Check out the 35kg of gold jewelry and other items (almost 70 pounds) of treasure unearthed in the 90’s by farmers. Back downstairs head through the first part of the stone sculpture garden. To your left will be the numismatic (money and heraldic items) collection. A must see is the knife money collection from 3rd century B.C. The Portuguese, Dutch, British and Japanese maintained colonies from the 16th century on and issued their own currencies- one reason for the almost 18,000 objects preserved in the numismatic collection alone.
For further exploration of Jakarta’s colonial heritage check out the Maritime Museum at the northern end of Jakarta in Sunda Kelapa, the old Dutch port. You can catch a glimpse of the many wooden Pinisi boats on your way to the museum at JI. Pasar Ikan, Penjaringan, North Jakarta. Be careful not to miss it- the entrance to the museum is unmarked. The museum is housed inside the old Dutch East India Company warehouses next to the old harbormasters tower and is chalk full of miniature and even some life-size models of ships harking back to an age of pirates and colonial trade. Learn about the old port city of Batavia, the origin of the modern Jakarta we experience today.
If you want to shop, and shop cheap, check out the oldest market in Jakarta, Pasar Baru, where you will glimpse some of the best textiles in Indonesia. Everything is 30% cheaper than the malls and you can duck into the Buddhist temple or take in the scents of the historical spice trade at an Indian spice shop. No stay in Jakarta is complete without seeing the diversity of flora and fauna of Indonesia. You can go to the Rangunan Zoo, a short drive north, or you can go all out and take a two hours car trip to Mount Gede Pangrango National Park. The park contains over 200 species of Orchids alone, almost half of the identified species on the island of Java. The volcano is still active so check before you run off to see the real site to see in Indonesia.
