Pasar Beringharjo - A good Place to buy Batik

Pasar Beringharjo is a main market at Jogjakarta. It located at Malioboro street and near north Keraton (the palace). It is located adjacent to the Vredeburg historical museum and opposite the Gedung Agung. This market is famous for batik and is one of  popular tourist destinations.   It is also a center of commerce for Jogjakarta batik products.

Pasar Beringharjo

Batik (/ˈbætɪk/ or /bəˈtiːk/; Javanese pronunciation: [ˈbateʔ]; Indonesian: [ˈbatɪk]) is a cloth that is traditionally made using a manual wax-resistdyeing technique.  Javanese traditional batik, especially from Jogyakarta and Surakarta, has notable meanings rooted to the Javanese conceptualization of the universe. Traditional colours include indigo, dark brown, and white, which represent the three major Hindu Gods (Brahmā, Vishnu, and Śiva). This is related to the fact that natural dyes are most commonly available in indigo and brown. Certain patterns can only be worn by nobility; traditionally, wider stripes or wavy lines of greater width indicated higher rank. Consequently, during Javanese ceremonies, one could determine the royal lineage of a person by the cloth he or she was wearing.

making batik 

Pasar Beringharjo has a complete collection of batik. Starting from batik sarong to blouse, shirt, pajamas, kids apparels, shorts, etc. You can find batik painted on silk too in here. The price begin from ten thousand  to million rupiah. Collection of batik sarong found on market stalls north western area. While batik clothing collection is found in almost all the western area. This area also offers other choices of clothes such as surjan, blangkon, and weaving and batik sarong. Sandals and bags are also sold at cheap prices and can be found around the western area, nearby the escalator.

The market is also a great place to hunt for antiques. Sentra selling antiques market located on the 3rd floor of the east area. You can find an old typewriter, helmet made in the 60's. On the same floor, you can hunt for quality secondhand goods if you want. Various kinds of imported used goods such as shoes, handbags, even the clothes are sold at a price much cheaper than the original price is still in good quality. Of course it takes foresight in selecting and bargaining skills.

Pasar Beringharjo -  A good Place to buy Batik

This market is also the perfect place to indulge your bud sense with traditional snacks. you can find Brem with a softer texture and Krasikan (made from rice flour, palm sugar, and crushed sesame). In the south, you will find Bakpia filled with sweetened green beans are sold warm and other tasty snacks such as hung kwe and nagasari. While the rear area generally sell durable snacks such as ting-ting (caramelized mixed nuts).

Tips:

• Some stall offer a fix price item while others you need to have a great bargaining skill to get a good price.
• If you want to know the price of something and don't know the language, just offer your calculator and the seller will enter the price.
• If you go on weekend or publich holiday and it is so crowded, try on weekday if you can or else just enjoy the crowd. 
• It's a great market, a definite must go, but needed your patience to shop
• It's an experience for sure, just make sure you keep your wallet safe 
• If you're lucky you may be approached by a person with a basket on their head offering to carry your purchases - far from being demeaning, this is how these porters earn their living.  If  you want to hire one, be sure to negotiate the price first.

Continue reading ...

Budget Hotel at Sostrowijayan Street - Jogjakarta, Indonesia

Sosrowijayan is the name of the street near the Malioboro street, this street famous for its specialty with limited buget hotel, homestay and inn, same as the Poppies Lane in Kuta, Bali, this area is frequented visited by both local and foreign backpackers.

surrounding sostrowijayan area

Sosrowijayan street is a very strategic, which is located just less than 1 mile from Train Station "Tugu", so get off the train, walk a minute, then arriving at the inn. Beside that, the place behind the crowded center of Yogyakarta, Malioboro, making Sosrowijayan more interesting place to stay.

gang sostrowijayan 

Tourist services are also easily found in Sosrowijayan. On the roadside there are many money changer, internet and telecommunication, motorbike and car rental, travel agents, and so on. When you are hungry, you can go to resto, which opened by this villagers. which serve dishes such as rice, fried noodles, fried fish, fried chicken. There are also restaurants that offer western cuisine at affordable prices.

mounth Merapi from sostrowijayan view

There are bookshops that provide used English novels and local novels. You can choose books freely while viewing contents at a glance because no plastic sealed. Although used books, the physical quality of the book is still good, so the book is still worth to be collected. The price varies, but certainly cheaper than at the bookstore.

rickshaw pullers

Please be careful of rickshaw pullers offer to drive you traveled around the city for a fee of Rp. 5000 (even less than that). Many incidents where tourists are taken around and "forced" to buy souvenirs in the shops were visited by unscrupulous rickshaw puller will get 50% commission from the transaction. Another incident was unilaterally raised rates on the move. If you experience the above incident, please ask for help on Tourism Police.



reference: http://www.yogyes.com/id/yogyakarta-tourism-object/neighborhood/sosrowijayan/ 

Continue reading ...

Rickshaw riding at Jogjakarta, Indonesia

The cycle rickshaw is a small-scale local means of transport; it is also known by a variety of other names such as bike taxi, velotaxi, pedicab, bikecab, cyclo, beca, becak, trisikad, or trishaw or, simply, rickshaw which also refers to auto rickshaws, and the, now uncommon, rickshaws pulled by a person on foot. Cycle rickshaws are human-powered, a type of tricycle designed to carry passengers in addition to the driver. They are often used on a for hire basis. Cycle rickshaws are widely used in major cities around the world, but most commonly in cities of South, Southeast and East Asia.


becak and its passangers

Cycle rickshaws in Indonesia are called becak (pronounced [ˈbetʃaʔ]. Becak were considered an icon of the capital city of Jakarta prior to its ban in the 1970s. Citing concerns of public order, the city government forbade them on the city's main streets.

Continue reading ...

Jogjakarta: Pasar Beringharjo

Pasar Beringharjo adalah pasar tradisional yang terletak di Jl. Jend A. Yani Kawasan Malioboro, Yogyakarta. Pasar ini terkenal dengan koleksi dagangan batik, baik yang berupa kain batik ataupun produk garmen batik lainnya seperti, daster, celana pendek, piyama dll.


pasar beringharjo

Lokasi pasar ini bersebelahan dengan museum sejarah Benteng Vredeburg dan berseberangan dengan Gedung Agung. Pasar ini terkenal sebagai salah satu tujuan wisata dan sekaligus merupakan pusat kegiatan perdagangan produk batik Yogyakarta.

reference: http://id.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pasar_Beringharjo

Continue reading ...

Jogjakarta: Borobudur Temple

Borobudur, or Barabudur, is a 9th-century Mahayana Buddhist Temple in Magelang, Central Java, Indonesia. The monument consists of six square platforms topped by three circular platforms, and is decorated with 2,672 relief panels and 504 Buddha statues. A main dome, located at the center of the top platform, is surrounded by 72 Buddha statues seated inside a perforated stupa.

Tourist at Borobudur Temple 

Built in the 9th century during the reign of the Sailendra Dynasty, the temple’s design in Gupta architecture reflects India's influence on the region. It also depicts the gupta style from India and shows influence of Buddhism as well as Hinduism.The monument is both a shrine to the Lord Buddha and a place for Buddhist pilgrimage. The journey for pilgrims begins at the base of the monument and follows a path around the monument and ascends to the top through three levels symbolic of Buddhist cosmology: Kāmadhātu (the world of desire), Rupadhatu (the world of forms) and Arupadhatu (the world of formlessness). The monument guides pilgrims through an extensive system of stairways and corridors with 1,460 narrative relief panels on the walls and the balustrades.

Based on evidence, Borobudur was constructed in the 9th century and abandoned following the 14th century decline of Hindu kingdoms in Java, and the Javanese conversion to Islam.

relief panels on the walls

Worldwide knowledge of its existence was sparked in 1814 by Sir Thomas Stamford Raffles, then the British ruler of Java, who was advised of its location by native Indonesians. Borobudur has since been preserved through several restorations. The largest restoration project was undertaken between 1975 and 1982 by the Indonesian government and UNESCO, following which the monument was listed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Borobudur is still used for pilgrimage; once a year Buddhists in Indonesia celebrate Vesak at the monument, and Borobudur is Indonesia's single most visited tourist attraction.

one of stupa at Borobudur

Location
Approximately 40 kilometres (25 mi) northwest of Yogyakarta and 86 kilometres (53 mi) west of Surakarta, Borobudur is located in an elevated area between two twin volcanoes, Sundoro-Sumbing and Merbabu-Merapi, and two rivers, the Progo and the Elo. According to local myth, the area known as Kedu Plain is a Javanese 'sacred' place and has been dubbed 'the garden of Java' due to its high agricultural fertility. During the restoration in the early 20th century, it was discovered that three Buddhist temples in the region, Borobudur, Pawon and Mendut, are positioned along a straight line. A ritual relationship between the three temples must have existed, although the exact ritual process is unknown.

stupa at Borobudur

Reference: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Borobudur

Continue reading ...

Jogjakarta: Alun Alun Kidul

Alun-alun (note: correct orthography hyphenated but occurs occasionally without, also found as aloen-aloen, aloon aloon, and erroneously alon-alon) is a Javanese architectural term for the large central open lawn squares common to villages, towns and cities in Indonesia.
Commonly, alun-alun in modern-day Indonesia refers only to the two large open squares of kraton palace compounds.
Each kraton has two alun-alun: the most important and northern alun-alun lor and the less important and commonly smaller southern alun-alun kidul. The court of Pakubuwana in Surakarta is unique as it incorporates the alun-alun kidul within the defensive wall of the kraton proper.

The northern alun-alun lor functioned as the primary and most official entrance to the kraton. Javanese officials and commoners alike had to dismount carriages and horses before entering the alun-alun lor to continue to the kraton. At the two centrally located holy beringin or banyan trees, officials had their payung (ceremonial parasols indicating office), placed down by their parasol valet.
Ordinary commoner Javanese seeking an audience with the Regent would be required to sit and wait under the trees waiting for an official to leave the Kraton and ask their reason for an audience. Dutch officials such as the Resident were commonly received with great ceremony to the alun-alun lor with the kraton soldiers firing three volleys, which would be answered by a twenty-one gun salute from the Dutch fortress, especially between the Yogyakarta kraton and the Dutch Fort Vredeburg^[2

There is an attraction called Masangin at Alun Alun, that is to walk passtrough between two banyan trees in the center of the Alun Alun with a black blindfolded. That said, if anyone can get through it and not oblique or hit then he will get infinite blessings. But, do not try to peek, because if you do you will go to another world, you will find the Alun Alun in a state of quiet and hard to get back to reality again.

reference: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alun-alun


 

Continue reading ...

Jogjakarta: Mount Merapi

Mount Merapi, Gunung Merapi (literally Fire Mountain in Indonesian/Javanese), is an active stratovolcano located on the border between Central Java and Yogyakarta, Indonesia. It is the most active volcano in Indonesia and has erupted regularly since 1548. It is located approximately 28 kilometres (17 mi) north of the large Yogyakarta city, and thousands of people live on the flanks of the volcano, with villages as high as 1,700 metres (5,600 ft) above sea level.

mount Merapi from kaliurang

The name Merapi could be loosely translated as 'Mountain of Fire'. The etymology of the name came from Meru-Api; from the Javanese combined words; Meru means "mountain" refer to mythical mountain of Gods in Hinduism, and api means "fire".

Continue reading ...

Jogjakarta: Parangtritis Beach

Parangtritis is a well-known beach in Yogyakarta in addition to other objects such as Samas beach, Baron, Kukup, Krakal and Glagah. Parangtritis has a unique landscape that is not found in other beach besides the big waves are also the mountains of sand around the beach, which is usually called dunes. This beach has been managed by the district government Bantul pretty well, ranging from lodging facilities and markets selling souvenirs Parangtritis

sunset at parangtritis beach

Parangwedang
In addition there are baths called Parangwedang. The story tells of water baths can cure various diseases in which skin disease because the water from the baths containing sulfur.

Continue reading ...

Jogjakarta: Tukang Jamu

Jamu (formerly Djamu) is traditional medicine in Indonesia. It is predominantly herbal medicine made from natural materials, such as parts of plants, such as roots, leaves and bark, and fruit. There is also material from the bodies of animals, such as bile of goat or alligator used. [Alligators are only native to the United States and China not Indonesia]

Tukang Jamu Gendong

In many large cities jamu herbal medicine is sold on the street by hawkers carry a refreshing drink, usually bitter but sweetened with honey.

Continue reading ...

Jalan Malioboro - a shopping street at Yogjakarta

Jalan Malioboro (English: Malioboro Street) is a major shopping street in Yogyakarta, Indonesia; the name is also used more generally for the neighborhood around the street. It lies north-south axis in the line between Yogyakarta Kraton and Mount Merapi. This is in itself is significant to many of the local population, the north south orientation between the palace and the volcano being of importance.

tourists buy batik at Malioboro street 

The street is the centre of Yogyakarta's largest tourist district surrounded with many hotels and restaurants nearby. Sidewalks on both sides of the street are crowded with small stalls selling a variety of goods. In the evening several open-air streetside restaurants, called lesehan, operate along the street. Less obvious to the tourist, but more for the local population, side streets, lanes and structures that lead on to Malioboro are as important as the street itself.

Delman waits for customers

History

The street was for many years two-way, but by the 1980s had become one way only, from the railway line (where it starts) to the south - to Beringharjo markets, where it ends. The largest, oldest Dutch era hotel, Hotel Garuda, is located on the street's northern end, on the eastern side adjacent to the railway line.

Malioboro street at daylight

It has the former Dutch era Prime Minister's complex, the kepatihan, on the eastern side. For many years in the 1980s and later, a cigarette advertisement was placed on the first building south of the railway line - or effectively the last building on Malioboro, which advertised Marlboro cigarettes, no doubt appealing to locals and foreigners who would see a pun with name of the street with a foreign product being advertised.

ricksaw  at the corner street 

It does not reach the walls or grounds of the Yogyakarta palace, as Malioboro ceases in name adjacent to the very large market Beringharjo (on the eastern side as well). From this point the street changes name to Jalan Ahmad Yani (Ahmad Yani Street) and has the former Governors residence on the western side, and the old Dutch Fort Vredeburg on the eastern side.



References: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jalan_Malioboro

Continue reading ...

Jogjakarta: Taman Sari

Taman Sari also known as Taman Sari Water Castle is a site of a former royal garden of the Sultanate of Yogyakarta. It is located about 2 km south within the grounds of the Kraton, Yogyakarta, Indonesia. Built in mid 18th century, the Taman Sari had multiple functions, such as a resting area, a workshop, a meditation area, a defense area, and a hiding place.

 Taman Sari consisted of four distinct areas: a large artificial lake with islands and pavilions located in the west, a bathing complex in the centre, a complex of pavilions and pools in the south, and a smaller lake in the east. Today only the central bathing complex is well preserved, while the other areas have been largely occupied by the Kampung Taman settlement.

 

Since 1995 the Yogyakarta Palace Complex including Taman Sari is listed as a tentative World Heritage Site.

Umbul Pasiraman bathing complex

Umbul Pasiraman, also known as Umbul Binangun or Umbul Winangun, is a bathing complex for the royal family. The bathing complex is an enclosed space surrounded by tall structures. It consists of three pools decorated with mushroom-shaped springs and large flower pots.

Taman Sari - Jogjakarta

There are two buildings in the bathing complex. The northernmost building was used as the resting place and changing room for the daughters and concubines of the sultan. On the south side of this building is a pool known as Umbul Muncar. The pool is divided into two by a central pathway (known as Blumbang Kuras) that runs east-west. The next building on the south is a building with a tower in its center. The right wing of the building was used as the sultan's changing room, the east wing was used as his resting place. The central tower was used by the sultan to observe his daughters and concubines bathing in the pool.

 

On the south of this building is the third pool that was used only by the sultan and his concubines. During its era, only females and the sultan were allowed to enter this bathing complex.

Reference: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Taman_Sari_(Yogyakarta)

Continue reading ...