>> karimunjawa <<

We just back from our memorable hols in karimunjawa [taken from javanese lingo ‘kremun-kremun saka jawa’ or the shadow image from the very far away distance of java mainland] and want to share our experience to all of you. hoping can give some valuable infos.

(c) ukirsari

– stand from 27 islands, the karimun jawa archipelago included in karimun jawa national park [sea marine life]. it’s like a hidden treasure for those who loves marine life. we can find protected coral reefs [very colourful plateaus and plains in deep and shallow waters], secluded and tranquil white beaches [seems no-one there before us ;)], pelican and hornbill, seagrass and kinds of sea creatures, from crabs, anchovy, spiky ones ‘duri babi’, starfish, sharks, stingray, jellyfish, red snappers, etc.

– several nice small-tiny islands we’d been there were pulau burung [bird conservatory], pulau galeang, pulau menjangan besar, pulau menjangan kecil, pulau cemara besar, pulau cemara kecil also ujung gelam [the extension of karimun jawa besar] for swimming and snorkeling.

– if you like to stay at the mainland, in karimun besar island, there are many local guest houses along the way from harbour to direction ujung gelam.

– if you like to try something different like sea gypsy 😉 as we did, there are several floating wooden cabins available in the heart of the sea with pulau karimun besar as entry point. our contact is pak joko (62-297) 312185. beside room, he provided meals and renting boat plus crew, approximately idr 300,000/day. we enjoyed his place very much since there’s no tv and karaoke and whenever asked to switch-off the electricity, nightfall feel so glittering under the moonlight and stars. plus the sounds from waves, sea breeze and swells [no wonder, i am stil in post holiday blues whenever write about this!!!!!!]

(c) ukirsari

– for getting there and away, there are 2 entry points: from semarang [tanjung mas harbour] or jepara [pantai kartini harbour]. here i included the time schedule and subject maybe change without notification. check it out in advance before your departure:

– jepara – karimun jawa: monday and wednesday [kmp], 09.00 am
– karimun jawa – semarang: sunday [kmc], 02.00 pm
– karimun jawa – jepara: thursday [kmp], 09.00 am
– semarang – karimun jawa: monday and saturday [kmc] 09.00 am
– marks:
a. kmc >> kapal motor cepat [named kartini, appr. 3 hours sailing]
idr 95,000/VIP/person/one way
idr 75,000/business/person/one way
b. kmp >> kapal motor perintis [named muria, appr. 5 hours sailing]
idr 25,000/VIP/person/one way
idr 16,500/open deck/person/one way

we’d been in semarang

… semarang kaline banjir, wis sumelang ra dipikir. jangkrik upa saba nang tangga. mlumpate tengah jogan. wis watake priya, jare ngaku setya, tekan dalan selewengan.

that’s a folksong from semarang in kroncong genre of music. can be translated as …. “semarang, known as the city next to banjir kanaal [the main river which divided this city into two part]. if you decided to be relax, just relax, pal. just like grasshopper flying to the stairs. then jump to the floor. you should now about guys’ world …. promises that they’re loyal towards girls. but in the meantime doing affair” [hahahhaha >> what a clever lyrics ever 😉 ]

i like semarang very much, especially the old quarter which known as dutch quarter. from the old train station, to ciggy’s manufacturer, from the church saint emmanuel to the post office and several gothic and art deco buildings. my choice, mostly goes to …. the haunted lawang sewu.

said as one of the most beautiful buildings in semarang, this lawang sewu or in english known as thousand doors has a long history. used as headquarter of railway company; nederlandsch indische spoorweg maatschappij

with the architects jacob klinkhamer and bj queendag, the function changed into kantor jawatan keretaapi indonesia [now known as pt kereta api indonesia] after second aggression of the dutch. then became military headquater of military district of central java.

during second world war, in 5 days battle of semarang or in a heroic way we’re indonesian proudly address it as pertempuran lima hari di semarang, this building became a basecamp of angkatan muda kereta api in the fighting against japanese kempetai and kido

this building had underground prisons, underground tunnels, a legend told someone [or more than one 🙂 ] can be confused to find the way out after pass the entrance of lawang sewu. since so many doors there in similar shape [to make it easier, read the signboard ‘ingang’ whenever you’re there].

GPIB St Emmanuel Blenduk

(c) ukirsari

after lawang sewu, we’re heading to the dutch quarter in the heart of semarang. from tawang train station, artificial lake and dam [made since dutch occupation, long long time ago, before first world war] and here we are …. many old buildings standing still. without a word, they tell about a long history ….

semarang has delicious food ….

after learning the history, shouldn’t be missed about semarang’s delicacies. so rich in its taste, since chinese culinary also gave accentuation in local food. like lunpia [chinese spring rolls], wingko babat [sticky rice with coconut] or bakmoi [mixed pork or chicken with shrimps and tofu in light soup, served with steam rice].

further along from dutch quarter, we love to have dinner at toko oen. the oldest european style resto in semarang, owned by mr and mrs oen [they also have a branch at malang, east java and still open nowadays].

(c) ukirsari

toko oen’s wiener schnitzel [nick’s fave] was superb, same as tenderloin nz steak [my fave]. also domino ice cream [nick’s] and tutty frutty ice cream [mine].