Prawn City: Here We Come
CIREBON: JAKARTA WEEKEND ESCAPE
Here’s a tip from an expert: to successfully live in Jakarta (Indonesia‘s teeming capital city with a population easily in excess of 10 million) without developing a crippling case of cabin fever, you have to make it a rule to get away, regularly. A good rule of thumb is to leave the “Big Durian” behind for at least one, or preferably two, weekends a month.
Anyer and Pelabuhan Ratu, both respectable weekend escapes, tend to get crowded. So here’s one you mightn’t have considered yet, Cirebon. What’s Cirebon got to offer, you ask? In a nutshell, it’s close, the seafood is fantastic, it’s uncrowded with a leisurely provincial pace, it’s picturesque with West Java’s highest peak, Mt Ciremai, and there’s a volcanic hot water spa to ease away those city aches and pains …doesn’t sound too bad does it?
The three hour train ride is absolutely painless. Departing from Gambir station in Central Jakarta, make sure you get an Eksekutif Class ticket with airconditioning and the extra comfy seats. There are four departure times per day. Once you leave behind the crusty urban sprawl of Jakarta, the train makes its way swiftly through gently waving seas of pea-green rice paddies. As you get closer to Cirebon the hulking mass of Mt Ciremai looms large in the background. occasionally silhouetting a farmer bent at his work in the fields, creating fleeting picture perfect moments.
Arriving at Cirebon station there is a sudden flurry of activity as people grab their belongings and shove each other with impunity as they exit the carriage. Outside the station there should be two men holding signs, one for the Grage (pronounced “Gragey”) Sangkan Hotel Spa, the other for the Santika Hotel. Choose one of these men and grab him, do not let go and do not be distracted by the hordes of “becak” (bicycle taxi) drivers foaming at the mouth and offering their services.
Grage Sangkan Spa Resort
Grage Sangkan combines a hot spring spa with a 68-room (three/four-star-equivalent hotel). Facilities include Cirebon’s only 25m Olympic standard swimming pool, tennis court, basic fitness centre, restaurant, massage and other pampering services like facials, manicures and pedicures.
ONCE YOU LEAVE BEHIND THE CRUSTY URBAN SPRAWL OF JAKARTA, THE TRAIN MAKES ITS WAY SWIFTLY TROUGH GENTLY WAVING SEAS OF RICE PADDIES
Grage has the kind of family atmosphere where you can let the kids go wild at the pool. while you melt your spine and other aching body parts in the high pressure jet-spa pool with Grage’s signature sodium-rich volcanic hot-spring water. The people at Grage claim that their’s is one of only two real” spas in Indonesia. The other being Bali’s Thalasso. By “real” they mean where the guests actually immerse themselves into nealth-giving waters. The healing effects can help for any number of ailments and conditions including rheumatism, high blood pressure, high cholesterol and glucose imbalance. It can also help to improve circulation, reduce weight, eliminate cellulite and rejuvenate skin cells. The temperature of the water is a pleasant 36-38 degrees celsius, whereas the colour of the water is not so pleasant, with a kind of deep green primordial swamp hue. But then you’re here for your health, so just close your eyes and jump in. The spa-pool has various jets aimed at different angles and heights. For example there’s one that shoots up from the floor at the soles of your feet. Then there’s one that 3oes your ankles, another for your knees and so on. You spend about five minutes at each jet-stage and then move onto the next one. It finishes up with a geyser that massages your neck and shoulders. The whole process takes around an hour and there are always pleasantly obsequious staff on hand to fetch you a towel or a cool mineral water. By the time you’re done, your body has taken on the colour and consistency of red jelly, but it is supremely relaxing. Time to tell the kids to go for another swim in the pool and take a much-deserved nap. When you wake up you’ll feel brand new.
The hotel’s accommodation is divided into seven different categories of rooms and suites. Prices vary from just Rp215,000 for a standard room (non-AC) to Rp2.600.000 for the Royal Suite (the same one President Megawati stayed in when she visited). One note: the rooms near the pool can get pretty noisy, but the recently completed Superior rooms towards the back of the property are quieter with pleasant views of the vegetable gardens and rice paddies beyond. There are also convention facilities and the restaurant does a surprisingly good hot-stone steak, at least for a restaurant with laminated place mats and a big screen karaoke machine.
Side Trips
If you want to see some of the sights that Kuningan and Cirebon have to offer, the good people at Grage will be only too happy to help out organizing a tour. For a taste of traditional “kampung” life you can take the Village walk tour and get a glimpse of how the locals live. For a more religious diversion, the “Patung Maria” or Statue of Mary is an especially touching shrine to the virgin Mary. It also has a series of carved stone tablets that show the final scenes of the life of Christ, spaced out along a shady winding mountain path. At the summit of the hill is a life size statue of Christ on the Cross at Golgotha.
At nearby Cibulan is a set of public baths …with a difference. In the pools of clear water, swimming alongside the people, are scores of enormous fish. They don’t seem to mind their human swimming companions though and like to be hand fed.
Ascending a little way into the foothills of Mt Ciremai is perhaps one of Indonesia’s most important historical museums, Linggarjati. It was here in 1946, that the leader’s of Indonesia’s Merdeka movement, met with a delegation from Holland to hash out the details of an agreement to recognise Indonesia’s independence. The 19″ Century colonial structure was previously a hotel, and you can still see the rooms where the Dutch and Indonesian delegations stayed, as well as the room of the British mediator, Lord Killearn. Much of the furniture is still original, although you’ll need a guide to show you which is which. In the meeting room at the back, with the guide’s help, I identified and sat in, the very same chair used by Indonesia’s first President Soekarno!
The area of Plangon outside Cirebon is home to an unusual attraction. At the summit of a smallish hill is what is claimed to be the tomb of Syarief Abdurrahman, one of the original Wali songo” or nine saints who brought Islam to Indonesia in the 15″ Century. That’s not all though. Living on the wooded slopes around the tomb is a troupe of monkeys which legend says always numbers exactly 400. They move around quite fast though so counting and verifying this legend may prove difficult. Unfortunately the whole area is in desperate need of a good clean up. Expect the usual supplicants and “guides” with their “fees”.
In Town
The Cirebon culture is an interesting mix of Javanese and Sundanese. People from Cirebon have a proud sense of identity and belonging in the “kota udang” or Prawn City. As the name suggests, Cirebon is famous for its seafood which is both plentiful and fresh. A good place to sample the seafood, and a comfortable place to stay, is the Hotel Santika Cirebon, which has regular seafood barbecues and buffets in the gardens. It’s almost like being in Bali, outside near the pool with the palm trees swaying, the candlelight flickering and the band playing. And at only Rp 42,500 its fantastic value for all the grilled crab, fish, squid and crayfish that you can eat. Highly recommended.
Cirebon’s most recognizable cultural symbol is the “mega mendung” motif. Hearkening back to Cirebon’s medieval trading link with China, the mega mendung resembles a pattern of tonal blue clouds, often against a red background. It takes great skill to apply this pattern to fabric using the traditional batik waxing technique, or “batik tulis”. You can shop for mega mendung batik at Jl Panembahan just out of town. A high quality batik tulis sarong will probably cost around Rp 200,000 but you can always bargain.
Cirebon has another claim to fame. It has three, (yes three!) kratons or Royal Palaces. The usual historical intrigues, alliances and betrayals led to the creation of these courts and today each of them can still be visited. Having visited all of the them I can say that the most interesting and bar far best organised kraton for tourists is the Kasepuhan Palace. The nominal entry fee includes a guided tour with a very knowledgeable guide, who was able to explain in the minutest detail the symbolic and historical significance of every aspect of the palace and its two adjoining museums. Built in 1529. the outer palace walls are inlaid with Chinese and Dutch porcelain, plates which also date back as far as the 16th Century. Syarief Hidayatullah, one of the original wall songo became the first king of the newly-Islamic sultanate of Cirebon in 1479 and reigned until 1568 when he died at the age of 120. This kraton with its imposing terra cotta split gate is his enduring legacy. At the entrance to the palace is a stone table presented to the Sultan by Stamford Raffles in 1812 during his period as the Governor of Java.
Housed in the Royal Carriage Museum at the kraton is another of Cirebon’s most recognisable cultural icons, the Singa Barong Royal Carriage. Dating from 1549 this is the oldest carriage in Java. Mounted on four enormous spoked wooden wheels, the carriage seats just one, i.e. the sultan, and it is without doubt the most incredible whimsical contraption that I’ve ever seen. The carriage body which employs a unique hanging suspension system is carved into the shape of a mythical beast which combines the head and trunk of an elephant, representing the Hindu influence, with the horns of a Chinese dragon and the wings of in Arabic bouraq or flying horse. The animal’s hind quarters are sprinkled with diamond powder, and the fantastical creature is rearing up with a double-headed trisura (a triple pointed spear head) clasped in its trunk, its mouth open in a silent roar, wings spread like a flying pegasus.
The second, equally engaging, museum at Kasepuhan, is the Antiquities Museum, which boasts an ancient Demak pre-Islamic gamelan set dating from 1495, 16th Century Chinese cabinets, inlaid Egyptian chests, a collection of gruesome Javanese krisses and spears and several suits of 16th Century Portuguese chain mail armour.
The whole tour of the Kraton and two museums takes around one hour, and the palace is open every day from 8:00am to 4:00pm
If you still have the time and energy some other places visit in Cirebon include the other two palaces. Kecirebonan and Kanuman, the surreal Sanyurangi Caves, the grave of Gunung Jati, the Grand Mosque, the Klentheng Chinese Temple and the art deco Cirebon Town Hall building. Enjoy your trip!
Contact Accomodations:
You can book directly by our tool below (Free Comparison Hotel Rates Tool) to get at Grage Sangkan and Santika Hotels.
