Last week my sister Akita and I went on a cheeky little trip to Semarang for our cousin’s wedding. Since the wedding was on Friday night, we decided to depart on Thursday and extended the trip until Sunday to pay Yogyakarta a visit as well. What could’ve simply been a two-day trip ended up lasting around 4-5 days. While we would be attending a family event, my sister and I planned an entirely independent itinerary the whole time we were there. We even stayed at a hotel in the Kota Lama area, since our step grandmother’s house wasn’t able to accommodate us anymore. Needless to say, this gave us the opportunity to really explore the area—which I heard has been revitalised since the last time we were here. I was so giddy to explore Kota Lama! This is the story of what we went up to then.
Last week my sister Akita and I went on a cheeky little trip to Semarang for our cousin’s wedding. Since the wedding was on Friday night, we decided to depart on Thursday and extended the trip until Sunday to pay Yogyakarta a visit as well. What could’ve simply been a two-day trip ended up lasting around 4-5 days. While we would be attending a family event, my sister and I planned an entirely independent itinerary the whole time we were there. We even stayed at a hotel in the Kota Lama area, since our step grandmother’s house wasn’t able to accommodate us anymore. Needless to say, this gave us the opportunity to really explore the area—which I heard has been revitalised since the last time we were here. I was so giddy to explore Kota Lama! This is the story of what we went up to then.
📷 Fujifilm X-T100 with Fujinon Aspherical Superb EBC XC 15-45mm lens + ASUS ZenFone 10 50 MP f/1.9, 23.8 mm
Stepping into Mini Europe
We took the train on Thursday afternoon and arrived around 6 hours later at Semarang Tawang. The hotel was located around 1 km from the station, so we decided to just walk there with our luggage in tow—well, my sis’s anyway, I brought a carry-on bag and a backpack. We stayed at a pod hotel called Bobobox—it was a pretty interesting experience and I loved their solid branding!
Though I planned to get some sleep on the train, we ended up talking for hours and we hardly got a wink of sleep. That got us feeling pretty tired when we arrived, so we didn’t go to Simpang Lima for dinner—like we initially planned—and decided to grab some quick dimsums nearby.
What I love about staying at Kota Lama is everything feels within arms’ reach, you know. We could just walk everywhere, so wouldn’t need any vehicles—it was magical! Kota Lama really feels like a miniature European town with all the colonial buildings and street lamps lining the streets. It is also rather small, so it feels almost like a walk-in diorama or a set for a period drama.
Personally, I was really taken by the olde typography on the buildings. Semarang’s particular art deco-style signages truly have a particular character that I like. And the fact that they were made entirely by hand was wild to me. You can see an example down below. Not only that, I also adore the manhole covers around here—although they aren’t nearly as memorable as Tunjungan’s.
We took the train on Thursday afternoon and arrived around 6 hours later at Semarang Tawang. The hotel was located around 1 km from the station, so we decided to just walk there with our luggage in tow—well, my sis’s anyway, I brought a carry-on bag and a backpack. We stayed at a pod hotel called Bobobox—it was a pretty interesting experience and I loved their solid branding!
Though I planned to get some sleep on the train, we ended up talking for hours and we hardly got a wink of sleep. That got us feeling pretty tired when we arrived, so we didn’t go to Simpang Lima for dinner—like we initially planned—and decided to grab some quick dimsums nearby.
What I love about staying at Kota Lama is everything feels within arms’ reach, you know. We could just walk everywhere, so wouldn’t need any vehicles—it was magical! Kota Lama really feels like a miniature European town with all the colonial buildings and street lamps lining the streets. It is also rather small, so it feels almost like a walk-in diorama or a set for a period drama.
Personally, I was really taken by the olde typography on the buildings. Semarang’s particular art deco-style signages truly have a particular character that I like. And the fact that they were made entirely by hand was wild to me. You can see an example down below. Not only that, I also adore the manhole covers around here—although they aren’t nearly as memorable as Tunjungan’s.
Sego Bancakan Pawonesimbah
The first thing we did on Friday to explore Kota Lama was breakfast—well, I suppose you could call it brunch at 09.30. To emphasise my earlier point about everything being within arms’ reach, we needed only to cross the street to get to our brunch destination. Sego Bancakan Pawonesimbah is a traditional, Javanese-style buffet of sorts located on the second floor of a colonial building right across the street from Semarang’s Galeri UMKM (or MSME Gallery in English). If you don’t pay attention, you might just miss it. The place offers a wide array of meaty dishes, different types of rice, vegetables, fritters, beverages and dessert—it even has a dedicated snacks and toys corner. It was quite literally Javanese heaven!
My sister opted for a simple plate of Koyor, a slice of cucumber (which is apparently free of charge) and two kerupuks. Meanwhile, I picked up a whole chicken thigh cooked in Opor (which was pretty big, with an extra chicken leg), some cassava leaves for veggies, a quail eggs satay and one kerupuk. We took our time looking through the menu, though, and spotted a squid curry—if you were to choose that dish, you’d have to take an entire squid, which is pretty huge. As for beverages, my sister got a warm cup of wedang jahe lemon (ginger ale with lemon) and I tried their local soda pop in Orange flavour. Yum! Lastly, we closed the brunch with a spot of dessert—banana-and-cheese Lekker and 6 pieces of Gandos (half of which we ended up taking away).
Thrifted dress + shoes // hand-me-down top // vintage purse // Noesa headband// old socks //
photos of me by Akita
Sego Bancakan Pawonesimbah
The first thing we did on Friday to explore Kota Lama was breakfast—well, I suppose you could call it brunch at 09.30. To emphasise my earlier point about everything being within arms’ reach, we needed only to cross the street to get to our brunch destination. Sego Bancakan Pawonesimbah is a traditional, Javanese-style buffet of sorts located on the second floor of a colonial building right across the street from Semarang’s Galeri UMKM (or MSME Gallery in English). If you don’t pay attention, you might just miss it. The place offers a wide array of meaty dishes, different types of rice, vegetables, fritters, beverages and dessert—it even has a dedicated snacks and toys corner. It was quite literally Javanese heaven!
My sister opted for a simple plate of Koyor, a slice of cucumber (which is apparently free of charge) and two kerupuks. Meanwhile, I picked up a whole chicken thigh cooked in Opor (which was pretty big, with an extra chicken leg), some cassava leaves for veggies, a quail eggs satay and one kerupuk. We took our time looking through the menu, though, and spotted a squid curry—if you were to choose that dish, you’d have to take an entire squid, which is pretty huge. As for beverages, my sister got a warm cup of wedang jahe lemon (ginger ale with lemon) and I tried their local soda pop in Orange flavour. Yum! Lastly, we closed the brunch with a spot of dessert—banana-and-cheese Lekker and 6 pieces of Gandos (half of which we ended up taking away).
Thrifted dress + shoes // hand-me-down top // vintage purse // Noesa headband// old socks // photos of me by Akita
A Historical Stroll
We also stumbled upon Rumah Akar (lit. Root House), which is a popular tourist destination in the area. It is an abandoned massive house that has been taken over by a banyan tree—called Rumah Akar because the roots of the tree weaves through the walls. We were lucky to be there when it was pretty devoid of people, but soon after us, a crowd of tour groups arrived.
Apparently, the house used to belong to NV Dagblad de Locomotief, the oldest Dutch newspaper in Semarang which was established around mid 19th century. Around 1945-1963, the newspaper was taken over by the Tempo Group and changed its name to Suluh Marhaen. Unfortunately, the newspaper ended up going out of business and the building has been abandoned ever since. It became the underground site of cockfights for a while, but has now mainly served as a tourist attraction.
Afterwards, we decided to just walk around and take a look at old buildings around the area. My sister woke up with a menacing cold that morning, so we decided to find the nearest apothecary and get her a cold medicine. Along the way, we saw some really cool structures and made a mental note to revisit after the medicine was sorted out.
One of which was Rumah Pompa Kota Lama, which is basically a government office that controls water coming in and out of the city to prevent floods and manage the drainage system. Since it is literally a government office, people aren’t allowed to go in or up the stairs without proper authority. All we could do was admire it from the façade. I wish there was more info on the history and function of the building. That would’ve been cool.
Afterwards, we decided to just walk around and take a look at old buildings around the area. My sister woke up with a menacing cold that morning, so we decided to find the nearest apothecary and get her a cold medicine. Along the way, we saw some really cool structures and made a mental note to revisit after the medicine was sorted out.
One of which was Rumah Pompa Kota Lama, which is basically a government office that controls water coming in and out of the city to prevent floods and manage the drainage system. Since it is literally a government office, people aren’t allowed to go in or up the stairs without proper authority. All we could do was admire it from the façade. I wish there was more info on the history and function of the building. That would’ve been cool.
We also stumbled upon Rumah Akar (lit. Root House), which is a popular tourist destination in the area. It is an abandoned massive house that has been taken over by a banyan tree—called Rumah Akar because the roots of the tree weaves through the walls. We were lucky to be there when it was pretty devoid of people, but soon after us, a crowd of tour groups arrived.
Apparently, the house used to belong to NV Dagblad de Locomotief, the oldest Dutch newspaper in Semarang which was established around mid 19th century. Around 1945-1963, the newspaper was taken over by the Tempo Group and changed its name to Suluh Marhaen. Unfortunately, the newspaper ended up going out of business and the building has been abandoned ever since. It became the underground site of cockfights for a while, but has now mainly served as a tourist attraction.
When we walked all the way across the alley and along the length of the house, we ended up at a small road lined with beautifully maintained colonial buildings. This is where we found Soesmans Kantoor, one of the buildings I noted as a destination that we could visit. According to Google Maps, this place is still utilised as an art gallery and co-working space, so I thought we’d check it out. Little did I know, if there wasn’t any events going on, the building would just be closed. Oh well, at least I was able to admire its façade—which was more than enough for me, really.
Of course, like most of the buildings in Kota Lama, this place, too, has a history. According to its official Instagram page, the building was built in 1866 and takes up an area of 1,412 square-metre (around 15,198.6 square feet). In 1885-1898, the building was used to house an export-import company called Soesmans & Co., who provided horses as well as rubber farm workers and miners. In 1898, the company changed its name to Soesmans Emigratie, Vendu and Comissie Kantoor and operates in the printing sector—which you can see at the back of the building that says Pertjetakan. After Indonesia’s independence, the building was once utilised by Borsumij Wehry Indonesia and Sun Alliance Life Insurance—which are presumably no longer in business. It wasn’t until 2018 that the building was truly revitalised to its current state and has since served as a platform to develop MSMEs and the creative industry.
When we walked all the way across the alley and along the length of the house, we ended up at a small road lined with beautifully maintained colonial buildings. This is where we found Soesmans Kantoor, one of the buildings I noted as a destination that we could visit. According to Google Maps, this place is still utilised as an art gallery and co-working space, so I thought we’d check it out. Little did I know, if there wasn’t any events going on, the building would just be closed. Oh well, at least I was able to admire its façade—which was more than enough for me, really.
Of course, like most of the buildings in Kota Lama, this place, too, has a history. According to its official Instagram page, the building was built in 1866 and takes up an area of 1,412 square-metre (around 15,198.6 square feet). In 1885-1898, the building was used to house an export-import company called Soesmans & Co., who provided horses as well as rubber farm workers and miners. In 1898, the company changed its name to Soesmans Emigratie, Vendu and Comissie Kantoor and operates in the printing sector—which you can see at the back of the building that says Pertjetakan. After Indonesia’s independence, the building was once utilised by Borsumij Wehry Indonesia and Sun Alliance Life Insurance—which are presumably no longer in business. It wasn’t until 2018 that the building was truly revitalised to its current state and has since served as a platform to develop MSMEs and the creative industry.
Winding Down in the Summer
After a pretty long walk—we surpassed my daily goal of 5,000 steps—we decided to stop by Sukajaya Kopi & Kuliner Nusantara for coffee. I ordered Es Kopi Susu Pandan, while my sister got herself a Caramel Machiatto. Since we had a pretty big breakfast /brunch, we weren’t all that hungry by this time and opted for some lite bites instead—in the form of some scrumptious Bakwan Jagung Manis. It was only an okay experience, so we didn’t really take any photos and this as far as I can say on the matter.
However, afterwards we stopped by Jaja Ice Shop, which is a cute little Japanese-style ice shop located on the corner of a small road. We walked past this place the previous night and I made a mental note to stop by, so we did. The place has such a cute summer vibe and offers a wide array of Japanese (and, apparently Taiwanese) desserts, beverages and delicacies. At the moment they have a Kakigori Ajisai menu—which is inspired by hydrangea, my favourite flower—so I just had to try it. The portion is pretty big, though, so I’d suggest sharing.
After a pretty long walk—we surpassed my daily goal of 5,000 steps—we decided to stop by Sukajaya Kopi & Kuliner Nusantara for coffee. I ordered Es Kopi Susu Pandan, while my sister got herself a Caramel Machiatto. Since we had a pretty big breakfast /brunch, we weren’t all that hungry by this time and opted for some lite bites instead—in the form of some scrumptious Bakwan Jagung Manis. It was only an okay experience, so we didn’t really take any photos and this as far as I can say on the matter.
However, afterwards we stopped by Jaja Ice Shop, which is a cute little Japanese-style ice shop located on the corner of a small road. We walked past this place the previous night and I made a mental note to stop by, so we did. The place has such a cute summer vibe and offers a wide array of Japanese (and, apparently Taiwanese) desserts, beverages and delicacies. At the moment they have a Kakigori Ajisai menu—which is inspired by hydrangea, my favourite flower—so I just had to try it. The portion is pretty big, though, so I’d suggest sharing.
That pretty much wraps up our tour of Kota Lama for the day. Obviously, there were still a lot of places and spots we hadn’t had the chance to visit yet, but we can always come back. Our cousin’s wedding—which was supposed to be the main goal of our trip—was coming up in a few hours and my sister thought she’d catch some Z’s before we got ready. So we went back to the hotel and chilled out for a couple hours. Our cousin’s wedding isn’t at Kota Lama though, so we got ready and headed to another hotel for hair and makeup at around 4PM. We arrived at the wedding along with everyone else at 6PM, before the wedding officially started at 7PM. And that’s pretty much all the we got up to on Friday. After the wedding, we got back to the hotel to get ready for an early start the next day—yet, again, not getting enough sleep due to a lot of talking.
Stay tuned for our next adventure in Yogyakarta!
That pretty much wraps up our tour of Kota Lama for the day. Obviously, there were still a lot of places and spots we hadn’t had the chance to visit yet, but we can always come back. Our cousin’s wedding—which was supposed to be the main goal of our trip—was coming up in a few hours and my sister thought she’d catch some Z’s before we got ready. So we went back to the hotel and chilled out for a couple hours. Our cousin’s wedding isn’t at Kota Lama though, so we got ready and headed to another hotel for hair and makeup at around 4PM. We arrived at the wedding along with everyone else at 6PM, before the wedding officially started at 7PM. And that’s pretty much all the we got up to on Friday. After the wedding, we got back to the hotel to get ready for an early start the next day—yet, again, not getting enough sleep due to a lot of talking.
Stay tuned for our next adventure in Yogyakarta!