We’re back with another post from Surabaya. Wow! It’s crazy to think that this trip was 2 weeks ago. It felt like longer. Like I previously mentioned, this will be my last post from the Surabaya trip, but it’s a pretty interesting one, because today we visited…a museum! It’s been a pretty long time since I’ve been to an exhibition or museum myself—I think the last time was in January—and it’s so good to explore new places dipped in rich history. My sister and I aren’t really new in the museum game of Surabaya—God knows we’ve been around—so we had to dig a little deeper to find an interesting place that we have yet to visit. And that’s how we arrived at Museum Pendidikan.
📷 Fujifilm X-T100 with Fujinon Aspherical Superb EBC XC 15-45mm lens
We’re back with another post from Surabaya. Wow! It’s crazy to think that this trip was 2 weeks ago. It felt like longer. Like I previously mentioned, this will be my last post from the Surabaya trip, but it’s a pretty interesting one, because today we visited…a museum! It’s been a pretty long time since I’ve been to an exhibition or museum myself—I think the last time was in January—and it’s so good to explore new places dipped in rich history. My sister and I aren’t really new in the museum game of Surabaya—God knows we’ve been around—so we had to dig a little deeper to find an interesting place that we have yet to visit. And that’s how we arrived at Museum Pendidikan.
Getting Schooled on School
Looking at the building and the entire branding of the museum, we could already tell that it was relatively new. In fact, the museum was officiated in 2019—after our last visit to this city—by the much revered then-mayor of Surabaya, Ms. Tri Rismaharini. The building itself is rich in history. Build in the 1910s, it used to be the house of an Indochinese family until, in 1952, it became the building for the first high school called YPPI (Yayasan Pendidikan dan Pengajaran Indonesia). Afterwards, it turned into the school for SMP/SMA Sekolah Taman Siswa until 2004. And 15 years later, it this museum was formed.
The museum is located on the side of the street—right at the junction actually, leading to a bridge—which makes it pretty easy to miss and/or hard to stop around. Walking here would be the best option, really, or using the public transport. It consists of a complex of colonial-looking buildings with a mix between classical vibes and (strangely) Betawi elements—which can clearly be a school ground. The entrance opens to this space between two buildings, with the museum on your left. The building on the other side houses the classrooms, which are apparently still in use—we heard a class in session when we stopped by.
Looking at the building and the entire branding of the museum, we could already tell that it was relatively new. In fact, the museum was officiated in 2019—after our last visit to this city—by the much revered then-mayor of Surabaya, Ms. Tri Rismaharini. The building itself is rich in history. Build in the 1910s, it used to be the house of an Indochinese family until, in 1952, it became the building for the first high school called YPPI (Yayasan Pendidikan dan Pengajaran Indonesia). Afterwards, it turned into the school for SMP/SMA Sekolah Taman Siswa until 2004. And 15 years later, it this museum was formed.
The museum is located on the side of the street—right at the junction actually, leading to a bridge—which makes it pretty easy to miss and/or hard to stop around. Walking here would be the best option, really, or using the public transport. It consists of a complex of colonial-looking buildings with a mix between classical vibes and (strangely) Betawi elements—which can clearly be a school ground. The entrance opens to this space between two buildings, with the museum on your left. The building on the other side houses the classrooms, which are apparently still in use—we heard a class in session when we stopped by.
Getting into the museum was pretty simple. You should scan the QR code by the entryway to register your visit—which is free!—then you are free to walk into the exhibition area. The exhibit itself is pretty compact—there were around 4 rooms in total—but you can learn a lot. I don’t know what I expected from the museum when I first found out about it, but the inside was different from what I initially thought I would find. The exhibit showcases all the artifacts of learning, from the pre-literacy age all the way to the post-independence period. There were manuscripts from back in the day as a tool for spreading information to each other. There were also bikes that students of the colonial era used to ride to and from school. There were typewriters and crazy machinery that used to be crucial at school. There were even some uniform developments from how it was in the colonial era to the ones we are so familiar with today —every public school spread out across the country now dons these uniforms.
Getting into the museum was pretty simple. You should scan the QR code by the entryway to register your visit—which is free!—then you are free to walk into the exhibition area. The exhibit itself is pretty compact—there were around 4 rooms in total—but you can learn a lot. I don’t know what I expected from the museum when I first found out about it, but the inside was different from what I initially thought I would find. The exhibit showcases all the artifacts of learning, from the pre-literacy age all the way to the post-independence period. There were manuscripts from back in the day as a tool for spreading information to each other. There were also bikes that students of the colonial era used to ride to and from school. There were typewriters and crazy machinery that used to be crucial at school. There were even some uniform developments from how it was in the colonial era to the ones we are so familiar with today —every public school spread out across the country now dons these uniforms.
What You Learn from Learning
As you go further into the exhibit, you will start to see other artifacts that may not be directly linked to the lessons, but are definitely part of the culture at schools—particularly in Indonesia. For starters, there are lunch boxes, school bags and fun puzzles. It struck a sense of nostalgia in me—and probably all the other visitors too—of the time we had at school, eating lunches with our friends and playing with them during recess.
Ultimately, this museum shows not only how we, as a society, learnt back in the day and how far we have come to acquire more knowledge into our collective awareness, but also how we cultivate a culture that let children grow as social individuals with character. It shows that the lessons we learn aren’t simply limited to the curriculum and textbooks at hand, but also through our experiences.
My favourite part would have to be the vintage textbook and diploma designs—some of which you can see down below. The textbooks back in the day—dating back to the ’70s and ’80s—all relied on illustrations to convey the content of the book on the covers. I believe this was the golden era when Indonesian-style illustrations started to take shape—which persisted until the late ’90s and early 2000’s. They’re reminiscent of the illustrations I used to have on the covers of some of my Indonesian books when I was little. You can even see the designs of vintage Bobo, a widely known children’s magazine in Indonesia. Needless to say, these make for some great inspiration and references—and actually drove me to do some people and building watching later that afternoon.
My favourite part would have to be the vintage textbook and diploma designs—some of which you can see down below. The textbooks back in the day—dating back to the ’70s and ’80s—all relied on illustrations to convey the content of the book on the covers. I believe this was the golden era when Indonesian-style illustrations started to take shape—which persisted until the late ’90s and early 2000’s. They’re reminiscent of the illustrations I used to have on the covers of some of my Indonesian books when I was little. You can even see the designs of vintage Bobo, a widely known children’s magazine in Indonesia. Needless to say, these make for some great inspiration and references—and actually drove me to do some people and building watching later that afternoon.
As you go further into the exhibit, you will start to see other artifacts that may not be directly linked to the lessons, but are definitely part of the culture at schools—particularly in Indonesia. For starters, there are lunch boxes, school bags and fun puzzles. It struck a sense of nostalgia in me—and probably all the other visitors too—of the time we had at school, eating lunches with our friends and playing with them during recess.
Ultimately, this museum shows not only how we, as a society, learnt back in the day and how far we have come to acquire more knowledge into our collective awareness, but also how we cultivate a culture that let children grow as social individuals with character. It shows that the lessons we learn aren’t simply limited to the curriculum and textbooks at hand, but also through our experiences.
At the back of the building, after you exit the exhibition, you get to see another small building that somewhat resembles a house of some sort. Depending on where you enter, though, this building could be the first thing you see–as it has the signage emblazoned on its side. The building has glass walls on the façade and you can take a peek inside of all the books it contains—which all seem really interesting. Sadly, at the time of our visit, the place was locked and nobody was there to man the building, so we couldn’t get in.
With nothing better to do, we took a walk around the back of the building to return to where we started. There was a small park area in front of the original façade of the museum building—apparently it is called ‘Villa Rivierzicht’—which translates to ‘River View Villa’—as it overlooks the river on the side. There are a lot of benches here as well, so you can also enjoy the view of the river as you hang out with your loved ones. My sister and I took some photos out here since we love the light play so much, thanks to the shades of the trees and everything.
At the back of the building, after you exit the exhibition, you get to see another small building that somewhat resembles a house of some sort. Depending on where you enter, though, this building could be the first thing you see–as it has the signage emblazoned on its side. The building has glass walls on the façade and you can take a peek inside of all the books it contains—which all seem really interesting. Sadly, at the time of our visit, the place was locked and nobody was there to man the building, so we couldn’t get in.
With nothing better to do, we took a walk around the back of the building to return to where we started. There was a small park area in front of the original façade of the museum building—apparently it is called ‘Villa Rivierzicht’—which translates to ‘River View Villa’—as it overlooks the river on the side. There are a lot of benches here as well, so you can also enjoy the view of the river as you hang out with your loved ones. My sister and I took some photos out here since we love the light play so much, thanks to the shades of the trees and everything.
School Is Out!
Well, that was our little trip to a modern museum in Surabaya. It was pretty small and quaint—and judging by the lack of crowd, we’re not sure many people even knew about it—but it was pretty fun while it lasted. Afterwards, my sister and I decided to walk through Pasar Genteng to get to Tunjungan Street, grab some lunch and visit Toko Kopi Padma again—this would make our second visit. Honestly, I wish we could’ve gone to more historical places—apparently, this Genteng street is also crawling with them. Unfortunately, our time was limited, so we didn’t get to go. Before we knew it, we were already on our way to the airport heading back to Jakarta. And that about wraps our trip to Surabaya.
Don’t worry, though! There will be more exciting posts lining up from me, so watch this space!
What exciting thing have you been up to lately?
School Is Out!
Well, that was our little trip to a modern museum in Surabaya. It was pretty small and quaint—and judging by the lack of crowd, we’re not sure many people even knew about it—but it was pretty fun while it lasted. Afterwards, my sister and I decided to walk through Pasar Genteng to get to Tunjungan Street, grab some lunch and visit Toko Kopi Padma again—this would make our second visit. Honestly, I wish we could’ve gone to more historical places—apparently, this Genteng street is also crawling with them. Unfortunately, our time was limited, so we didn’t get to go. Before we knew it, we were already on our way to the airport heading back to Jakarta. And that about wraps our trip to Surabaya.
Don’t worry, though! There will be more exciting posts lining up from me, so watch this space!
What exciting thing have you been up to lately?