Destinations Around Solo
1. Solo
"The Kraton Surakarta Hadiningrat"
Our Lonely Planet guide states that the Mangkunegaran Palace is in better condition and more rewarding to visit than the Surakarta Kraton. That may be so, but the kraton is historically and culturally of much more interest. This is where the susuhunan or sunan resided and resides, from Pakubuwono II who had the palace built to the present Pakubuwono XIII. The title Pakubuwono means 'the nail that fixes the world', and that neatly describes how elder Javanese still see him.
The palace grounds are vast and written explanations are absent, so one needs a guide. With luck we had a middle-aged guide who held Pakubuwono XII (deceased in 2004) in awe, praised his wisdom and followed his commands to the letter. Those commands include what one is allowed to take a picture of and what not. We met that guide after we had declined to pay Rp 50,000 per person at the ticket booth; he ran after us and offered to give us the round for Rp 50,000 the two.
When one enters as usual from the northern alun-alun, one walks in through:
- the waiting hall named Pagelaran Sasana Sumewa, litterally the place to pay homage.
- the audience hall Siti Hinggil Utara; the roof is designed for reverberation, try clapping your hands.
One then passes two gates and a courtyard to the palace proper. The shaded courtyard named Pelataran Kedhaton features black sand from the south coast, signifying that this is the territory of the legendary queen of the South Sea, Loro Kidul, and sawo trees planted by Pakubuwono IV, therefore over 200 years old. On the north side of the yard stands the tower Panggung Songgo Buwono, the tower supporting the world. It has five floors representing the five senses, whereas on the sixth floor the susuhunan meets queen Loro Kidul in meditation at least once a year. Incidentally. the main colour of the tower and other buildings is blue, also a reference to the south sea.
East of the courtyard is the Sasono Sewoko hall, where dignitaries and court members were received by the susuhunan. One cannot enter this nor can one the living quarters behind it. Instead one is guided to the museum facing it. The susuhunans must have been very proud of their horse carriages.
"The Mangkunegaran Palace"
"The Mangkunegaran Palace"
As said on intro page, by 1745 the VOC had obtained the overlordship of the Mataram kingdom, Susuhunan Pakubuwono II being their puppet. But his position was still attractive, as the VOC left the administration mainly to him. So at his demise in 1749 there were competitors for the succession.
His younger brother, Prince Mangkubumi, vied for the throne, as well as a cousin, Raden Mas Said, son of his elder brother. Whereas the first in line of succession was his son, who became Susuhunan Pakubuwono III.
So it was up to the VOC to mediate, which they did by dividing the kingdom. By an agreement of 1755 Prince Mangkubumi got to rule in Yogyakarta as Sultan Hamengkubuwono I. And in 1757 the cousin was allowed to set up court in the Mangkunegaran Palace as Adipati Arya Mangkunegoro I. His full title was: Kangjeng Gusti Pangeran Adipati Arya Mangkunegoro Senopati Ngayuda Lelana Djayamisesa Satriyatama Mataram Prawiradiningrat - how they loved these long titles!
So the Mangkunegaran is that cousin's palace as it stands today. Although the kingdoms were effectively dissolved in 1950 by Indonesia's independence, the family still inhabits the palace. That is why a guided tour is compulsory for the museum in the palace. But one is free to roam the grounds and the pendopo or reception hall by oneself.
The decoration of the pendopo ceiling is famous. The eight rectangles feature different colours which guard against threats to the soul, according to Javanese mysticism. On the border around these one can identify the signs of the zodiac.
Visiting hours: Mon-Sat 8:30 - 16, Sun 8:30 - 13. On Wednesday and Saturdays from 10 to 12 rehearsals of music and dance take place in the pendopo.
Bonus: Traditional Dance
every Wednesday morning from 9:30 until about mid-day the dancers of Soeryo Soemirat, the classical Javanese dance school that is part of the Mangkunegaran palace, rehearse Javanese court dances in the Pendopo accompanied by the meditative sounds of the royal gamelan orchestra.
"Tien Kok Sie Chinese temple"
When susuhunan Pakubuwono II moved his residence from Kartasura to Solo village, the Chinese living in Kartasura moved there with him. The susuhunan reserved some land across Papa river (a tributory to Bengawan Solo) for the Chinese quarter, not far from his palace.
So now you can find the Chinese quarter when you walk north from the kraton and turn right across the bridge. Then you walk into Pasar Gedhe (market), and to the right across the road from its entrance is the Chinese temple 'Kelenteng Tien Kok Sie'. It was built at the same time as the kraton and therefore listed as cultural heritage and well preserved.
It is a typical Tri Dharma temple, serving a mixture of Confucianism, Taoism and Buddhism. As customary with Chinese temples it is always open to devotees and casual visitors alike.
"Museum Radya Pustaka"
Various antiquarian with great historical value displayed in the oldest museum in Indonesia. We can find ancient literature Ronggowarsito, dozens of stone and bronze statues of Hindu and Buddhist era, a collection of wayang beber, and a sinister figure named Kyai Rajamala monsters.
"Museum of Ancient Batik Danar Hadi"
This is the best place to learn the history of national batik. Standing in the complex Ndalem Wuryaningratan, Danar Hadi Batik Museum is a museum owned by Santosa Doelllah presented with 700 luxurious rooms of ancient batik cloth from a total of 10 thousand collections.
"Batik Shopping"
Solo is known as Indonesia’s main textile center. Exquisite traditional batik from the factories direct, modern shops and the famous Pasar Klewer “Hanging Market”, where mingling with the locals and bargaining is all part of the experience.
"Flea Market Shopping"
On Jalan Diponegoro, the bargain paradise of Pasar Triwindu. Bric-a-brac, porcelain puppets, batik, buttons, buckles and genuine antiques wait to be discovered in a colorful, lively market.
2. Tawang Mangu (about 42km from Solo)
In West Java there’s Puncak, while Central Java has Tawangmangu, a tourist resort known for its cool climate. Perched on the western slope of Mount Lawu at an altitude of 3,265 meters, Traveller can enjoy the coldtemperatures of between 22 and 31 degrees Celsius.
"Grojogan Sewu Waterfall"
Grojogan Sewu meant the waterfall of one thousand. Although the waterfall here did not total one thousand, but had several waterfall points that could be enjoyed here. The highest waterfall was around 80 meters. There was also the waterfall that was not too high but the water drop spread and formed branches that increased the attraction of his beauty, so as when during the rain season, surrounds wall will be showered by waterfall.
This tourist attraction was the blend between the national park and the waterfall. The Grojogan Sewu Waterfall tourist attraction kept much beauty. When the first time entering the location of this Grojogan Sewu Waterfall tourist attraction, the visitor will be startled with monkeys. To arrive at the location of the waterfall tourist attraction, tourists must walk through hundreds of available steps and were compiled neat. In several corners of the bend in the ladder, was available shelter for tourists who wanted to rest.
In the location of the Grojogan Sewu Waterfall, tourists could enjoy the beautiful nature scenery. Tourists who wanted to approach the waterfall, must be careful because of must pass slippery big stones. Tourists were suggested in order to not bathe exact under the waterfall because of the waterfall flow very hard and could cause the body hurt. If tourists wanted to bathe with the safe condition, was enough to be carried out around the waterfall. Moreover, tourists could go for a walk followed the tourist attraction region while looking around beautiful hilly scenery and captured.
Apart from the nature tour, in the Grojogan Sewu Waterfall region was received by other several facilities, like the garden of the forest animal, the swimming pool, and the playground for children and the souvenir shop. In this tour region also was gotten the place of the horse leasing that could be used to go around the complex of the tour garden.
"Mount Lawu"
With beautiful Eidelweiss flowers on its top. Many mountaineers climb this mountain to adore the green scenic view, with lovely Edelweiss flowers on its top, and the challenging beauty of the dead crater, southward of the peak, locally known as Kawah Kuning (yellow crater). The highest peak is hilly plain, known as Argo Dumilah, where a "Tri-angular Pole" is erected.
Ancient Mountain. Its old name was Wukir Mahendra, some believe the top of the mountain was the first kingdom on the island, the dwellers were Gods descending from Kahyangan (heaven), upon seeing an empty beautiful place like a paradise.
It was the retreat of King Brawijaya V, the last king of Majapahit Empire in the 15th century. It has also a strong spiritual traditional relation with the rulers of Mataram Kingdom II and the Karaton (palace) of Surakarta and Yogyakarta.
Supernatural Tourism. Mt. Lawu has a strong power to attract supernatural tourists. Many places around it considered as sacred for pilgrimage among other.
"Ceto Temple"
Ceto (Indonesian: Candi Ceto) is a fifteenth-century Javanese-Hindu temple that is located on the western slope of Mount Lawu (elev.1495 m above sea level]]) on the border between Central and East Java provinces.
Cetho is one of several temples built on the northwest slopes of Mount Lawu in the fifteenth century. By this time, Javanese religion and art had diverged from Indian precepts that had been so influential on temples styles during the 8-10th century. This area was the last significant area of temple building in Java before the island's courts were converted to Islam in the 16th century. The temples' distinctiveness and the lack of records of Javanese ceremonies and beliefs of the era make it difficult for historians to interpret the significance of these antiquities. It is close to Sukuh temple.
"Sukuh Temple"
Sukuh is a 15th-century Javanese-Hindu temple (candi) that is located on the western slope of Mount Lawu (elevation 910 metres (2,990 ft)) on the border between Central and East Java provinces.
Sukuh temple has a distinctive thematic reliefs from other candi where life before birth and sexual education are its main theme. Its main monument is a simple pyramid structure with reliefs and statues in front of it, including three tortoises with flattened shells and a male figure grasping his penis. A giant 1.82 m (6 ft) high of lingga (phallus) with four balls, representingpenile incisions, was one of the statues that has been relocated to the National Museum of Indonesia.
"Ndoro Dongker Tea House"
It may sounds so usual for drinking a tea in a tea house, but wait a minute, this tea house provide a unique concept of having tea time while enjoying quality time with your family or your friends. It is called Ndoro Dongker. Ndoro Dongker is a tea house which has an antique Dutch style building surrounded by wide tea plantations. You can enjoy your tea while chitchat with your beloved people or enjoying the beautiful tea plantations around you.
There are two sides in this place; indoor and outdoor. Outdoor you can find a unique and beautiful table with umbrella on top of it so no need to get sun-burn, isn’t it cute?
The name of the Ndoro Donker taken from the name of the owner of the building that was originally a Netherlands Head of Tea Plantations. After a long deserted, the House was then rented and made into Ndoro Donker tea house since three years ago
Ndoro Dongker tea house serves many variant of tea, snack even full course menu and the prices are quite cheap, approximately 8000-30000 Rupiah. This tea house starts open at 10.00 A.M.
This is the recommended place to have a quality time with your beloved ones while having a great tea with a unique tone and concept and cozy place also photogenic and vintage building surround by tea plantations.
TO BE UPDATED, LATER... uuh...
TO BE UPDATED, LATER... uuh...