Perhaps you've heard that Indonesia is not only about Bali, but also about the kingdoms or palaces that exist throughout the archipelago? And today I will tell you about one of them.
This is still about me and Surakarta, and of course, what I'll be sharing is my journey into the Surakarta palace. I started by walking from Pasar Gede, which is just one kilometre away. Since I started travelling, I've also enjoyed walking around a lot while exploring the city. It also depends on the weather. Coincidentally, it was gloomy that day but still safe from rain. So I walked while enjoying the flow of traffic in Surakarta.
At a major intersection, I saw an arrow pointing towards the Kasunanan Palace. I had already walked over 300 metres and had about 600 metres left. I kept walking while taking pictures of several corners until I came across a very familiar blue building. This was the front landscape of the Surakarta palace. However, the front gate was reserved exclusively for the palace family and the Abdi Ndalem (people who served the palace for specific tasks).
After asking about the correct access, a servant showed me the gate that would take me to the entrance for general visitors. When I saw a statue of King Paku Buwono X (1841-1911), I knew I had arrived at the entrance for general visitors.
After paying a ticket price of 35,000 rupiah for domestic tourists, I had to sit and wait for another group so that we could tour together. Because there was a guide who would accompany us on the tour to provide certain explanations, I had to be patient a little longer since I had come alone.
After sitting for a while, it was finally my turn to tour. We were guided by a very friendly guide named Adi, or Mas Adi as we called him (“MAS” is a polite term for men). After introducing himself, Mas Adi then introduced the genealogy of the Mataram kingdom, which was the forerunner of the Surakarya sultanate. He patiently showed us a genealogy board and interactively invited the group to join in the discussion.
After finishing the introduction to the genealogy, Mas Adi took us inside, to the inner courtyard of the pavilion. Those wearing trousers, both women and men, were required to wear a cloth that had been provided. However, because I was already wearing a long skirt, I did not need to wear the cloth.
The courtyard floor is covered with beach sand, so when you step on it, it feels like you are at the beach. The trees here are very neat and tidy. There are servants whose job is to sweep up the dry leaves that fall, so the courtyard is always beautiful and clean.
I also met Janthi. Do you know what? Yep... a fat cat that Mas Adi said belonged to one of the sultan's daughters. She was very cute and looked calm. I took pictures and stroked her because she was so adorable.
Of course, we couldn't get close to the pavilion because there was a boundary or line that visitors were not allowed to cross. After all, this is the palace area and we, as general visitors, must maintain decorum and obey the rules.
I took a photo of a tower. Yes, I forgot to take a photo of the top, but it is still used when the sultan wants to calm himself down. Usually, the sultan does this in this tower.
However, don't worry, even though visitors are not allowed to enter the pavilion or even get a closer look, Mas Adi, our guide, will take the group inside and around the museum area, which is very long and shaped like the letter U. Can you see the long building with a predominantly blue roof? Yes, this is where we will begin our new adventure.
Before entering, I had the chance to photograph a replica or model of the entire Surakarta Sultanate, which is incredibly vast. It might take someone a day or more to explore the entire area.
In the first room, there is a display of photo frames of the children of King Paku Buwono XII. In this room, there are also photos of King Paku Buwono IX and a chair belonging to King Paku Buwoni IV from 1788-1820.
There are also two chairs from the Gianyar Palace (Bali) from the era of King Paku Buwono X, as well as his wardrobe.
All of this is in room one, and there are still many other rooms that I will discuss in my next post.
You can see the buildings within the palace as if they were intentionally displayed in their original form. It highlights how strong and beautiful an antique can be after enduring so much time.
How about it? Are you still curious about the next part? Please stay tuned. Thank you for reading my travelogue. See you again soon.
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