Greeting Hive worlds, it's me Iris from East Java,Indonesia. I had a chance to visit this vintage shopping place in Surabaya a few days ago. This place used to be a favorite place to shop for clothes, snacks, miscellaneous things, or daily needs. However, since online shopping is so popluar nowadays, slowly this place is getting forgotten.
The exterior is still preserving the original look of the place. I don't think that there ever any renovation happened except the general maintenance. Some parts of the interior had underwent several change until now, perhaps an attempt to attract youger visitors, but still it can't compete with newer and modern mall with so many entertainments.
However, there were some parts that still attract visitors such as the food court and its main vendors. The atrium still maintain its signature of old building with towering roof and spacious area that used for exhibition. Unlike the modern mall, it is surrounded by various vendors. Something that used to be seen as a chaotic charm now sadly seemed like a mismatched blocks.
Another distinc part about this shopping place is its culinary stalls. It hosted several vintage and legendary food stalls that supposed still have loyal customer. However, when I visited the place, they were almost empty. It brought some melancholy feel to see the stalls that once made a long queue now sit empty.
This is the photo of one of my favorite stalls, Kartika. It sells traditional snacks and desserts, homemade lunch box, and cakes. It used to be so crowded and I really like the menu there. Still couldn't believe that it became this empty at lunch hours.
However, the thing that broke my heart the most is the closed stalls along the alley ways. The decreased visitors and online competitors made it difficult for them to keep the store running. Once, the alleys was bustling with footsteps and busy chatters from people bargaining and promoting their goods, now only silent echoes of the pass filled them.
I don't know how long this place will hold against the time. It still have pretty much visitors, just much more emptier than it used to be, which I will show on the part 2 which focusing more on the people interaction. Thank you for stopping by and I hope you enjoy short story and photos.
~Photos are mine, shot with iPhone 13
