A 3-Part Series
A little background...
This year, I was very lucky to have had the opportunity to take a roadtrip to the amazing city of Yogyakarta. And although I live in Indonesia (born and raised), I say I’m lucky to have been able to go on this trip because not only was it in 2020 (yes, during COVID), but also because I’ve never really had a culture trip to anywhere in Indonesia. Yes, I’ve been to cities like Jakarta, Bali, and a few others for field trips and sports tournaments from my high school, but I’ve never taken a trip to simply explore the rich cultural history of my country.
As I grew up in an international school, I was never taken on a field trip to see classic landmarks like Borobudur (some of my cousins have gone at least three times, and I’ve never had the pleasure of having that experience). I’ve also never really learned in depth about my own country’s history, which is something I deeply regret. So when I knew that I was going to be home for a while, I took this opportunity to convince (which I didn’t have to try too hard) my family to take me to the culturally and historically rich city of Yogyakarta in July.
I want to start this little series with a little brief overview of our trip and background information on why me and my family decided to go to Jogja in the first place. Believe it or not, it wasn’t me who suggested we should go, it was my parents. We had a trip planned this summer to go to Thailand, but as you all know, with COVID, it was no longer possible for us to travel.
Although travelling by plane within Indonesia was technically still possible, it wasn’t something we as a family wanted to do. So my dad suggested, “why not a road trip?” My brother and I have never been to Jogja, nor have we taken a roadtrip like this around (a very small part of) Java. And with dad having business matters to settle there as well, it seemed like the perfect time and excuse for us to travel. As a preface, at the time when we took the trip, COVID numbers were generally quite low in the cities we visited.
So over a period of five days, my family of four visited Cirebon, Solo, Jogja, and Magelang. And can I just say, the sights and the food were *mwah* perfection. As much as this was a cultural trip, it was also a culinary one. From empal gentong to gudeg to mie jawa, we were in food heaven.
But traveling during COVID opened up my eyes to see the ways that Indonesia has been struggling and adapting to the changing times. The toll roads were eerily empty but the cities we visited were still bursting with life, though not as much as it would have normally been. We were able to visit famous landmarks, but strict regulations prevented us from going inside the individual temples at Prambanan and up the stairs of Borobudur.
Without the foreign tourists who usually pack these popular spots, my family were often only in the company of three to five other small groups of people. Gift shops were closed and tour guides milled around without much to do. It was sad, but it was also a stark contrast to the bustling city markets and night life that we found within the city. And if you’ve been to Indonesia or lived here long enough, you’ll know that these contrasts are not uncommon.
In this three part series, I will tell, and show, you all about the beautiful places and cultural landmarks I visited on my road trip with my family.
So come and follow me on this journey!
*** We followed COVID safety protocols and wore masks throughout the trip, and constantly washed our hands in stations that were provided throughout these locations that we visited.
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