Jakarta, Indonesia

Books by
Usha Alexander

Books by
Namit Arora

Jakarta is the capital and largest city of Indonesia, located on the northwestern shore of Java Island. Its history as an important maritime port stretches back over a thousand years, and its long, old docks still bustle with commercial traffic, especially inter-island cargo ships reminiscent of the wooden vessels that have been arriving here for centuries. But today, high-rise hotels, international banks, and shopping malls abound in this city of ten million inhabitants, and even the broadest avenues suffer daily bouts of gridlock during peak commuting hours. Nothing remains of the pre-colonial city, Jayakarta. But the town square of the old colonial capital, Batavia, remains intact not far south from the old dockyards. The facades of former government buildings and warehouses, which served the Dutch East Indies officials and merchants, flank the public square and line several of its nearby streets. Today, some of these remain empty, while others are finding new life as cafés and museums. Nearby is the Chinatown area dating from the same period; an ongoing open-air market fills its narrow lanes, though the purveyors of frogs, seafood, and other assorted delicacies may no longer be Chinese. —Usha, Dec 2016.

Kota Tua

Jakarta Old Town
aka Old Batavia (more)