Garuda Indonesia Colours Magazine November 2016 | Page 108

106

Travel | Semarang

Cycle rickshaws are still the preferred mode
of transport around the cobbled alleyways
and shady canal-side lanes.
“You’ll find medicinal jamu drinks in many
parts of Indonesia. Semarang jamu is pahit
– bitter – but it is the best!”
There’s a delightful spirit of sleepy nostalgia
in Semarang’s appropriately named Kota
Lama (Old Town).

While Semarang is located on the island that grows
some of the world’s best coffee, the city is often
known by the unlikely nicknames of Kota Lumpia
(Springroll City) or even Kota Jamu.

with its sparkling white façade and hammered
copper dome, it could also be a direct import
from similarly sunlit Mediterranean climes.
In the midst of one of Indonesia’s most
fascinating (and probably most overlooked)
antique and bric-a-brac markets stands the
majestic building that was Spiegel’s general
store in 1895 and is now a chic and
charming café/cocktail bar.
‘We believe your day starts after coffee…’ reads
the blurb in the menu, and Spiegel offers what
might be the best ‘cup of Java’ in the city.
While Semarang is located on the island that
grows some of the world’s best coffee, the city is
often known by the unlikely nicknames of Kota
Lumpia (Springroll City) or even Kota Jamu.

“You’ll find medicinal jamu drinks in many parts
of Indonesia,” a lady told me at a vending cart
near the old Johar Market. “Semarang jamu
is pahit – bitter – but it is the best!”
It might be the healthiest, most energy-boosting
and most invigorating pick-me-up in the world,
but Semarang jamu is certainly the bitterest
thing I’ve ever tasted.
I screwed up my face and sucked in my cheeks
while the market traders laughed. Finally they
offered me the antidote – a small tumbler of
honey-flavoured sweet jamu that counteracts
the bitterness.
The emphasised sweetness was blissful. In a way it
symbolised the unexpected allure of what was fast
becoming my all-time favourite Indonesian city.