SEMARANG, INDONESIA

I really don't remember too much about Semarang, at least nothing was quite memorable like other cities in Indonesia. I took several plane rides and train rides from Jakarta several times in the early 90s. The train station and the small airport (by Jakarta's standard) have their own charms.

My impression of Semarang is that it's a quite self-sufficient city with great food. There are plenty of Semarang delicacies to try all the over the place. I cannot remember too many things except for the world-famous Semarang wingko babat, amazing lumpia, and the well-known bandeng presto. These are food items are the pinnacle of Semarang culinary novelties.

I remember there was a famous intersection called Simpang Lima, and it seems like we always pass by it wherever we tried to travel around the city. I also recalled going to the market area where there were a lot of food vendors. If my recollection served me well, they are called Jl. Pemuda, Jl. A Yani, Jl Gajah Mada or Gang Lombok.

The most famous historical site in Semarang is off course Sam Po Kong, where a temple was also built to respect Admiral Zheng He (Cheng Ho in Hokkianese) who arrived there in the early 1400s. Zheng He was the greatest naval officer in the entire Chinese kingdom during the glorious Ming Dynasty under the authority of Emperor Zhu Di. He was later discovered places and cities in Africa and Asia and world-famous for his amazing vogayes. There's even a book that becomes a controversy because the auther claimed that Zheng He had discovered America before Columbus. Zheng He and his navy stopped in Semarang on a number of occassion.

Nevertheless, in my humble opinion, Semarang lacks the depth and intensity of other cities like Bandung and Yogyakarta.