Leg 170, Botohilitano to Bengkulu, Sumatra, Indonesia
DAY02_08.PLN (5.5 KB)
I found it, the house my mother spend the first 5 years of her life in. It doesn’t look anything like it in game, but it is there in the right spot. The town wasn’t all that recognizable, clouds were preventing long distance views and up close there are too many big appartment blocks (not there) spoiling the view. Still very cool to find it and fly over my Grandfather’s old work place.
02-07 Natal WANT 6:03 PM
02-07 Lasondre WANA 6:26 PM
02-07 Minangkabau Intl WIEE 7:19 PM
02-07 Tabing WIET 7:24 PM
02-07 Sultan Syarif Kasim II (Simpang Tiga) WIBB 8:07 PM
02-07 Sultan Syarif Haroen Setia Neg WIBL 8:22 PM
02-07 Japura WIBJ 8:42 PM
02-07 Dabo WIDS 9:32 PM
02-07 Depati Amir WIKK 10:23 PM
02-07 Sultan M Badaruddin II WIPP 11:04 PM
02-07 Pendopo WIPQ 11:28 PM Lahat, Bandaragung M.2 3°47’15.3"S 103°32’55.6"E Train yard 3°47’05.1"S 103°33’04.2"E
02-08 Pagar Alam WIPM 12:18 AM
02-08 Silamparis WIPB 12:43 AM
02-08 Fatmawati Soekarno WIGG 1:17 AM
Flight time 7:14 13 stops
First up, Lasondre Airport on Tanahmasa Island
Sunrise over the Indian ocean
Minangkabau International Airport near Padang, back on Sumatra
Padang, capital of Indonesia’s West Sumatra province
Museum Adityawarman
Grand Mosque of West Sumatra and the view from Nurbaya bridge
Gunung (Mount) Sago, also known as Malintang 7,421ft
It takes a long hike through undisturbed forests to reach the top
Sultan Syarif Kasim II (Simpang Tiga) Airport at Pekanbaru
Home to Alam Mayang Nature Park and Tugu Zapin, cultural landmark on a big roundabout
Dabo Airport on Singkep Island
Bangka Belitung Islands
Depati Amir Airport serving Pangkal Pinang
Palembang, capital of Indonesia’s South Sumatra province and port city on the Musi River
Apparently the Dutch embassy is/was here as this is where my Mother gained Dutch citizenship.
Ampara bridge, iconic landmark lift bridge in Palembang
Bukit (Hill) Siguntang, small hill located at the northern bank of Musi River with statues on the right
Pendopo, getting close to my ancestral home, the weather trying to thwart my search efforts
Lahat, South Sumatra, location of my ancestral home
My grandfather (Dutch from origin) worked on the railway in Lahat where he met my grandmother
The old closed up train yard where my grandfather worked in the 40s
A little peak through google streetview, closed up, rusted, overgrown, but still there.
The old house, below left side of the intersection
Found using street view comparing to a picture taken in 2013 when my parents visited
It changed again since 2013, yet the same plant is still growing out the roof and there is still a sign in the front yard with “kerata api” on it which means train.
The street and the sign in front of the house
It took a long time to find with just a picture and district name. Time well spend, walking through the town in street view seeing where my mother first went to school. Very interesting to recognize features from my grandmother in the people on the street there.
My grandparents suffered greatly during the Japanese occupation of Indonesia (1942-1945) then Dutch East Indies. No wonder they wanted to leave for the Netherlands after, plus Indonesia rightfully had enough of colonialism. Initially, most Indonesians welcomed the Japanese as liberators from their Dutch colonial masters. The sentiment changed, however, as between 4 and 10 million Indonesians were recruited as forced labourers, and about 4 million died during WWII. From bad to worse.
Thus after my grandmother and mother gained Dutch citizenship, they left on a boat to the Netherlands. There my grandfather became a dockworker while selling Indonesian specialties from their humble much smaller home in Rotterdam. The story goes they buried the family treasure in the backyard before leaving, starting over with little resources.
My grandfather made the most amazing Spekkoek (kue lapis legit or spekuk). I remember him sitting in front of a hot gas oven, carefully applying layer after layer with mixing bowls all over the kitchen preparing the batter. I used to make Roti Kukus growing up, easy recipe, delicious. My grandmother made amazing Indonesian dishes which my mother got into as well.
Time to move on, leaving Lahat behind for now
Pagar Alam Airport, nearest airport to Lahat
Bengkulu, the second largest city on the west coast of Sumatra Island after Padang
Thomas Par Monument on the left from when the East India Company during the 17th century.
Thomas Par was killed during a rebellion against his administration on 27 September 1807. The East India Company quashed the rebellion, and the following year, a monument was constructed to honor Parr. Though the monument was built as a memorial to Parr and his death, the people of Bengkulu have reinterpreted it as a testament to their willingness to defend their land rights and traditional customs.
Benteng (Fortress) Marlborough in the middle, former British fort once used by the French, Dutch, Japanese & Indonesian militaries.
And the British colonial cemetary on the right. From a local guide, pieces of history that tell us about bitter conditions and experiences linked to the British East India Company and deaths of hundreds of British Bencoolen inhabitants who were affected by the Bencoolen resistance movements and fatal diseases during the British colonial rule in Bencoolen (now known as Bengkulu).
Looking through the pictures there are also a lot of gravestones in Dutch. The Dutch occupied Indonesia for 3 and a half centuries, finally let go of it in 1949. Over a 15-year period after the Republic of Indonesia became an independent state, virtually the entire Dutch population, Indische Nederlanders (Dutch Indonesians), estimated at between 250,000 and 300,000, left the former Dutch East Indies, including my grandparents.
A brief intermission tomorrow, Cocos (Keeling) and Christmas island before continuing to Java, Indonesia.