The old town is the main tourist attraction area to visit in Jakarta. There are quite a number of old Dutch architecture buildings here. There are lots of museums around the area. A must visit if you have not been to Jakarta.
When visiting the old town you should have a guide with you bcz this place is full of historical stories. The Deutsch were here, the English also. And the handmade bridge joining the both sides of river is still here also. The timber and wood constructions are there to witness the glory of this town. Our guide Ray took us in a tour to the old harbor where ships built 200 years ago are still sailing with goods around the Indonesian islands. The canal is under renovation and the “Pisa“ tour of Jakarta near harbor is still moving 2cm each year. The ship yard is under renovation and spices warehouse will be transformed into fish market in few years.
My friend and I went there by Transjakarta bus. We went through the underground station which was so nicely designed. We got to visit Bank Mandiri Museum, Bank of Indonesia Museum, Wayang Museum, and The Art Museum. We wanted to visit Fatahillah Museum which is the main building of the historical place, but it was packed that we had no chance to get it! The area is so full of art and attraction performance, street vendors specialised in the authentic Jakarta's cuisine like kerak telor and selendang mayang, but you can find almost any type of food you want. Every restaurant and food court are situated in old buildings which gives the aesthetic of the old city of Jakarta. There are a lot of foreigners too so if you have a school project to have an interview with one, this is the perfect place to do so. I recommend to use plenty of sunscreen and to wear a cap or hat because it is an open area that can get really hot during the day. The old city of Jakarta never sleeps. You can find many communities gathering together at night to have a chat or just hanging around riding bikes. But ultimately the old city of Jakarta has been a hint of proof of what the country had been through for centuries to become what it is today.
My first impressions about this area are really bad as the traffic was terrible and we did not know how to cross the road to the other side where our hostel wonderloft was located. It took us 10 minutes before we realized that the traffic will never stop and we have to just cross it anyhow. Luckily we made it.
This old town area is called Kota tua and as I went out and started seeing the buildings in that area, I was amazed at their architecture. The whole area looked straight out of an European city. It is constructed by the Dutch and earlier called "Batavia".
The main tourist areas here are the Fatahillah square and the various museums. My favorite thing that I did in this area will definitely be my dinner at "Cafe Batavia". It is a memorable experience for me. Also this area is filled with many street vendors which might be disturbing.
The museum within the old town is worth a visit if you wanna learn something about the history of Jakarta. Outside it’s a bit like in a circus 🎪. Pbodypainted people standing around and hoping for a photo they can charge you for.
