Travel Footprints

If you have a few hours to spare to explore Jakarta, where would you go? That was the question I was asking myself during my second trip to Indonesia. Fortunately, I was able to make the most out of my free day in exploring the city of Jakarta before boarding my Philippine Airlines flight home in the evening at 2300.

A friend met me in Hang Tuah Hotel in the morning and then met up with another friend from Uganda, East Africa. We rode the cab to their Kota (also called Batavia) to get a taste of the city’s history and culture. I have always felt that Jakarta has an uncanny similarity with Metro Manila and this particular place in the city reminds me of Intramuros somehow. There were a couple of museums in this area, plus the Central Post Office which gave me the opportunity to send postcards for home (a practice my hubby and i shared for years).

We had late lunch at Cafe Batavia, set in an old house that was first erected sometime in the 1800s making it the second oldest building in the area of Fatahillah Square. The first thing you will notice is that the walls are filled with framed photographs of celebrities. 

Wall of photos by the staircase of Cafe Batavia

The back of framed photos serve as the restaurant menu as well

Even their comfort room donned framed photos (it became a little disturbing for me to see a photo frame inside the cubicle itself). Cafe Batavia reminded me of Barbara’s Restaurant (in Intramuros, Manila) a lot. The food was great although a bit on the expensive range.