I have lived in Medan for about 22 years, but I do not know much about Medan. It is caused I do not really like to spend my time outside my house, I prefer spend my time in my house. However, I will try my best to write about Medan.
Medan known as the third big city in Indonesia. The air feels here is different from Jakarta and Surabaya, because of big trees in Medan give fresh breeze as we through some crowded streets. As a big city, Medan completely describes all assimilation process of diverse cultural. Here, the Javanese, Chinese, Malay, and even Tamil from India, Batak (pribumi/indigene) live harmonious. It is not surprising to hear Batak people and Javanese can speak Hokian language clearly, and India are not separated from others, maybe someone will find they trade their traditional food, bread cane (Roti Cane).
Medan is the capital of the province of North Sumatra, Indonesia. It is located in the northern part of the province of North Sumatera. Deli Serdang Regency borders the city to the east, south, and west, and the Strait of Malacca to the north. It has an area 265,10 square kilometers or 3,6% of the province of North Sumatera. The position is at 3° 30' – 3° 43' north latitude and 98° 35' - 98° 44' east longitude (Wikipedia.org).
Medan known as the third big city in Indonesia. The air feels here is different from Jakarta and Surabaya, because of big trees in Medan give fresh breeze as we through some crowded streets. As a big city, Medan completely describes all assimilation process of diverse cultural. Here, the Javanese, Chinese, Malay, and even Tamil from India, Batak (pribumi/indigene) live harmonious. It is not surprising to hear Batak people and Javanese can speak Hokian language clearly, and India are not separated from others, maybe someone will find they trade their traditional food, bread cane (Roti Cane).
Medan is the capital of the province of North Sumatra, Indonesia. It is located in the northern part of the province of North Sumatera. Deli Serdang Regency borders the city to the east, south, and west, and the Strait of Malacca to the north. It has an area 265,10 square kilometers or 3,6% of the province of North Sumatera. The position is at 3° 30' – 3° 43' north latitude and 98° 35' - 98° 44' east longitude (Wikipedia.org).
History
I think when someone talks about Medan; it cannot be separated from its history. Medan started as a village called Kampung Medan. Guru Patimpus established Kampung Medan around the 1590s. Because Kampung Medan sits on Tanah Deli (Land of Deli), it is also known as Medan-Deli. The exact location of Kampung Medan is an area where the Deli River meets Babura River. John Anderson, the first european visited Deli in 1833, found Kampung Medan. It is The Residential of Sultan with population is about 200 people. In 1883, Medan became an important city beside Java. It was caused, the Dutch colonialists clearing the land for tobacco plantation.
I do not know whether it is right or not, I found this when I was searching with “google”; the name of Medan was taken from Medina that is a holy city in Saudi Arabia. Other source said that the name of Medan actually came from Indian language "Meiden". However, according to the Karo-Indonesia dictionary that Medan could also be defined as "recover" or "be better".
Why there are a lot of culture or ethnics in Medan? Here is the reason, at the end of 19th and the beginning of 20th century, there were two big migrations to Medan. The first came from Chinese and Javanese as a worker at Dutch colonialists plantation in North Sumatera. At the end, Chinese did not become a worker anymore, but they became merchants. The second came from Minangkabau, Mandailing, and Aceh as merchants, teachers or ulama’ (spiritual teacher). Therefore, there are a lot of culture and ethnics in Medan.
Recommended places to be visited
Before talking about recommended places to be visited in Medan, it would be better to talk about Polonia first. Polonia is an international airport and the fourth largest airport in Indonesia after Soekarno-Hatta, Juanda, and Ngurah Rai, but its condition does not show the international level. If someone goes to Medan for the first time, he or she will get shock or scream because the third biggest city in Indonesia has poor airport. The airport also suffers from overcrowding, serving 4.5 million passengers annually but the facilities designed to handle only 900,000 passengers.
Polonia has an international and domestic terminal. When you are still at the plane, you will feel uncomfortable, because of the runaway. Polonia has a 2,900 m runway with only 2,625 m of usable length. Therefore, when a plane from the sky with high-speed lands in Polonia, the pilot will maximize the braking system as soon as the plane reaches the ground, and you will feel an uncomfortable vibration. However, don’t worry, you will accustomed to this situation when you have two or three flight to Medan.
The worst part of the terminal is in the domestic terminal at the baggage reclaim. The baggage reclaim is a small area with two conveyors. It used to a wider area before fire damaged the area in 2006. Because of this accident, the area was reduced into a small section inside the terminal. So, you can imagine how crowd the area at the holiday or peak season.
At the baggage reclaim, it will be impossible for someone to get trolley for his or her luggage. You will see no trolleys left there when he or she is waiting for luggage. However, don’t worry, you still can use trolley by using porter service with charge Rp 20,000.
I think it is enough for Polonia, if I continue telling the situation there, someone will lose his desire to visit Medan. Let’s talk about some recommended places to be visited in Medan.
1. Maimoon Palace
Maimoon Palace is a famous landmark in Medan. It is often written as Istana Maimoon, it is located at Jalan Brig. Jend. Katamso, Medan. The Sultan of Deli built Maimoon Palace, in 1888. The Sultanate of Deli is one of the two sultanates in northern Sumatra in the 19th century. The palace was established in 1888; the themes in its design are Malay as well as Islamic, Spanish, Indian and Italian. The palace has 30 rooms and with an area of 2,772 square meters.
In this place, we can hear a Legend of Putri Hijau, which is told by a storyteller. When the first time I heard the story from the storyteller at 9 years old, I thought that his story was very amazing. He told about putri hijau who was very beautiful girl, the oldest brother of putri hijau who could transform into a giant dragon, and the youngest brother of putri hijau who could transform into cannon. Now, when someone tells me about the story again, I will say “it was impossible and ridiculous.”
2. Tjong A Fie Mansion
The mansion located in the heart of Medan City at Kesawan Square, this beautiful mansion is full of characters and cultures behind its history in Medan. Now, for limited time only, the mansion is opened to visitors for an inside look at the true history of Tjong A Fie.
When someone goes to this place, he must not forget to bring a camera because he will see a beautiful house of the first billionaire in Sumatera.
The primary colors of this mansion are Green and yellow. There are so many antique beautiful lamps in the house. Moreover, almost every room has a decorative ceiling. I think this has to be the most luxury mansion in early 1900s. The second floor is an empty hall now, and is filled with paintings that you can buy.
3. Pajak Ikan Lama
In medan, pajak means pasar (market). Pasar ikan lama is the biggest market which sells garment and textile products. This place is very popular for local tourists for shopping garment and textile products because of the quality, design, and price of the products is good enough. One thing that amazes me that Pasar Ikan Lama not only sells textile products, but also sells zam-zam water.
Pasar ikan lama was opened in 1890. It used to sell vegetables, meats and fishes. Therefore, the name of pasar ikan lama is derived from the function of the market at the past.
Gifts from Medan
This one is my favorite part, which tells about gifts from Medan. The gifts are bika ambon, bolu meranti, and teri medan.
1. Bika ambon
This "bika ambon" doesn't have any English name, but I will call it Indonesian yeast cake in english. The name is confusing even to Indonesians: "Ambon" is a name of an island and a city in Indonesia, but this cake is said to originate from Medan, another city in another island. And those cities are not close at all to each other. I wonder how people came up with such name.
There are so many shops that sell bika ambon, but the best place to buy it is at Mojopahit Street. At Mojopahit Street, someone can see that almost all the shops at the right and left sell bika ambon. However, only two shops that are always full of buyers; the name of the shops are Bika Ambon Zulaikha. These shops not only sell to local but also international.
I have an experience about how hard to buy bika ambon at Bika Ambon Zulaikha. One day at the afternoon before I went back to Jakarta tomorrow, I intended to buy some bika ambons at Bika Ambon Zulaikha. When I order them to salesperson, she said that my order was empty and I could come to the shops at 8 o’clock in the evening. Following her suggestion, I came to the shops at 8 o’clock, and I saw many people waiting for his or her order. At that time, I was very afraid that I could get my order. Alhamdulillah, after waiting for about a half hour, I got my order.
2. Bolu gulung meranti
This one is not a usual rolled spongecake, but it is a special spongecake. We can buy it at Kruing Street 2-K. Almost all the people who look for a gift from Medan come to this place.
When you see at the wall of the fame at the shop, you will see some famous people have come to the shop. Why people call it bolu gulung meranti? This rolled spongcake was introduced for the first time at Meranti Street. However, this place cannot serve customers well because it was too small. Although, the shop hasmoved to Kruing Street, people still call it bolu gulung meranti.
3. Teri Medan
Teri or anchovies are small sea fish with blue or green. We can find them everywhere. So, why teri medan are so popular in Indonesia. Some people said that teri medan were more crispy and delicious. Teri medan are not only sold for local but also exported to other countries.
Where we can buy the best teri medan? We can buy them at Pasar Ramai. It is opened from 7 a.m. until 5 p.m. Do not forget to ask the seller to package them in the air proof container so that the smell of teri will not spread in your luggage.
4. Durian MedanI do not know whether it is right or not, I found this when I was searching with “google”; the name of Medan was taken from Medina that is a holy city in Saudi Arabia. Other source said that the name of Medan actually came from Indian language "Meiden". However, according to the Karo-Indonesia dictionary that Medan could also be defined as "recover" or "be better".
Why there are a lot of culture or ethnics in Medan? Here is the reason, at the end of 19th and the beginning of 20th century, there were two big migrations to Medan. The first came from Chinese and Javanese as a worker at Dutch colonialists plantation in North Sumatera. At the end, Chinese did not become a worker anymore, but they became merchants. The second came from Minangkabau, Mandailing, and Aceh as merchants, teachers or ulama’ (spiritual teacher). Therefore, there are a lot of culture and ethnics in Medan.
Recommended places to be visited
Before talking about recommended places to be visited in Medan, it would be better to talk about Polonia first. Polonia is an international airport and the fourth largest airport in Indonesia after Soekarno-Hatta, Juanda, and Ngurah Rai, but its condition does not show the international level. If someone goes to Medan for the first time, he or she will get shock or scream because the third biggest city in Indonesia has poor airport. The airport also suffers from overcrowding, serving 4.5 million passengers annually but the facilities designed to handle only 900,000 passengers.
Polonia has an international and domestic terminal. When you are still at the plane, you will feel uncomfortable, because of the runaway. Polonia has a 2,900 m runway with only 2,625 m of usable length. Therefore, when a plane from the sky with high-speed lands in Polonia, the pilot will maximize the braking system as soon as the plane reaches the ground, and you will feel an uncomfortable vibration. However, don’t worry, you will accustomed to this situation when you have two or three flight to Medan.
The worst part of the terminal is in the domestic terminal at the baggage reclaim. The baggage reclaim is a small area with two conveyors. It used to a wider area before fire damaged the area in 2006. Because of this accident, the area was reduced into a small section inside the terminal. So, you can imagine how crowd the area at the holiday or peak season.
At the baggage reclaim, it will be impossible for someone to get trolley for his or her luggage. You will see no trolleys left there when he or she is waiting for luggage. However, don’t worry, you still can use trolley by using porter service with charge Rp 20,000.
I think it is enough for Polonia, if I continue telling the situation there, someone will lose his desire to visit Medan. Let’s talk about some recommended places to be visited in Medan.
1. Maimoon Palace
In this place, we can hear a Legend of Putri Hijau, which is told by a storyteller. When the first time I heard the story from the storyteller at 9 years old, I thought that his story was very amazing. He told about putri hijau who was very beautiful girl, the oldest brother of putri hijau who could transform into a giant dragon, and the youngest brother of putri hijau who could transform into cannon. Now, when someone tells me about the story again, I will say “it was impossible and ridiculous.”
2. Tjong A Fie Mansion
When someone goes to this place, he must not forget to bring a camera because he will see a beautiful house of the first billionaire in Sumatera.
The primary colors of this mansion are Green and yellow. There are so many antique beautiful lamps in the house. Moreover, almost every room has a decorative ceiling. I think this has to be the most luxury mansion in early 1900s. The second floor is an empty hall now, and is filled with paintings that you can buy.
3. Pajak Ikan Lama
In medan, pajak means pasar (market). Pasar ikan lama is the biggest market which sells garment and textile products. This place is very popular for local tourists for shopping garment and textile products because of the quality, design, and price of the products is good enough. One thing that amazes me that Pasar Ikan Lama not only sells textile products, but also sells zam-zam water.Pasar ikan lama was opened in 1890. It used to sell vegetables, meats and fishes. Therefore, the name of pasar ikan lama is derived from the function of the market at the past.
Gifts from Medan
This one is my favorite part, which tells about gifts from Medan. The gifts are bika ambon, bolu meranti, and teri medan.
1. Bika ambon
There are so many shops that sell bika ambon, but the best place to buy it is at Mojopahit Street. At Mojopahit Street, someone can see that almost all the shops at the right and left sell bika ambon. However, only two shops that are always full of buyers; the name of the shops are Bika Ambon Zulaikha. These shops not only sell to local but also international.
I have an experience about how hard to buy bika ambon at Bika Ambon Zulaikha. One day at the afternoon before I went back to Jakarta tomorrow, I intended to buy some bika ambons at Bika Ambon Zulaikha. When I order them to salesperson, she said that my order was empty and I could come to the shops at 8 o’clock in the evening. Following her suggestion, I came to the shops at 8 o’clock, and I saw many people waiting for his or her order. At that time, I was very afraid that I could get my order. Alhamdulillah, after waiting for about a half hour, I got my order.
2. Bolu gulung meranti
When you see at the wall of the fame at the shop, you will see some famous people have come to the shop. Why people call it bolu gulung meranti? This rolled spongcake was introduced for the first time at Meranti Street. However, this place cannot serve customers well because it was too small. Although, the shop hasmoved to Kruing Street, people still call it bolu gulung meranti.
3. Teri Medan
Teri or anchovies are small sea fish with blue or green. We can find them everywhere. So, why teri medan are so popular in Indonesia. Some people said that teri medan were more crispy and delicious. Teri medan are not only sold for local but also exported to other countries.
Where we can buy the best teri medan? We can buy them at Pasar Ramai. It is opened from 7 a.m. until 5 p.m. Do not forget to ask the seller to package them in the air proof container so that the smell of teri will not spread in your luggage.
Who doesn’t know Durian Medan. It is very popular for durian mania. Durian Medan looks smaller than Murian Monthong from Thailand. However, It is sweeter than Durian Monthong. The most delicious durian is Durian Merah, the contents have red color and the taste is very sweet. In Medan, we can buy durian every day, even when it is not the harvesting time. In the harvesting time, we can buy three or four medium size durians for only Rp 10,000.
We can buy durian alongside Glugur Bypass, Semarang, S. Parman, Peringan Street. Like teri medan, when you buy durian, do not forget to ask the seller to package them in the air proof container because the smell is very strong.
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