Jakarta, Java, Indonesia -2026-Part 2

Makutharama Puppet Studio was a great spot to spend some time. They don’t have a website so I can’t post a link. The young man who talked to us about puppets was very knowledgeable and we really enjoyed our time. We like to walk so we walked a very long way, maybe an hour and a 1/2 I think to get to that area. It was worth it, it was set in a very pretty area with big white colonial buildings (Dutch era). LIttle bit of history:

“1619 The Dutch East India Company (VOC) captured the local town and built a new colonial city.
1942: Japan invaded and occupied the region during World War II, ending the first period of Dutch rule after 323 years.
1946–1949: The Dutch returned for a short and violent period after the war trying to reclaim control.
1949: Indonesia gained full and final independence, ending all Dutch administration. “

Showing and telling us how puppets work
They had a huge selection
On our walk….
Lovely area
I like this style of building

We also walked to ChinaTown to have a tea at the Pantjoran Tea House. It was a beautiful spot but I ended up having a cold drink and not tea. It was probably 38 Celsius this day and it was pretty hot. We stopped quite a bit to buy water to drink as we walked.

We were in Jakarta during the Muslim celebration of Eid al-Adha which began on the evening of the 25 May, the main day was 26 May, and it lasted through to Saturday 30 May. Eid al-Adha, or the “Festival of Sacrifice,” honors Prophet Ibrahim’s faith when he was willing to sacrifice his son in obedience to God. God intervened and provided a ram to sacrifice instead. Now people kill goats, bulls, etc and the meat is distributed to your own family, other family/friends and to people in need. At least, this is the way it was explained to me. I mention this because one evening as we were heading back to our hotel, there was a ram tied up in the underground parking. Waiting there, sadly, for his fate and I don’t have to tell you what that was. We also saw cows being transported and we stopped to watch a bunch of young men cutting up the meat to give to people. I thought I had a photo of them but I can’t find it.

We went to Fatahillah Square (old Dutch quarter) and the buildings were lovely.

Salamat Datang Cathedral was another spot we went to. It was a huge Cathedral and across the street was a Mosque which was closed so we couldn’t go to it.