T

he south gate of Gondangdia Station in Kebon Sirih, Central Jakarta, was selected as the meeting point for a walking tour organized by 100% Manusia and Jakarta Good Guide because of its strategic location in the middle of Cikini, the iconic neighborhood known for its historical buildings and eateries.

“[This time], we want to discuss the country’s diversity while also experiencing the culinary spots along the way.

“We will walk and try out some legendary Indonesian food here in Cikini,” said Devandy Ario Putra, one of 100% Manusia volunteer tour guides.

Those taking part in the tour — which were conducted in English, Bahasa Indonesia and Indonesian sign language — were divided into three groups.

The groups then set off for the first destination, the Dutch colonial era Tugu Kunstkring Paleis, which is now a high-end restaurant and art gallery.

“This used to be an immigration office, so it is kind of like the gateway to Menteng,” said tour guide Agung.

The building served as the immigration office for Central Jakarta from 1950 to 1997 and before that it was occupied by the Majelis Islam A’la Indonesia (High Islamic Council of Indonesia) between 1942 and 1945. Prior to that the building served as the Kunstkring Art Center in Batavia after it was built in 1914.

Agung said the building also housed the Buddha Bar, a French pub franchise, which caused quite a stir.

The drinking establishment shut its doors in 2010 after being in operation for only two years following protests from the Buddhist communities.

Kunstkring has become a favorite destination for Jakartans like Nuty Laraswaty, 45, who lives and works in East Jakarta.

“I personally like to explore the city’s cultural heritage, delicacies, and old buildings.

“Here I get to see this historical building,” Nuty told The Jakarta Post over the weekend.

She said she had taken part in the walking tour before and because Saturday’s tour explored culinary spots in Cikini, she immediately signed up after seeing the program on Instagram.

Nuty’s next destination was the Cut Meutia Mosque which, unlike regular mosques in the city, has no minarets and was not designed to face the qibla, making worshippers pray diagonally when inside the building.

“This building was not originally a mosque, but served as a marketing office for developers in the Menteng area,” Agung said.

During colonial times, the building was used as an office for the architecture firm N.V. Bouewploeg. After independence, the building had multiple functions before being inaugurated as a mosque by former Jakarta governor Ali Sadikin in 1987.

Next up, the group paid a visit to the Gado-Gado Bonbin restaurant, which has been open since 1960.

The name Bonbin is an abbreviation of Kebun Binatang (zoo), which was relocated to Ragunan, South Jakarta, in 1966.

Afterwards, they made a brief stop in front of a school building in Cikini, which is famous for being the site of an assassination attempt on the country’s first president, Soekarno.

“This is where it happened, though it was only an attempted assassination,” Agung said.

In November 1957, a man threw five grenades at Sukarno.

The explosions failed to kill him but it caused the death of nine students and a pregnant woman. It injured 50 others.

The last stop on the tour was the Metropole cinema, one of the oldest movie theaters in the capital. It was built in 1932 and inaugurated in 1949.

Jakarta Good Guide regularly holds pay-as-you-wish tours to city landmarks such as Kota Tua in West Jakarta, Glodok Chinatown in West Jakarta, the Jakarta City Center around the National Monument (Monas) in Central Jakarta and the Pasar Baru historical shopping district in Central Jakarta.