Centuries old seafaring tradition still exists in Surabaya

By Simon Marcus Gower

SURABAYA (JP): The heat is high in central Surabaya and dust rises from its ever traffic laden streets making a walk around this large and centuries old city a difficult experience.

But there are few pedestrians on these streets. The center of modern Surabaya has become a series of wide, sweeping one-way streets that may confuse the visitor but are clearly designed to improve traffic flow through and around the city. In older parts of Surabaya the pedestrian may experience similar difficulties. Aged, crumbling colonial buildings stand in tightly developed rows facing each other across narrow streets that leave no space for walkways.

Among these narrow aged streets clouds of dust and polluting fumes are belched up by trucks that tell of Surabaya as a place of trade and as a port. Many of the colonial buildings are old warehouses into and through which masses of merchandise pass either as imported goods or export trade. It is here, then, that a first suggestion of Surabaya's importance as a port may be glimpsed.

In the modern center of the Surabaya there are few hints to the city's seafaring significance. International hotels rub shoulders with multistory shopping plazas that offer air- conditioned luxury and respite from the heat and dust of the busy city.

In the more congested colonial parts of the city the architecture itself tells of the city's seafaring history. The colonial buildings show the way in which the Dutch East Indies Company (VOC) developed the city into the major seaport in the area. For centuries, Surabaya remained rebellious and violently resilient to the power and control of the VOC.

However, by the middle of the 18th century the Mataram king was forced to concede control of the city. Thus, under colonial control, Surabaya steadily grew and in particular its port was developed. Indeed by the beginning of the 20th century it was the largest city in the then Dutch East Indies, larger even than Batavia, now Jakarta.

Further evidence of the colonial and cosmopolitan growth of the city stands in the older parts of the city in the form of the Arab Quarter, (or Kasbah Quarter). In the center of this quarter, and thus the point one inevitably aims to reach, is a mosque which was built in 1900 and is said to be the oldest in East Java.

Maze-like alleyways twist and turn and hide the mosque. But upon entering this quarter it is clear that a different and immigrant region of the city has been reached. The children running, playing and cycling through these alleys do not have Javanese or even eastern features. Indeed, many of them, wearing one-piece white flowing robes, look as though they have been transported directly from Saudi Arabia or Egypt. But the language they speak is Indonesian and they are Indonesians. Their forefathers, perhaps centuries ago, sailed here bringing their Islamic faith and an Arabic atmosphere to this portion of the city.

In the midst of the narrow alleys and congested housing is the Ampel Mosque. One of the nine wali, the traveling Islamic preachers who are reputed to have been among the first carriers of Islam to Java, Sunan Ampel, established this mosque. He died in 1481 and his grave lies within the mosque's walls. His presence in Surabaya is a further example of the city's centuries-old significance as a seaport. It is widely agreed that these wali traveled to the archipelago following the existing trade network.

The Arab Quarter is a busy hub of the city. The mosque stands as a place of pilgrimage for many Indonesians who come to honor the memory of Sunan Ampel and partake of the holy waters that also flow at the rear of the mosque.

Near to the Arab Quarter is Jembatan Merah (Red Bridge), which is another reminder of the city's international significance. Today this area is dominated by a shopping mall but its past tells of international events. At the end of World War II thousands of British troops landed here to oversee the removal of Japanese forces and help to restore Dutch control of the city.

The British army met stiff resistance from Indonesian fighters and had to reinforce with more troops and air attacks. It took more than three weeks to put down the rebellious locals but historians agree that the Battle of Surabaya marked a turning point in the independence movement. It was the site of some of the fiercest fighting ever seen in the islands and showed the strength of commitment to resistance. In Surabaya today, Tugu Pahlawan (Heroes Monument) remembers the thousands who died trying to reject the reinstatement of colonial rule.

North of the monument and Jembatan Merah one approaches the port of Surabaya. Sweeping up and down these roads is a different kind of traffic this an indicator of the port's huge scale, for massive trucks hauling containers pass to and from the hundreds of cargo ships that dock at the port. Vast prefabricated warehouses proliferate here and the ever-busy cranes that lift the containers from the ships line the skyline. Soon the seawaters are reached and the full extent of the port can be witnessed.

Dozens of cargo ships sit placidly anchored in the waters waiting to dock while numerous others are docked and port workers busily work on, over and around them.

Small boats buzz around the giant ships and ferries transporting passengers to dry land while the big ships have to wait for a docking point. The waters are heavily polluted but that does not deter fishermen and, despite oily deposits lapping up to the harbor walls, the view across the Strait of Surabaya is impressive.

Similarly impressive is the giant statue of an Indonesian naval officer that proudly looks out across the strait. Erected as a tribute to the Indonesian naval forces this giant statue stands upon a building that houses a naval museum. One of the features of this museum is a gong, called Kyai Tentrem, which is reputed to be one of the largest in the world. The combined height of the pedestal building and the giant figure is just over 60 meters, which makes this one of the tallest monuments in Southeast Asia. Quite apart from its grand scale this monument has a regal and noble appearance.

Looking proudly and calmly down on the intense activity of the port this figure watches the coming and going of hundreds of sea vessels. The sultry and dusty heat of Surabaya brings its own intensity but the port of Surabaya draws international and domestic vessels, as it has done for centuries as perhaps the most central port in the whole of the country.