Karangbanjar locals reap gains from area's beauty
By Agus Maryono and Ngudi Utomo
PURBALINGGA, Central Java (JP): Sanraji, a 54-year-old farmer, has tilled his paddy field with a traditional wooden plow drawn by a pair of buffaloes for as long as he cares to remember.
But over the past few years the local government's tourism policy has changed his life a little bit.
Unlike in the past, Sanraji no longer has to wait for months, from the time he plows his field to the day when his ripening paddy turns golden, to reap the fruits of his toil.
Now that the Karangbanjar hamlet has been made a "tourist village", money comes in while he is still plowing. Generous tourists, especially overseas tourists, give him money after they take pictures of him at work.
So amazed by this newfound money, Sanraji loves to call it "Godsend".
Sanraji is one of about 1,500 farmers who have directly benefited from tourism since the village of 3,100 people was developed into a tourist destination.
"I can't understand why foreign tourists are fond of watching people like me plow the field," says Sanraji, who often enjoys the generosity of Dutch tourists visiting the village.
Tilling the land with a wooden plow is the most popular farming action among the foreign tourists. A farmer who has his picture taken while plowing can make Rp 20,000 per "photo session".
"At first, I was surprised that they gave me Rp 20,000 for watching me work," says farmer Martuji, 50. "I was wondering how tourists could be attracted to an antique like me."
Elsewhere in the region, diesel tractors are widely used to cultivate the fields.
Similar good luck has also befallen Ngadiyo, a 38-year-old who makes palm sugar. His skill in climbing coconut trees is a special attraction for passing foreign tourists.
He says he does not worry if he does not earn a lot of money with his palm sugar as long as the village continues to attract tourists. He entertains the tourists by climbing up a tall coconut tree and collecting palm juice, the raw material for making the brown sugar.
"Many tourists are usually inclined to give me money for that," he says.
The idea of the tourist village has undoubtedly raised people's standard of living, as Karangbanjar village chief Achmad Sobari attests.
According to Sobari, a domestic tourist visiting the village spends anywhere from Rp 20,000 to Rp 50,000, and a foreign visitor spends between Rp 30,000 and Rp 60,000.
His statistics shows that the number of visitors has steadily risen since the village was developed into a tourist destination in 1993.
In 1994, according to the figures, the number of tourists reached 1,157, including 136 overseas tourists. In 1997, domestic tourists numbered 5,600 and foreign visitors 200. This year, tourism officials have recorded 4,900 local visitors and 113 foreign tourists.
From a total of 18,439 visitors to the village over the past four years, the local government has earned over Rp 553 million, Sobari says.
According to Sobari, Karangbanjar has some characteristics that no other village in the area has. For example, it boasts an arts and crafts industry whose products are exported to several countries. The products include hair pieces, coconut shell handicrafts, woodcrafts, bamboocrafts and paintings.
"This home industry provides Purbalingga's main export commodities," Sobari says.
Karangbanjar is also well-known for its traditional delicacies, including koyah, jenang, wajik and buntil. The village is also acclaimed for its dances, such as kuda lumping, dames, slawatan and ronggeng.
"A number of these dances can be viewed during training workshops," Sobari says.
An hour-long performance of one act of ronggeng presented in full makeup and costume costs Rp 100,000.
The village has 25 traditional homestays to accommodate tourists.
"We offer clean, traditional houses provided with adequate facilities at a very low rate of Rp 10,000 per room," he says.
The area also has a lot of fertile land which is suitable for agrotourism. Fruits such as rambutan (a kind of litchi), sawo (sapodilla), watermelons and mangoes are found growing in the area.
Karangbanjar villagers' strong commitment to preserving their cultural heritage captured the attention of Wathes, a Dutch tourist who paid a nostalgic visit to the village in 1992.
It was Wathes who came up with the idea of developing Karangbanjar into a tourist village.
"Initially, Mr. Wathes spent a few days here. His idea (to create a tourist village) received support from the Purbalingga Tourism Agency," he says.
In 1993, Karangbanjar was proclaimed a tourist village.
The village's other main attraction is that residents preserve their culture solely because this is what they want, not just because tourists want them to do so, according to Sunardi MTP, an academic at Wijaya Kusuma University in Purwokerto.
"So it is the pristine nature and the people's attitudes that represent the village's main attraction," he says.
Also, according to Sunardi, Karangbanjar villagers do not dramatize their lives and the activities of the village for the benefit of the tourists.
"For example, farmers will not plow their paddy fields or climb up coconut trees simply to entertain visitors. They do it for real," says the academic, who is often consulted by the local government about tourism policy.
The fastest way to reach Karangbanjar from Jakarta is by plane, via Semarang or the southern town of Cilacap, and proceed to the village by bus.
It is easier to travel from Cilacap, taking about 90 minutes to reach the village, located about 75 kilometers to the north.
From Semarang, the land journey covers a distance of 200 kilometers and will take you about five hours.
To travel around the village, you can hire a bicycle or motorcycle.
You can also travel from Jakarta to Purbalingga by bus, a journey of about 10 hours. Public transport minibuses will then take you from Purbalingga to Karangbanjar.
If you wish to go by train, disembark at the Purwokerto station, from where you can take a bus to the village. Or you can charter a van from the railway station. The village is some 20 kilometers from the railway station.