More converge around 'Little Korea' in Jakarta

Lured from Korea by the potential of the timber industry, Kim Woo Jae arrived in Indonesia in 1977. He settled in a house in the heart of Senayan in the Senopati District in South Jakarta, little knowing the pivotal role he would play in the establishment of what has come to be known as "Little Korea".

Three years passed before Kim finally realized that his efforts to export logs would never bear fruit due to difficulties with suppliers in Kalimantan.

"I needed to survive, and since there was no Korean food supplier in Jakarta, I saw an opportunity to supply the Korean community with food from the homeland," he said.

Kim and his wife started a home-based business making homemade Kimchi (Korean pickled cabbage) and fermented bean sauce. By 1982, their they had to move their business across the street into a real shop.

Korean expatriates from all over Jakarta began converging on the shop regularly, and by 1986, Kim had moved into a supermarket building down the road.

The Mu Gung Hwa Supermarket, named for Korea's hardy national flower, a kind of hibiscus, is adjacent to the Jusenny Hotel on Jl. Senayan.

Suddenly, it was as if Kim had planted a fertile seed, with other small businesses catering to the Korean community springing up around it, and more and more expatriate Koreans moving into the Senopati area.

Entering the area from Jl. Suryo or Jl. Piere Tendean, one is immediately welcomed by the sight of hawkers and traditional vendors' stalls in a typical South Jakarta green residential area.

The Korean feel of the place, however, is immediately apparent. A sign in both Indonesian and Korean announces that the hairdresser is open for business.

Other shops bunched together nearby, around the Mu Gung Hwa Supermarket, assures first time visitors that they are in the right place when it some to specifically Korean goods and services. Among these businesses are a couple Korean restaurants and a day-care center for busy expatriate mothers.

An acupuncture center, with a sign in Korean, stands not far down the street, and in nearby Jl. Suryo, there is even a Korean medical center.

Although first-time visitors may find some of the places a bit difficult to find, most Korean expatriates are familiar with the area and the businesses that can be found in the surrounding streets, according to Kim.

"Maybe Koreans chose to settle here due to the easier access to their Korean grocery needs," he said, explaining one of the reasons for the area's development.

"I just hope that the Korean and Indonesian communities can learn from each other's cultures, which will provide a benefit for both countries," he said, adding that it would also make business dealings simpler. (005)