'Museums can be great places to learn'

'Museums can be great places to learn'

The Jakarta Historical Museum, or Fatahillah Museum, has
successfully applied innovative programs, ranging from fun bike
rides to night tours, to attract more visitors. The Jakarta Post
asked a number of people if they found it interesting to visit
museums.

Pierre, is a visitor to the Fatahillah Museum in West Jakarta.
He is from France but lives and works in Jakarta:

It is interesting to visit a museum like this one. Sometimes I
visit several museums on my days off.

I think it's important to know the history of a city by
observing the historical artifacts and happenings as displayed
here.

As to the number of visitors, maybe the people prefer to spend
their time in shopping malls than in museums. Basically it is the
same here as in European countries. It's not really the case that
Europeans are more interested in visiting museums.

I haven't seen all the museums in the city but I think this
one is quite good.

Perhaps your government needs to work harder to complete the
collection with a better range of artifacts and books, as well as
other things. There is so much that could be done to improve the
museum's condition. Of course, it would need to be prioritized
and would take a lot of money.

Takashi Kumano, is a Japanese tourist from Tokyo who visited
the Fatahillah Museum in West Jakarta recently:

I visited the museum to learn the history of Jakarta.
Actually, I was engaged in both sightseeing and learning history
during my holiday here.

I'm interested in learning about the history from the
artifacts and replicas displayed in the museum.

I cannot say if the museums in Jakarta are in good condition
as I haven't seen them all.

In general, I don't think many people are interested in
visiting museums. Even in Japan, you couldn't say that the
Japanese are more interested in museums than Indonesians.

I think that museums only attract people who are really
interested in history. What happens here is similar to Japan.

Alfi, 29, is an employee with a company in Pondok Indah, South
Jakarta. She lives in Tangerang with her family:

It surprised me to find out that Jakarta still has so many
historic artifacts. It surprised me even more to see that they
are kept well.

I appreciate that the museum management has been applying
innovative programs to attract more visitors. This is necessary
as many museums in the city are dingy and dull. So, there are not
many people interested in visiting them.

But I also realize that many people do not understand the
importance of museums. They don't know that museums can be great
places to learn about our history.

I'm interested in visiting our other museums. I like the
atmosphere and it is very relaxing to spend one's time in
museums.

I'll bring my son to the museums to encourage him to learn
history in a simple way before he starts out in school.

-- Leo Wahyudi S.