Perjalanan Mencari Pulang: Semarang - Day 1

Vakansi

After a long time planning a whole-family-trip to Jogja-Semarang for the 2015 year end, finally it messed up. My cousin Dino and I have a final semester exam that wouldn't finish before 23rd, while according to the plan, we should've already got back home from the trip by then. This means, it's impossible for us to attend a relative's wedding in Jogja, which is actually the reason why the whole family is having this trip in the first place. It gets more impossible when it turns out that my uncle has a business trip around that time too.

The whole plan was nearly cancelled, and so did my yet-to-come-happiness. I mean, oh please, we haven't had a family vacation in YEARS. I haven't had any vacation in MORE YEARS than my other family members had, and to be a little frank, I was not in a good shape in the last few months of 2015. I've been busy and sad and to be fucking honest, I needed a vacation for the sake of my sanity. (which I doubt ever existed, though).

I was not the only one who felt disappointed; my cousins were, too. So, after some bargaining and discussing, the trip was not cancelled. They would still attend the wedding, still take off to cities, still have a family vacation.

And yes, I meant "they". I wasn't coming.

Need to ask why? Well final semester exams are mandatory, that's why. (Unless we love our campus so much that we want to have an extra longer period of study there but really no thanks.)

So we have to let go that everybody will be there, while we're here, living our own plan.

But my parents and I have decided to make another trip only for us. So my Mom would go to Semarang with the whole family, the wedding in Jogja, and then when finally everyone go home, she'll go back to Semarang because me and my Dad--who agreed to go later than everyone so he can accompany me, though what he said is that he doesn't want to miss more rehearsals before the Christmas break--will join her in Semarang. After that, we're gonna go to Purwonegoro, my Dad's hometown.

So that's it. We were going. And with that commence; Perjalanan Mencari Pulang.

Keberangkatan

25/12/15

We departed from the station around 9.20 in the morning. I always loved trains; it's fast, no traffic jams, not particularly shaky, and it's comfortable. So we said bye-bye to our city, and here we go Semarang!

If there is such a thing as a "holiday atmosphere" that can make anything seems so perfect, or maybe such a thing as a "mother's homeland sensation", well maybe that sensation is exactly what was striking me as I get off the train. I mean, Semarang is captivating. Okay--before you call me exaggerating, I'm gonna explain that it's not like I'm a person who travels a lot to have that many comparison, anyway, but I just love this city. I've been here once before when I was a sixth grader, and though it had been years (since I am a college student right now) but the strange effect it had gotten me is totally the same; I feel like I knew this place, like I'm so comfortable, so homey in a city I've never lived in. Is it even possible that these weird-homey-feeling is actually my subconsciously, deeply-planted image of this city, just as told by my mother in her childhood stories, that somehow, matches the reality? And somehow, that image marries the reality, and therefore, generating this tingling sensation of belonging? I mean like seriously, is that even possible? If that is, whoa, I live in such a hidden fairy tale all this time.

Stasiun Semarang Tawang (Station of Semarang Tawang)

So around 3 in the afternoon, after we were arrived in the Tawang station, we got picked up by my Mom and my Bude Wiwik (It's like Aunty. In fact, Aunty in Bahasa translates to Tante, your Mom/Dad's younger sister. But the Javanese have a word for their older sister; Bude). Before the adventure continues, we decided to have a late lunch. But MAN, could I get any more excited? The station we were from and also the restaurant we were heading to was located in Kota Lama, the old part of Semarang that still keeps the buildings as they were in the time of Dutch's invasion. That means; old architectures, pavement roads, and awesomeness.

GPIB Immanuel (Gereja Blenduk)

We ate in this restaurant called Ikan Bakar Cianjur. It is located on a very strategic place; just not so far from the Tawang Station and also near the GPIB Immanuel (Gereja Blenduk), which is an attraction for the tourists. Besides the excellent menu, the whole concept of this restaurant is totally embracing the spirit of Kota Lama itself, which is old-looking, and amazing. When you got your first step on that building, you are welcomed by the beautiful-classic-painted floors. Then the sight of pretty furnitures and decorations follows. You know what, they even put their air conditioners into a shell looks like an old food cabinet! They really take their concept seriously, props to them.

After our hunger went away, there was only nothing left except fatigue. My Bude was willing to take us to Lawang Sewu ("A Thousand Doors", a tourist attraction, must-visit if you're in this city) but since all of us had been there before, and that me and my Dad's joints were aching after nearly 6 hours of being on the train, we decided to check in to the hotel.

Our hotel was a tiny one called Java Banana Residence. It is located in Bukit Sari, Gombel, and provides only 15 room, which means less noise, less crowd, and perfect for people like me, haha. From the front, it looked pretty tiny and closed. I was pretty surprised because I wouldn't thought it was a hotel, but when I got inside, I think it looked pretty big. And the best part is on the first and second floor; there was a lobby with a big book shelf on one side of the wall, and a comfy chairs and table to sit and read! On the second story, they even got a little leveling for everyone to sit on, if they want to sit more casually rather than being stuck up in chairs.

 

But we still haven't call it a day. Yet. After Bude Wiwik went home at around twilight, we hit the shower and freshen ourselves up, and after that, we planned on visiting my mother's cousin; my Bude Ambik.

But before we were done, turned out that she and her son, Mas Rendhi, picked us up to the hotel. Long story short, we went to her house that wasn't located far from there (oh what was I thinking?Without the crazy traffic jams like in my city, nowhere in Semarang would seem far!).

My Bude and Pakde ("Uncle". A name to call our parents' older brothers/male cousins, or the spouse of their older sisters/female cousins) have three sons, which means I have three Mas from them. "Mas" is a Javanese word for us to call our older brothers/male cousins/relatives, or basically, just any male person who is older than you, in order to respect them. And in Java, we have a thing called "abu". It's like, the level in the family tree. If my Bude has a son, though he is a lot younger than me, I must call him "Mas" (even if he's 5 years old while I'm 23, for example), because his mother's "abu"/level is older than my Mom. And therefore, my Mom should call her "Mbak" (The usage is like "Mas", but it's the female version).

Well, tell you what, despite the fact that we are relatives, we don't meet that often. My Pakde Dodi has a job that requires his family to keep on moving from city to city ever since their children were very young. And though they have stayed in Semarang for the last few years now, I haven't had many chance to meet them ever since I was little. I even only get the chance to meet Mas Rio, my Misan (the children of our parents' cousins--or how do you call it in English? Second cousin?) last year, when he came to my city to sign up for a university, though he end up studying in Semarang. And I only met his brothers, Mas Rendhi and Mas Reza for like, once. That visit to their house was literally the first time I met them. I mean...they're my misans. And we only met in one or two opportunities! If we never have met each other before, we could just cross path on the street without a single knowledge that our mothers played together when they were little, as the granddaughters of the same grandparents. Moreover, Mas Rio has exactly the same age as mine, so maybe, if we grew up together as children, we'd be just as brother-sister-like as I was to my one-year-younger cousin Dino, whom I spent my childhood playing with. Geez. I wish we can have more encounters in life. You know, it's great to get to know your family and to be able to get to know them as a person; as someone real; more than just a distant image extracted from your mother's explanation of your family tree. To meet them in person, to spend time with them, to know what they like to do in their spare times, or what kind of music they listen to, or even what they are into in life--to know these things that you learned directly from the person--it feels genuine. And personal. 

And it feels like I have brothers.

After we had dinner together, Mas Rio, Bude Ambik, my Mom and I planned for our destinations to visit during our stay in Semarang.

They recommend sooo many cool places and Mas Rio even volunteered to accompany us to explore them! He also recommended Semawis as a place to visit, since its a very cool and interesting place, which after I listened to his explanation, I couldn't agree more; It's a market located in the Chinatown, and it's a big destination for a culinary excursion. Mas Rio said that maybe the food aren't that one of a kind though, like maybe I've seen foods like that in the capital. Well I could not say for sure since I have no idea how exactly that would be like, but I bet to him that the atmosphere is winning. The scene, the feel, the spirit in it is what makes the whole experience extraordinary. He agreed to that, and I wish we all could visit Semawis but since there are so many interesting places we want to see, we had to put Semawis on the list of the must-visited destinations for our next visit to Semarang. But I promise Semawis, just wait. I will see you one day!

So after the talk was done and the plans were made, they were gonna take us back to our hotel.

But since they figured out that me and my Mom loves the sight of a city skyline at night, Mas Rio said he could take us to the hotel through a road where that scenery would be all clear...OH LORD  I don't even know how that night could get even better than it already was!

So we--Bude Ambik and Mas Rio, my Mom, Dad, and myself--jumped to the car and swiftly take off. It was a SUPER fun late night drive for me, knowing that I was going to a place I'm sure I'll love.

I got to tell you, this skyline that we're talking about is a real bucket list for me. Don't bother to wonder; my city has plateau and plains, but not as extreme as it should to allow anyone to see the city's skyline. I never see the horizon out there! (In my city I actually know a place where I can see a slight skyline--it's a household built on a lowland, and right next to it is a boulevard that was located on a higher level, and I always go through that boulevard, mostly around midnight. And every time I did, I couldn't help but to stare at that household, cherishing every brief second I can have before those walls and buildings start to cover up that scenery. And even with that limitation, I treasure that place so much!) 

Despite that fact, a skyline seemed to be a very usual thing in this city. Well, Semarang is a one of a kind city; it is a coastal town, but it has some hilly areas. It's divided into two parts; Kota Atas (the upper part) and Kota Bawah (the lower part). The hotel and my Bude's house is located in Kota Atas, and from certain spots, the scenery of Kota bawah would be totally clear. Imagine, it's an everyday scenery for Mas Rio, but to me it was a dreamy sight I always long for. How unfair!

And finally, we've reached the best part; we were driving uphill and I was so focused on how heavy the car now feels. But it was not until I looked outside the window on my right and see a wide, broad city spread before me like an ocean of lights.

I just managed to gasp, when my mother was showing me the exact same thing I was gasping for. And ahead--after a constant view of the road uphill--we finally reach the top, and like riding a roller coaster, my jaw dropped.

But not because of fear. Because of awe.

That broad city I saw from my right window, was like a little bad trailer of an Oscar-winning movie. It caught your heart, but it was a total understatement. Man, I was not even prepared; all I can see from the top of the climb was a stretch of city; like a pitch black ocean with fireflies swimming in it. And they glow. And they blink to me. And the whole symphony of lights and darkness are totally responsible for making me fall in love.

I mean, oh my God! Skylines! It's a real city skyline, glowing at night, looking so magical, so bizarre, so wondrous, and so full of soul. Man I'm not lying, tempat itu punya jiwa. And then, and then, and then, as I thought that it was the closest I can ever get to that scenery I long for, and therefore I did not dare to dream for more, Mas Rio did this;

He turned the car to the left, to a very quiet alley, where on the left, stood a solitary house on a little high edge, surrounded by trees and covered in vines. And on the right; was a cliff; steep, bordered by a short cement walls, covered with vines too, and far beyond the fence; the city.

Oh Good Lord in Heaven. I am truly blessed.

I always consider skylines as a very magical thing; you can stand still in one place staring at that, waiting for them to change into another time of the day; day to afternoon, afternoon to twilight, twilight burst in its dancing colors only in a split second before they turn into evening, evening to late night, midnight, then it rolls to dusk and dawn, and morning, and day. And the world rolls the time flows, but the moment seemed to stop. Know what--there's a quote I got reminded of when I think of this, it's from the movie Boyhood and I am truly agree with that; we didn't seize the moment. The moment seizes us.

"Kota itu telah menjadi kekasih
yang Horisonnya, mengeja namamu dengan fasih."

COULDN'T CONTROL MY OVERWHELMING FEELS AND FACE

I swear if I lived in that house on the top of the edge, or anywhere nearby, any house granted with such a privilege as that scenery--I would certainly go out to the street and sit on that cement walls every single time I feel sad, or happy, or dried of inspirations. That place is like a spring of inspirations, of poems and odes and I would bear sitting there for hours just to have a conversation with the night. Just to have a long heart-to-heart talk with the city. Just to make it mine. Just to marry it, and claim it as my lover for eternity.

After tons of photos, we proceeded.

Mas Rio and Bude Ambik decided to show us the Simpang Lima first before they drove us home. It's a big intersection consists of five boulevard, and there are many attractions and food carts there. I didn't even know that there were so many things such as these Odong-odong out here! (Odong-odong; a little decorated vehicle that we can rent to go around a certain area. Actually I don't know if they call it "Odong-odong" too in Semarang, but it's basically the same thing. Usually the kids love this, tho in fact I DO TOO.

Then we hit some foot cart and bought a bowl of Ronde. It's like, ginger water, brown sugar, nuts, and idk what else. Tastes like Sekoteng to me, though. But it was great.

When it was done, we got back to the hotel and sleep.

WOW. To me, that day alone was a very great starter for a holiday I very rarely have, and it was only the beginning.

So stay creeping cause I'll be telling you about the adventure that awaits us the next day!

Perjalanan Mencari Pulang

Pulang.


Itulah satu kata yang mungkin maknanya paling kita rindukan. Kata yang akan langsung mendentangkan sebuah lonceng dalam kepala kita; membuat kita lantas teringat akan suatu tempat yang hangat, nyaman, damai, suatu tempat yang jauh mengawang dalam ingatan, tempat di mana kita merasa dicintai dan utuh.

Tapi, konsep pulang adalah suatu hal yang lucu.
Artinya adalah "kembali", ke rumah kita yang sesungguhnya. Ke tempat kita berasal. Tempat di mana kita bermula, awal dari segalanya, sebelum kita memulai perjalanan.
Maka, jika "pulang" berarti "kembali", tempat ke mana kita pulang, berarti adalah tempat yang sudah pernah kita kunjungi sebelumnya.

Lalu jika kau belum pernah menemukan "rumah" dengan segala makna yang seharusnya, tak berhakkah kau berkata; "Aku ingin pulang"?

Kalau iya, lantas apa yang kau rindukan? Rumah yang tak pernah kau kenal, atau perasaan pulang itu, yang entah bagaimana bisa kau impikan, meski sepertinya, belum pernah kau kecap sepanjang ingatan?

Kalau begitu, "pulang" adalah suatu kemewahan yang tidak semua orang bisa dapatkan, because tell you what, "pulang" adalah suatu aksi yang lebih dari sekedar "kembali ke tempat yang kau tinggali." Karena "rumah" cuma benda, dan tak ada benda apa pun yang bisa memberi rasa tanpa nyawa.

Maka bila "pulang" mutlak mengandung "rindu", berhakkah seseorang berkata "Aku ingin pulang kampung", jika ia belum pernah menginjakkan kaki ke kampungnya? Bisakah kau merindukan kampung yang tak pernah kau kenal?

Seringkali, sebagai generasi kedua dari orang-orang yang merantau, kita "mewarisi" kampung orang tua kita. Jika Ayahmu orang Padang, maka kau bilang "Kampungku di Padang", jika Ibumu orang Samarinda, kau bilang "Kampungku di Samarinda". Tapi rasanya itu salah. Itu kampung mereka! Apa arti itu semua, jika kita tumbuh besar di kota yang sama sekali lain, dan tak pernah mengenal kampung halaman orang tua kita? Apa hanya karena kita pernah pergi ke sana, lantas itu juga menjadi kampung halaman kita?

Bukankah tragis, jika kampung halaman orang tuamu bukanlah kampung halamanmu...? Sungguh tragis bila kamu "pulang ke kampung halaman" tapi justru merasa asing!

Karenanya aku menolak tragedi itu. Aku harus menemukan "pulang" itu. Aku ingin mengenal, menjelajahi, dan mencintainya, aku ingin memahami rasa apa yang menghambur kedua orang tuaku saat mereka menginjakan kaki di tanah airnya, debar apa yang menghantam jantung saat menelusuri kembali jalan-jalannya, dan derau tawa yang menggema ingatan dalam tiap langkahnya. Aku juga ingin merasa pulang, bersama dengan orang-orang yang merupakan tempatku pulang.

Oleh karena itulah, I have decided. Whole-heartedly, I present to you a documentation of a journey; Perjalanan Mencari Pulang.


Stay creeping!