National Monument (Monas), Jakarta - Indonesia
Indonesia National Monument (Monas)
Indonesia National Monument or what Indonesian and Jakarta people usually call as Monas is a monument built to remember the struggle of Indonesian heroes fighting the colonial domination. Monas was built based on the idea of the first president of Indonesia, Ir. Soekarno, with the help of Sudarsono and F. Silaban as the architect, and Ir. Rooseno as the consultant. It’s builts on an area with a width of 80 hectares. Monas was officially open on 17th August 1961 by President Soekarno, and publicly open on 12th July 1971.
The top of Monas shaped like a flame, symbolizing a never extinguished spirit of Indonesian people. The flame was made of bronze medal which weight was 14.5 ton, and was plated with 35 kg gold. The flame has 6 meters diameter and consist of 77 concentrated parts.
The standing pillar of Monas which height is 137 meters, symbolizing a rice pestle, while the cup symbolizing a rice barn. Rice pestle and barn are traditional tools to pound rice, figuring out Indonesia as an agricultural country. They’re also regarded as the symbol of Indonesian people’s fertility, and as the symbol of male and female.
Jakarta people usually utilize Monas area as a place for sport activities, in the morning and afternoon time. Most people visit Monas on weekend and holidays.
Top Yard of Monas
You could reach the top of Monas by elevator. Surrounding the elevator there are emergency latter to be used in case of emergency. From the top yard you could enjoy the view of Jakarta City and the wind blowing and caressing your face. In a clear weather you could enjoy the view of Salak Mountain at the south side, the ocean at the north side, and Soekarno-Hatta International Airport at the west side. While you're in Monas area it's recommended to get into the top yard and enjoy the views from the top.
Independence Room
This room is located at the cup side of Monas, and has an amphitheater shape. In this room were kept the map of Indonesia, the red and white flag of Indonesia, the symbol of Indonesia, which is Garuda, and the replica of Indonesian independence proclaim script at the gateway. You could request the officer there to open the gateway so you could see the script replica while listening to the recorded voice of President Soekarno when he was reading the script.
National History Museum
National History Museum located at the baseman of National Monument (Monas). The width of the museum is 6400 meters (80 x 80), and the whole walls, floor, and pillars are top layered with marble. The museum can hold up to 500 people. At the four sides of the museum there are display windows that shows the life and phenomenon that Indonesian people has gone through since Indonesian ancient time.
Park Area
The park area which surrounds the monument is organized nicely. There are several kinds of plants from various region of Indonesia in the park. There’re many seats provided under big trees. You could see the cultivation of spotted dears that were originated from Istana Bogor, at the park. There’re also pathways structured from green thin stone for you to have your feet massaged by walking on it un-shoes. There’re a pool with fountain and the statue of Princess Diponegoro riding a horse which made of 8 ton bronze medal on the park. This statue was made by Italian artist, Prof. Coberlato as a grant from Dr. Mario, Honores Consulate General in Indonesia. The statue is located near the gate of the tunnel which leads to the monument.
Fountain Attraction
Fountain attraction conducted at Monas Park on every Saturday and Sunday, started from 07:00pm to 08:00pm.
Duration of the attraction take about 35 minutes, accompanied by several songs like Jali-Jali, Lenggak-Lenggok Jakarta, Kopi Dangdut, Lambadia, Winter game, dan Rocketer.
Other Places Near to Monas
Other places located near to Monas are the President Palace, National Museum, The Golden Chariot (Kereta Kencana) Sculpture, Gambir Train Terminal, Bank of Indonesia, Indosat Building (the second biggest telecommunication company in Indonesia), Supreme Court, Immanuel Church, Jalan Thamrin.
Tips
Most of the time the weather is quite hot in day time in Jakarta, hence it’s better to visit Monas in the morning, afternoon or evening time. However if you choose to visit in the day time, do not forget to bring umbrella or hat to cover your head from the sun.
If you visit Monas in the morning you could avoid the long queue to the monument, especially on weekend and holiday. It might be more comfortable to visit on week days.
You could reach Monas either by taxi or bus. If you like to try the bus, it would be more comfortable and safe to use Trans Jakarta Busway. Busway with Blok M to Kota Tua (Old City) route will stop at Monas Busway Terminal.
Source: indonesia-travel-guide.com
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