Sawahlunto located in Sumatera Barat (West Sumatra), 95 km from the capital Padang, about 650 m above sea level. In the north the small town borders on the Tanah Datar district, in the east on Sijunjung, and in the south on Solok. In 2005 Sawahlunto had 52,457 inhabitants.
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| Sawahlunto | ||
| province | Sumatera Barat (Western Sumatra) | |
|---|---|---|
| Residents | 52.457 (2005) | |
other value for residents on Wikidata: 61427   | ||
| no tourist info on Wikidata: | ||
| location | ||
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background
Cities like Bukittinggi, Padang Panjang or Solok are shaped by the Minangkabau culture, in contrast Sawahlunto, this city is marked by mining and the Dutch colonial rulers. The old city center has more than 100 buildings in the Dutch colonial architecture style. This makes the city worth protecting and seeing.
When the Dutch engineer Willem Hendrik De Greve discovered coal near Sawahlunto around 1867, the valley surrounded by mountains was quickly expanded into a mining town that brought together numerous people: high-ranking Dutch officials, workers from West and North Sumatra, Java, but also Chinese all of Indonesia.
By 1908 the Dutch colonial rulers were giving forced laborers 18 cents a day to work and whipping them if they rebelled. They were mainly convicts from various Dutch prisons in Java, Bali and Sulawesi, known as "Orang Rantai" (people with chains on their legs). Contract workers in the Sawahlunto colliery received 32 cents a day, as well as accommodation and food for the sick. Other workers got 62 cents a day, but without any other perks. So it is quite understandable when Indonesians referred to Sawahlunto as a prison camp for forced laborers at the beginning of the 20th century.
After a century of coal mining, the coal mining in Sawahlunto ended in 2002. The reason was that the railway company gave up the coal transports and the easily accessible coal seams had reduced. In these hundred years 30 million tons of coal were mined.
In 2009 the city received the UNESCO award for the preservation of cultural heritage: "Sawahlunto's main industry during the Dutch colonial era was coal mining. During the early 20th century he created an industrial landscape consisting of a train station, workers' barracks and an industry -Kitchen and administration buildings, all connected to the mining industry. The town of Sawahlunto has preserved these structures by creating a living museum that recalls the important role mining played in the history of the settlement. "
getting there
- Of Padang, the capital of Western Sumatra, it takes about 2 hours by bus to Sawahlunto.
- Of Padang Panjang A tourist train runs for three hours to Sawahlunto every Sunday at 8.30 a.m. The 80 km long route passes Lake Singkarak, the second largest lake in Sumatra after Lake Toba. The train then travels through a dark 840 m long railway tunnel (Lubang Kalam, built in 1894) before reaching the railway station in the mining town. The 2nd class costs 50,000 Rp., Round trip 100,000 Rp.
mobility
The sights are all within easy walking distance. For children, the city has set up a small motorized train that drives to all the facilities on the street that are worth seeing.
Tourist Attractions
- Railway Museum. The railroad was built in 1893 to transport the coal from Sawahlunto to the coast, where it was shipped and exported to other countries. The construction of the railway changed the remote jungle village into a developing colonial city. When the railway company stopped transporting coal, the station was converted into a museum, the second railway museum in Indonesia. It contains a well-kept collection of machines and tools from this train station: for example beacons and signal trumpets. An English-language brochure with a tour of the museum city is also available here.Open: Tue - Sun 9 a.m. - 5 p.m.Price: ticket 3,000 Rp.
- Agung Nurul Islam Mosque. The minaret of the "Great Mosque" can be seen near the train station on the main road from Solok towards Sawahlunto. Built in 1894, this tower was originally the chimney of a steam power plant. The tower is about as high as the surrounding mountains, so that the wind could not drive the smoke into the city, but over the mountains. Under the old generator building is a bunker that the Indonesian resistance fighters used in 1945 to store weapons and ammunition. In 1955 the building was rededicated as a mosque.
- The cultural center. The building, erected in 1910 under the name "Glück auf", was originally an event hall for the Dutch colonial rulers living in Sawahlunto. Then also ball house, swimming pool, a house for bowling alleys. Now after Indonesia's independence, it is the city's cultural center.
- Museum Goedang Ransoem with slaughterhouse. This historic building complex was built in 1918. It contained a large kitchen with two power generators. The kitchen hosted a few hundred people. Every day 65 buckets of steam rice were processed to feed the workers in the mines and also hospital patients. During the colonial period, the large kitchen was also used, among other things, to cook for the Dutch and Japanese army members in Sawahlunto. Employees of the mining company lived here until 1980. From 2005 the buildings have been expanded into a museum. They contain an interesting photo exhibition on the history of the mines.Open: Tue - Sun 9 a.m. - 5 p.m.Price: ticket 4,000 Rp.
- Mbah Soerto Tunnel. Tel.: 62 (0)754 61725. This is the second coal mine that the Dutch opened in 1898. They closed it in 1930 because the high water in the tunnel drove up production costs too much. In 2007 it was reopened for tourism purposes. So you can see the working conditions underground here.Open: Tue - Sun 9 a.m. - 5 p.m.Price: Ticket 8,000 Rp.
accommodation
- Hotel Ombilin, Jl. M. Yamin Pasar Remaja. Tel.: 62 (0)754 61184. Air conditioning, restaurant, hot water for showering and bathing.Price: from 250,000 Rp.
Practical advice
Tourist Information
- Tourist office, Jl. Soekarno Hatta No. 33: Cantor Parsenibud. Tel.: 62 (0)754 61032.
Bank
- BRI bank, Jl. Komplek Puskemas. The building, built in 1917, was originally a comedy theater, later it was used as a tax office and museum.
