RAILWAYS of INDONESIA

For me the best way to travel from Kuala Lumpur to Singapore (but not the other way around. Why? you'll know when you have finished reading this post) is by rail on the overnight sleeper train “Senandung Malam” (“Song of the Night”). I think that this is the most comfortable and cost effective alternative. In addition, it is much more environmentally friendly than flying. In the days of the North Star Night Express, forerunner of the Senandung Malam (described in Paul Theroux’s “The Great Railway Bazaar ”), such a journey would start at the magnificent Mughal style old Kuala Lumpur Station . The station, as well as the Keretapi Tanah Melayu Berhad (KTMB) headquarters opposite it, was designed by AB Hubback, a colonial Public Works employee who had served earlier in India. Drawing of a steam train at the Kuala Lumpur Railway Station. This drawing was made by a Kuala Lumpur street painter based in front of the National Mosque. But today this marvelous building is only used for co...

By the end of the 18 th century, the once mighty Mataram Mataram Empire that used to rule nearly the whole of Java has been reduced to four small splinter principalities in the interior of Central Java: Surakarta , Yogyakarta , Mangkunagaran and Pakualaman . This area, however, was one of the most fertile areas in Netherlands India, and many plantations were established in the area, producing sugar cane, coffee, tobacco, indigo and other products that were mainly for export. Therefore, when it was decided to build a railway in Netherlands India, the first concession given was for a line connecting the vorstenlanden (principalities, lit: 'princely states') and the port of Semarang on the north coast. Four Javanese rulers under one roof, from left to right: Mangkunagara VII, Ratu Emas (consort of Pakubuwana X), Hamengkubuwana VIII of Yogyakarta , Pakubuwana X of Surakarta , the Governor of Surakarta , a sister of Hamengkubuwana VIII, Sekar Kedaton (daughter of Pak...

What secret is hidden behind the tarpaulin at PTKA's office in Semarang? It's C1412! Workers applying a fresh coat of paint Offering of flowers and cigarettes for the guardian spirit of C1412 I was not aware that C1412 had been moved to the PTKA office in Semarang until Mr Albert Pelupessy , a visitor to this blog sent me a message on 18 November 2008. By that time C1412 was already a week in Semarang. Mr Pelupessy is the contractor appointed by PTKA to move and restore C1214. He is also a steam enthusiast. I met him, quite by accident, when I visited the PTKA office - where he was supervising the restoration work - on the afternoon of November 19, 2008. C1412 in Ambarawa (2008) (photo: Nick Bryant) C1412 in Ambarawa (2001) C1412 was Serajoedal Stoomtram Maatschappij ( SDS ) engine number 12. Between 1895 and 1910 SDS ordered fourteen of these 0-6-0 tank engines from Beyer Peacock, Manchester . C1412 itself entered into service in 1909. These engines were main...

Railway station signage, besides its main function in assisting wayfinding, showing directions, and giving information, is often used to present the corporate identity of the company operating the railways. Therefore, the logo of the company is often incorporated in the signage design. INDIA Perhaps because Indian Railways (IR) is a state owned monopoly, there is no urgency to show its identity on its stations. It is taken for granted that anything having to do with railways is IR. CHINA (photo: Hotmauli Sidabalok) (photo: Hotmauli Sidabalok) The same seems to be the case in China. But in most other countries the identity of the railway company is prominently displayed. BRITAIN THE NETHERLANDS MALAYSIA But in INDONESIA, instead of the identity of PTKA (Indonesian Railway Company), the station signage is dominated by a cigarette advertisement . We should not be surprised if someone not familiar with the Indonesian railway situation thinks that the railway company here is "...