I have a particular interest in the history of ancient civilizations especially during the 6th to 19th centuries. If you are my frequent reader, you know that I did many trips to temples and historical places in the country. From all of my trips, I can conclude that the more I explore it, the more I am left in awe.To me, Indonesia wasn’t an uncivilized country or a place. Ancient java in particular is not a jungle nor ruled by the law of the jungle. It was a civilized place where even during the 16th century, they had refined culture, beautiful language and even a rather advanced political system. They traded with people overseas and were welcoming of them. Until, the greedy explorers came and colonization changed the course of history. While it's true that Indonesian kingdoms were not perfect and had their own wars, I often wonder if the changes brought by colonization were ultimately for the better or worse. Today, many of us are lucky to be able to peek into the era of Indonesia's ancient civilization. And this time, my adventure took me to the eastern side of Yogyakarta as I explored the ancient city of the Mataram Sultanate, known as Kota Gede.

I think it’s also fitting that today is #wednesdaywalk day and I am doing a walk to this ancient city. For the record, Kota Gede is also the first capital of the Mataram sultanate and much like any other ancient capital city, they have an open square, royal residencies, the wall separating the royal and the commoner neighborhood, and royal springs area. Those are something that I was seeing today. Honestly, I was expecting more to see many remains but these days, only a few that have been preserved from this small ancient city.

As soon as we got down from the car, my mom and I were greeted by a gate that immediately caught our attention. From a distance, my mom thought the surrounding inner gate was made of copper, but upon closer inspection, we saw that it was actually a beautifully carved wooden door. The gate structure also reminded me of the ancient gates in East Java, which are made of brick rather than stone walls.

Stepping Through the Gates: A Journey Through Time to Mataram Sultanate

Passing through that gate, we were transformed to another era. We saw an open square with a mosque that doesn’t look like a mosque. As we read in the information board, this mosque has a classic pre-islamic architecture that was built back in 1589 AD. This mosque has 5 areas that are still functioning even today.We didn't go inside the mosque, but instead just looked at it from the outside. We then walked through more gates that led us to the yard before the royal tombs and the springs.

As we strolled through the area, we saw children running around, as well as people wearing traditional Javanese clothes. Some were posing for pre-wedding photos, while others were simply trying to experience life during the Mataram Sultanate. Despite the heat, the area around the royal tombs and springs felt much cooler. I saw many beautiful butterflies and heard birds singing loudly. It was a serene yet lively place that was calming to be in. And in that place, there are many beautiful flowers like you see below.

As we walked through the yard leading up to the tomb and spring, I felt a sense of mysticism in the air. It was clear that this was a sacred place and I made sure to be respectful. Although I don't necessarily believe in such things, I do believe that ancient places like this hold wisdom and knowledge that has been preserved for many years. And that we have to respect it.

Those are incense and offerings but in java we call that as "kemenyan"

We also came across a sign in Javanese, which my mom and I couldn't understand. Not wanting to offend or disrespect the place, we decided to ask the staff to interpret it. The staff was wearing a native javanese attire and was most likely working for the king. If I haven’t mentioned it or if it’s your first time reading, I live in the city where the king is still ruling. Anyway, back to this cryptic board sign. Since I was holding a camera, I read along the line about “motret” which means taking a picture with a camera/mobile phone. So, I was mainly wondering which part that I should not capture and the staff told me, it was mostly inside the royal tombs.

He also mentioned that if we want to get inside the royal tomb, we must change our attire, renting a native javanese attire in which women should wear something called “kemben” female torso wrap. Since I did not bother and nor wanted to do that, we just went to the spring area where we were allowed to take pictures.

Batik that I reckon is used for the female as the torso wrap.

Attire for male visitors who want to enter the royal tomb

The spring area was even cooler than the courtyard. We walked down a few stairs and found a small compound with a small pool filled with fish. It reminded me of other sacred springs around the country. I wanted to stay longer because it was so refreshing and relaxing. Some people were lounging around or having snacks, while others were taking a nap in the gazebo. It was a peaceful and serene place to be. But since we have other places to go, we bid goodbye to it.

We circled around the area a couple more until we decided to check out a place called, between two gates.

Exploring Unique Architecture of Kota Gede's, Javanese Traditional Houses

Between two gates is basically a privately owned road and neighborhood with ancient-style javanese houses.

These houses are small and made of wood. As you can see below, some of it is attached by a piece of thick wood. I think this place is more suitable for anyone who studies architecture and fancies it because they are pretty unique and also have interesting structures.

This place is not far from the royal tombs and part of the commoner neighborhood. It was also an interesting place to be in where we can see the past, present and the future. During our walk, we came across a house that reminded my mom of my great grandmother's place. She said it was large and fun to run around. She told me that the house had a similar layout and design. Then after exploring that small road, we decided to sit for a while and had a chit chat.

We talked about how we were amazed by the place we visited and saddened that only a few parts of the city remains. Nowadays, the surrounding area is inhabited by locals who are used to visitors and tourist wannabees like my mom and me. These people go about their daily routines while we explore and try to imagine what life was like in the past.

Now, I can say that I have fully explored all parts of Yogyakarta and finally walked through this ancient place. And I have gained a deeper appreciation for my own culture as I learned new things and was reminded of the fact that I have forgotten how to speak and understand ancient Javanese script, which is present on many of the signs and markings throughout this area. Overall, it was a rewarding and educational experience to walk through this historical place.