The City of Bicycles
 

When a city bears the moniker "the city of bicycles" some serious two-wheelers are to be expected. Yogyakarta, the bearer of this epithet, is a charming city host to a still-functioning Sultan's court - the Sultan's always elected as a matter off course as governor for the Yogyakarta province - and a large number of universities. It's also the gateway to the magnificent monuments of Borobudur and Prambanan. But whether courtier, student or tourist, it's hard to avoid the pedal-powered contraptions.
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P1080011 by ctjr, on Flickr

The city earned this nickname in the seventies, when the street were teeming with bikes. Even though most commuters have changed their pedal powered bikes for the motorcycles that form a constant drone all around Indonesia, the becak or three wheeled pedicab is still part of the infrastructural fabric of the town, especially since Indonesians tend to avoid walking as much as possible and hop on the pedicab for short neighborhood jaunts. For a tourist, the becak is a nice, quiet way to get around, although overcharging is common practice, as are unexpected stops at tourist traps selling "tourist quality" batik and shadow play puppets. The traveler will also see the bicycle, as the unofficial symbol of the city, proudly printed on the t-shirts for sale at the bustling tourist avenue of Yogya, Malioboro street.
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P1080013 by ctjr, on Flickr

But never mind the t-shirts, forget the becaks. To truly experience Yogyakarta as the city of bicycles, go to the alun-alun on saturday night. Young and old gather on this old muster ground behind the sultan's palace for a nice night out. The famous kaki lima, or rolling kitchens (two wheels, one kickstand and the two legs of the cook make the grand total of five) set up shop, selling great food for the hungry riders, enjoyed the traditional Javanese way, sitting on mats on the ground. If you're thirsty, there's always a seller close by with cool drinks or the heavenly es kelapa muda, iced coconut juice. All bike clubs and sub-cultures are present: gangs of BMX'ers, herds of hipsters with fixies and pot-bellied middle aged guys with their piets onthel - the old Dutch or Dutch style city bikes. And off course, all the individuals in between, like that grey old gentleman, contently puffing away on his kretek cigarette next to a fashionable fixie! Lots of lovers, too. Young guys walking with a belle on the left hand and a bike on the right. Hop on with your friends for a ride around the ring road around the parade ground on one of the many four wheeled, six seat pedalcars, festooned with sound systems and lights arranged in all kinds of animal shapes, dragons, lions, horses, elephants - even the ubiquitous Angry Birds.
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P1080159 by ctjr, on Flickr
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P1080167 by ctjr, on Flickr
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P1080128 by ctjr, on Flickr


While the bicycle has given way to the motorbike for personal transportation and is largely relegated to the status of weekend toy, many people sense that this is about to change. The gasoline fueling all these motorcycles is now cheap, 4500 rupiah a liter, or 0.47 USD/0.37 EUR. But by and by, it will be far more interesting to sell the precious black gold to the Americans of the Chinese, instead of selling it at cut-rate prices to the local population. "Let's go back to bike" is a popular slogan on the t-shirts, indicating that a realization is growing that motorization isn't all that it seemed to be. Someday when the wells run dry, this slogan may become a necessity instead of just a very good idea. Yogyakarta, the city with a nostalgic past, exciting present and a bright future as the "city of bicycles".
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P1080229 by ctjr, on Flickr

Oh, and I drooled over a Merckx anniversary, new in plastic.
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P1080115 by ctjr, on Flickr
y.t. as a happy camper at the helm of one of the pedicars
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P1080153 by ctjr, on Flickr

Great pics and story! At first I thought the Merckxx was just in a jumble of locked up bikes.


This.... This is real salesmanship!

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I thought the city of bicycles was Thunder Bay Ont. :)

When I was a kid growing up in the burbs north of LA I rode my bike around most summer nights till 4:00 am when my dad would get up to head to work. I used to dream about a place where people lived on bikes. It looks like you found that place.

Thanks for sharing.

This is among the greatest sentences I've ever read on this forum, I want it chiseled on my tombstone. :thumb:

@ Italuminum - outstanding thread, thanks for the photos!

Dude - awesome thread and story, I feel like I can smell the food! Love the photos and story, keep us updated.

thank you guys! more stories to follow when I found some more bike related stuff to write about.

Hey, that's my country :lol: . Yes Jogjakarta is quite interesting city :thumb:

Great stuff, Italuminium. Wonderful pics. I always thought Amsterdam was the City of Bicycles. There's more than one, obviously.
When I first visited Beijing in the early 90's it was also a city of bicycles. Not any more, sadly.

Cool! I'm in Jakarta now for a semester, are you in JKT as well?

Unfortunately no, I'm in France now and soon moving to Dublin. Anyway have you check Rocket Company at SCBD district? they have awesome collections of bicycle, motorcycle and exotic cars!
www.rocket-company.com

Great thread! I love the international nature of the bicycle religion...

http://www.bikeforums.net/showthread...ing-in-Jakarta

I already wrote this piece about it :p

Thanks for a great report!

Hey, why don't we start a sticky about the cycling scene in each person's corner of the world? I'd like to see some more of these, and would like to show you guys some Mexican bikes in their natural habitat.

I just read it, really nice and true. Thankfully I don't lived there anymore :D

Good idea! Not sure if the mods would feel that C&V is the best place for that though...