Widow

This is Yanti, 37 of age. She became a widow two years ago. It is was then when she had to move to Semarang, her presence in her village was no longer appreciated. So much for sympathy for the departed and grieving. The other women in the village were anxious to see Yanti leave, because they were afraid she would steal one of their husbands. Now she works 15 hours a day in a warung (food stall) nearby the gallery (so I chat with her so now and then, and she talks a lot), her husband’s pension is only 250.000 Rupiah per month.

Day 23

I got a cold. I've got a cold in Semarang. A cold in the hottest city of Indonesia. That must count for something. But I don't know what.

Day 21

My 19th day in Semarang

Sunny days in Semarang

Day 18

Modernization

This is Jalan Warung, i.e. Food Stall Street, in Semarang's China Town. In the weekends this street is closed off for traffic and is opened for food and karaoke lovers. Up to the seventies the buildings in this street had traditional Chinese fronts. The government issued a decree that traditional building fronts were no longer allowed, because modernization ought to be the goal. And the Chinese were afraid for repurcussions.

Semarang by night

These photos are taken from the unfinished fly-over (see day 9).

Day 17

Day 16

Day 15

Slowly slowly Semarang is sinking, not just because the Java Sea is on the rise, but because Semarang's soil is going down by a few centimetres each year.

Day 14

As in other Indonesian cities many old buildings are abandoned in Semarang. Many Indonesians are convinced that these old buildings are haunted. But sometimes this superstition gets a political twist: in Semarang a Novotel hotel is built on a spot where a kampung was located, so the people had to be evicted and as a punishment the people of Semarang are sure that this hotel got haunted by ghosts.

My 13th day in Semarang

In Indonesian cities people use the streets extensively. Not because they are homeless, but because they have homes that are far too small.

DAY 12

When I go around Semarang - or other Indonesian cities - I often get this question: "Dari mana?" Yes, where do I come from?" A confusing question. What kind of answer is expected? My place of birth? Heerlen. The place where I am living now? Jakarta, but officially in Amsterdam. The place where I am staying right now? Rumah Seni Yaitu at kampung Jambe in Semarang, capital of Central Java province, Indonesia.

DAY 11

According to the guide Lonely Planet Semarang can be explored within a day or two. Indeed, if one wants to explore only the highlights then two days are just fine. But how long does it take to get to know a new city? To be familiar with the town's rhythm?

Day 10

My 9th day in Semarang

One needs perseverance to construct something. In Indonesian it seems to require even more determination. Patience is tested. In all Indonesian cities one can see here and there construction sites in a dormant state; some of these have come to a point that destruction is closer to the truth, construction materials have been stolen along the way to find their place in make-shift buildings in the surrounding area. This flyover is a good example. It seems to come out of nowhere. It seems to go nowhere in particular. It is now mere stone stuck in this road. It is now used as a shelter, as a playground, as a storage room.

My 8th day in Semarang

The heath, the scourging heath. And I am human, all too human. I sweat. I swear. I stumble, I tumble. I want to cool down, I want to be cool, very cool. I want to retreat into the night as a night bird. That makes photography rather more difficult though. And that is what I am here for. So I go on, I must go on. I sweat, swear, drink, sweat some more and take a lot of photos.

Food and Soccer

You can wake up Indonesians for two reasoms and two reasons only. Food. And soccer.

7th day in Semarang

How to photograph a city? There is only so much that fits in one frame. Is a city a collection of constructions and infrastructures? It isn’t. A city is its variety of individual persons. Without people a city is not just deserted it is in ruins.