Kampong Dipowinatan

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1.5 ( 2 Voter(s) )

A. Overview

At a glance, Dipowinatan is not much different from other kampongs in Yogyakarta. But if you take notice deeper, you will find the distinct atmosphere. The local people give different values that make the kampong a tourism attraction that can bring you to the original life of the locals in Yogyakarta.

Just go deeper and you will see the arrangement of the kampong that is so orderly. As soon as you step your foot on the ground of Dipowinatan, the local people are ready to welcome you. No wonder if your visit will be appreciated with corsage by the local people. The inhabitants of Dipowinatan are a group of people who rigidly live their lives based on the social and cultural values and are committed to preserve the traditions. That is the principal strength of the tourism kampong located in the center of Yogyakarta City.

Dipowinatan was made official as tourism resort in 4 November 2006. Not only was the inauguration attended by the high officials of related institutions and the public, but also by the international guests, such as those from Czech Republic, Slovakia, and Columbia. The former governor of Central Java, Mardiyanto, also attended the special moment. It turns out that Mardiyanto lived his childhood and adolescence in Dipowinatan.

The people of Yogyakarta usually call the kampong Ndipo. Being official as the tourism destination, the kampong is given new nickname to strengthen its tourism image. Now people call it Dipowisata. If you have enough of common tourism objects like the Royal Palace, beaches, or shopping centers, Dipowinatan offers an alternative tour, namely urban tour.

In Dipowinatan, you will be served with the warmth of the people of Yogyakarta. The idea to make the kampong a tourism object was indeed the will of its people themselves, not the local government’s interest. Thus there is no need to doubt its existence. Almost all of the people that consist of approximately 600 families take active part in the activities and tourism services.

Unlike other tourism kampongs, the eminent charm of Dipowinatan is not the specific stuffs or the production of antiques, but the atmosphere and the real social life of the people. Therefore, the visitors can interact directly with the local people, for example by taking part in drawing water from the well or cooking with firewood.

The sincerity and the daily life of the people seems to be the most wanted thing for most tourists, especially the foreign ones. The cordiality of the people very much impresses the visitors. When the visitors return to their home country, they will tell the experience to their friends and family. They then suggest their friends and family not forget to visit Dipowinatan if they happen to come to Yogyakarta.

B. Features

The domestic tourists are indeed not so eager to visit Dipowinatan as the foreign tourists are for they prefer the tourism objects that offer natural beauty, crowd, or other general factors. On the contrary, the rate of the foreigners’ visit to Dipowinatan keeps increasing from year to year. The statistic data by Dipowinatan Resident Association shows that there were 15 visits of 109 people in 2007, 24 visits of 168 people in 2008, and more than 26 visits in 2009.

The fame of Dipowinatan has spread out all over the world because in fact the real social life of the locals is the special attraction for foreign tourists. The foreign tourists often visiting Kampong Dipowinatan mostly come from Eastern Europe, like Czech, Slovakia, Swiss, and Hungary. The relationship between Czech Republic and Yogyakarta is indeed good. Regularly the Czech people visit Dipowinatan every year.

Dipowinatan has been indeed conditioned to be the tourism kampong with its target the foreigners of Europe, especially the Eastern Europe, like Czech and Slovakia. In the future, the target will be broadened to Asia and Australia. The efforts began by opening the access to the tourism stakeholders from the countries of Asia and Australia.

To strengthen the relationship with Czech, in Dipowinatan was built Bohemia House – Cesky Dum or Czech House which functions as the tourism information center. It was made official by the Ambassador of Czech for Indonesia Pavel Rezac and the Deputy Mayor of Yogyakarta Haryadi Suyuti on 26 May 2010.

Later, Czech House will be projected as the origin of the International Business Council and Czech Section. Besides, it can also be the meeting point for all the people of Czech who are visiting Yogyakarta. The existence of Czech House is also expected to contribute to social and economic values for the local people of Dipowinatan and Yogyakarta in general.

Apart from the Czech House, Dipowinatan still has many other features. The chief concept of Dipowinatan is blusukan (exploration). You will be accompanied to walk around the kampong. Besides, you will be invited to visit one of the Javanese families there, where you must wear the Javanese costume and you will be served with the traditional foods of Java.

You can also try the unique package tour of Kampong Dipowinatan. The concept is reality life. So you will be accompanied to see deeper and enjoy the routines and the daily lives of the local people. What is so special is when one of the people conducting a wedding for example, tourists are invited to the wedding.

They not only are invited, but also they are asked to interact and take part in the celebration, for instance by donating or directly helping conduct the ceremony by participating in cooking in the kitchen. There are other special occasions that can be followed by the tourists, such as circumcision, Nyewu Ceremony, residents’ meeting, and so on.

Besides participating in the occasions held by the local people, the tourists will also be asked to visit Pamardisiwi Kindergarten to see and follow the learning process there. The students will serve the tourists with various performances of arts, one of which is drum band.

You are also invited to experience the historical as well as religious tour by visiting the Kintelan Cemetery where one of the fathers of Yogyakarta, Syech Mojo Agung, was buried. Another object is Dalem Joyodipuran. Such a place is the witness of many historical events, one of which is Jong Java Congress on 25-31 December 1928. Previously, on 22-25 December 1928, Dalem Jayadipura was honored to be the host of the first Woman Congress. Today, it functions as the Center of Historical and Traditional Study of Yogyakarta.

There is also an old building in the kampong. The people let it be like what it is and take good care of it. The existence of the building makes the atmosphere of Old Jogja in the kampong stronger. Such a traditional atmosphere is all the tourists, especially foreign, like. To make them more comfortable, trees are planted so that the kampong will be harmoniously chic and cool.

There is also Enjoy the Culture service, a package tour to enjoy the art performances of Javanese traditions. Various traditional arts, including the traditional dances and music of gamelan are ready to entertain the visitors.

C. Location

The Dipowinatan Tourism Kampong is in Keparakan Sub-district, Mergangsan District, Yogyakarta Province, Indonesia.

D. Access

The location of the Dipowinatan Tourism Kampong is easily accessible because it is near the center of Yogyakarta City, about a kilometer from Malioboro. From the post office which is the zero kilometer point of the city, you just go east until you find Gondomanan Intersection, then head for the south direction about 500 meters far. As soon as you reach the front of Purawisata, you just walk east into Kampong Dipowinatan. If you go there by taxi, or package tour, the location is not a matter at all for you will be taken all the way right to the precise position.

E. Ticket

You can visit the kampong independently or by a package tour to enjoy the activities in Dipowinatan. As for the ticket or the cost of the package tour, you can directly contact the organizer of the Dipowinatan Tourism Kampong via email to ito_marsito@yahoo.com or via phone to (0274) 386510, (0274) 386510, or 0811267712.

F. Accommodations and Other Facilities

There is no need to worry about accommodations and other facilities in Dipowinatan because it is not far from the center of the city. To stay, for instance, you need not worry because the local people share their parts of their houses for the visitors. Such a home-stay concept is deliberately made and already a part of the package tour. One of the aims is to build the intimacy between the visitors and the local people of Dipowinatan.

If you go independently, you can easily find a hotel or an inn to stay. In Yogyakarta City, there are many options of lodgings. They range from the luxurious one to the simple and cheap one.

The location that is so close to the center of the city enables you to visit other tourism objects at once, such as the Royal Palace of Yogyakarta, Malioboro, Purawisata, Tamansari, the South Town Square, and so on. You can also easily find various places that provide traditional souvenirs.

Text: Iswara N. Raditya
Photo(s): Collection of Jogjatrip.com
Translation: Al-Amri Arif Sandy
(Primary data and various sources)

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If you are from outside Yogyakarta and want to visit this place by travel agency services,
please contact:

Maharatu Tour and Travel

Jl. Sisingamangaraja No. 27 Yogyakarta.
Telp. +62 274 8373005. Fax. +62 274 379250
Email : maharatu@maharatu.com -maharatu257@yahoo.com
Website : www.maharatu.com

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