Angkringan Lik Man, Spending Your Night in Yogyakarta with Kopi Joss

Do you know a famous place in Yogyakarta where university students, cyber communities

such as bloggers and chatters, journalists, artists, pedicab drivers, and even hookers get relax and involved in a warm conversation? When you studied in this student city, where did you usually hold a discussion with your friends about your paper's themes of tasks? One of the places you mention must be angkringan Lik Man that is located at the north of Tugu railway station. It is understandable since the place is famous with Yogyakarta communities. No formal rules apply in this place but tolerance where people are willing to shares space, for example, and to aware of each other's feeling.

YogYES invites you to enjoy the nuance of angkringan Lik Man as many other people has experienced as well. From Malioboro Street, you can walk northwards until you reach an alley right to the north of Tugu railway station. If you turn left, you will directly find this famous place on your left side. To identify it, just look at two big containers connected with a bamboo, brazier with burning charcoals, and rows of neatly arranged glasses.

Angkringan Lik Man is legendary because the seller is the first generation of the angkringan sellers in Yogyakarta most of whom come from Klaten. Lik Man or uncle Man whose original name is Siswo Raharjo is the son of grandpa Pairo, the first angkringan seller in Yogyakarta who has been running this business since 1950s. The stall with angkringan concept that used to be called 'ting ting hik' was inherited to Lik Man in 1969. Since then, other angkringans mushroomed in Yogyakarta.

When you arrive in this angkringan that starts to open at six o'clock in the evening, you can order hot or cold drinks. The favorite beverage is Kopi Joss, coffee served with hot charcoal plunged in it. The superiority of such coffee is lower degree of caffeine after being neutralized by the charcoal. Such finding was resulted from a research done by some students of Gadjah Mada University who often hang around there.

The main menu is sego kucing that consists of some rice and stirred-fried tempe and tiny sea fish cooked with chili. Other food such as fries and fried jadah (made of sticky rice) are also available. The delicious sego kucing is sold at 1,000 Rupiah per portion. Sego kucing that is served warm goes well with fried tempe or others like skewered quail's eggs. It does not have to spend much money to taste delicious menu.

Most of the foods can be served warm if you want them to be. Just ask Mr. Man to warm them on the charcoal for a while. Some side dishes such as mendoan (tempe fried with flour), filled tofu, sweetened tempe, chicken head, and of course jadah are more delicious when they are grilled before being served. Usually people eat sego kucing on banana leaf as the packaging of it. Otherwise, you can ask for plates to put more than one portion of sego kucing.

Two seat arrangements are available for you to enjoy your meals. If you want to seat near the seller in order for you to chat with him or to ease you add some more dishes, you would better sit beside the brazier. However, if you want to be able to have a chat with your friends, it is better for you to sit on the mat spread on the pavement across the street. The spread of the mat reaches as long as 100 meter. So, don't worry of shorting of space!

Text: Yunanto Wiji Utomo
Photo & Artistic: Singgih Dwi Cahyanto

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Gamelan, the Javanese Orchestra

Gamelan is surely not a foreign music. It has been popular in most continents and has created new music integration, for example jazz-gamelan, has born institution as learning space and gamelan music expression and it has produced famous gamelan musicians. Gamelan music instrument can now be enjoyed in various parts of the world, but Yogyakarta is the right place to enjoy it since you can enjoy the original version of gamelan.

Gamelan that grows in Yogyakarta is Javanese gamelan, one form of gamelan that is different from Balinese gamelan or Sundanese gamelan. Javanese gamelan has softer and slower tones; it is different from Balinese gamelan that is very dynamic and Sundanese gamelan that is melodious with domination of the voice of seruling or traditional bamboo flute. The difference is just natural since Java has its own view of life that is expressed in its gamelan music melody.

The Javanese view of life that is expressed in its gamelan music is the harmony of physical and spiritual lives, harmony in talking as well as behaving in order not to create explosive expression and to realize people tolerance. The real form of harmony in Javanese gamelan music is the moderate play of rebab string, voice harmony of kenong, saron kendang and gambang and the voice of gong ate each closing of the melody.

There is no definite history of gamelan existence. The development of gamelan music is predicted to begin from the existence of kentongan, rebab, tap on the mouth, rubs on string and thin bamboo until the introduction of metal music instruments. Further development after named by gamelan, this music was used to accompany leather puppet show and dances. Later it became independent music and it was completed with voices of female singers called sinden.

A set of gamelan consists of several music instruments; some of them are drum called kendhang, rebab, and celempung, gambang, gong and bamboo flute or seruling. The main components composing the gamelan music instruments are bamboo, metal, and wood. Each of the instrument has its own function in a gamelan music show, for example the gong functioning to close the long music melodies and to give balance after the music was previously decorated by Javanese music melodies.

Javanese gamelan is music with pentatonic melodies. A complete gamelan play consists of two cycles, namely slendro and pelog. Slendro has 5 melodies per octave, namely 1 2 3 5 6 [C- D E+ G A] with small interval difference. Pelog has 7 melodies per octave namely 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 [C+ D E- F# A B] with big interval difference. Gamelan music composition was created with some rules, namely consists of some cycles and pathet, confined by one gong and the melodies were created in a unit consisting of 4 melodies.

You can see gamelan as an independent music performance or a companion of a dance or performance arts such as leather puppet show and ketoprak. As an independent performance, gamelan music is usually combined with the voice of the Javanese singers (male singers are called wiraswara and female singers are called waranggana or sinden). Gamelan music performance can be classic or contemporary. One form of contemporary gamelan is jazz-gamelan as a combination of music with pentatonic and diatonic melodies.

One of the places in Yogyakarta where you can see gamelan performance is Yogyakarta Kingdom. On Thursdays from 10:00a.m. to 12:00p.m. gamelan is performed as an independent music performance. On Saturdays at the same hours, gamelan is performed as companion of leather puppet show, while on Sundays at the same hours, gamelan accompanies Javanese traditional dance. Please come to Bangsal Sri Manganti to see the performance. Meanwhile, in order to see older gamelan music instrument, you can go to other hall of the kingdom that is located a little further at the back.

Text: Yunanto Wiji Utomo
Photo & Artistic: Singgih Dwi Cahyanto

Beringharjo, a Complete, Traditional Market in Yogyakarta

Beringharjo market becomes part of Malioboro that is worth visiting. This market has been center of economy activity since years ago and its existence has philosophical meaning. The market that had been renovated several times symbolizes stages of human life that is busily engaged in its economy fulfillment. Furthermore, Beringharjo is also one of the 'four in one' poles (consisting of South Square, Sultan Palace, North Square, and Beringharjo market) symbolizing economy functions.

The area where current Beringharjo market lies used to be forest of banyan trees. Soon after the foundation of Ngayogyakarta Hadiningrat Kingdom, i.e. in 1758, the area was used as a place for economy transaction by the people of Yogayarkta and its vicinities. Only hundreds years later, namely in 1925, the transaction place had a permanent building. The name 'Beringharjo' was given by Hamengku Buwono IX, meaning that the place where banyan tree (bering) used to grow is expected to bring welfare (harjo). Now, tourists define this place as an enjoyable shopping place.

The front part and the western part of the market are the right places to find delicious traditional snacks. At the north side of the front part, you will find round brem (a kind of snack made from the extract of fermented tubers) that is softer than that of Madiun city and krasikan (sweet cake made from glutinous rice and palm sugar). In the south part, you will find bakpia cake filled with mung bean that is sold warm and wet snacks such as hung kwe and nagasari. Meanwhile, at the back part, usually they sell durable snacks such as ting-ting made of caramel mixed with peanut.

If you want to buy batik, Beringharjo is the best place because of its complete collections; ranging from batik cloth to batik clothes made of both cotton and silk materials, with the prices ranging from tens thousands to a million. Collection of batik cloth is available in west and north parts of the market, while batik clothes collection is available almost everywhere in the west part of this market. In addition to batik clothes, the west part of the market also offers traditional clothes: surjan, blangkon, and sarong both woven and batik printed ones. Sandals and bags sold at reasonable prices are available around the escalator of the west part of the market.

Stepping upstairs to the second floor, you will smell the aroma of Javanese herbs. Herbs such as turmeric that is usually blended with tamarind to produce special drink and temulawak to make bitter drink for medication purpose are sold here. Spices such as ginger (to make ronde drink or merely to be baked, boiled and mixed with crystal sugar) and cinnamon (to enrich the flavors of such drinks as ginger drink, coffee, tea and sometimes to substitute chocolate in cappuccino).

This is also the right market to hunt antiques. The center of antique goods is in east part of the third floor. There, you can get old typewriter, helmet made in 1960s with the front part of which is mica as high as one's nose and some other items. On the same floor, you can get used items of good quality if you want. Various kinds of good quality used imported goods such as shoes, bag, and even clothes are sold at much cheaper prices compared to the original prices. Of course, carefulness in choosing is needed.

After completing your going around in the market, it is time for you to explore the area around the market with not less interesting offers. The area at the north of the market that used to be popular as Chinese Kampong is the most popular place. You can find oldies cassettes of musicians in 1950s that are rarely found in other places at the most expensive price of 50,000 Rupiah. Besides, there are Buddha effigies in different poses costing 250,000 Rupiah. For collectors of old money, they can get the ones from various countries, even the ones utilized in 1930s.

To quench your thirst, special cold drink of Yogyakarta, namely cendol ice, is the right choice. This cold drink from Yogyakarta has richer flavor than the ones from Banjarnegara and Bandung. The contents are not only cendol (jelly-like substance made from glutinous rice but also cam cau (jelly-like substance made from cam cau leaves). Other drinks you can try are young coconut ice with palm sugar and the drink made from turmeric-tamarind and rice-great galingale mixtures. The price of the drink is cheap, namely 1,000 to 2,000 Rupiah.

Even though the market is closed at 05:00p.m, the dynamics of the merchants does not stop by that time. In front of the market, there are still many food sellers offering many kinds of special food. Martabak with various fillers, the sweet terang bulan mixed with chocolate and peanut, and the delicious klepon filled with palm sugar are sold every evening. At around 06:00p.m. until late at night, there is usually gudeg seller who also offers special cuisines of cow skin and variant of stir-fried vegetables with chili. While having your meals, you can listen to Javanese traditional music or have a talk with the seller who will address you friendly. It is just complete!

Text: Yunanto Wiji Utomo
Photo & Artistic: Sutrisno