Get Health in Kebun Raya Purwodadi, a Botanical Garden
Tranquil. Yayah doesn't know why this tourism site has been so tranquil. Maybe for reason that it was not eye catching at all. Or maybe there was no entertainment and game which could possibly attract the mob. So quiet. Luckily, that was exactly the situation he'd been searching for.
Yayah's friend, Achmed, picked me up in Surabaya at 8 am. And they just moved out in the minutes by motorcycle. Destination Purwodadi Botanical Garden, in Pasuruan regency, East Java province. The location is at Surabaya-Malang road. It was traffic jam when we reached Sidoarjo. But within less than two hours, they already saw the Purwodadi's welcome gate.
Inside Kebun Raya Purwodadi
To enter this natural laboratory which has 2,500 collections of plants, you only need to pay 3,000 IDR per head. If you bring a car, add 6,000 IDR. Afterward, they were freely going through until certain parts of the garden. The tall trees have draped over us all along the main road.
On the edge of the backyard, we met two lanes. To the right is a river, and to the left is water fall. Yayah decided to walk to watch the plants collection better. Generally, Purwodadi's collections were legumes, orchids, palms, bamboos, edible ferns, medical plants, and some of rare Indonesian vegetations.
Actually, this garden is one of three branches of Bogor/Indonesian Botanical Garden. The other branches are Cibodas and Eka Karya Bali Botanical Garden. Purwodadi itself was established at January, 30th 1941, by Dr. L.G.M. Baas Becking.
What You Must Prepare in Kebun Raya Purwodadi
Like other nature tourism sites, there are many mosquitoes here, enjoying the dark sides of trees and bushes. So don't forget to carry a bug repellent. Or wear the long-sleeves clothes. Or both! That's important.
Whether you don't bring any food/water, it's not quite worrying. Here you'll find eating places. Beside, once you stop somewhere inside this garden, I guarantee, the peddler will spring up. They are well-trained to trace your position. ^_^
Yayah thought exploring the Purwodadi Botanical Garden by foot, not by car or motor, is very healthy. The air is so fresh (with hundred-thousands of plants and very few vehicles how can it be polluted?). Moreover, walking a while in this 845,148 square meters garden definitely is comparable with your work-out portion that day. And know more about botanical diversity in Indonesia, of course.
- Photos by Brahmanto Anindito