An Abandoned Building at the East-end Side of Merak Street

The building is situated at the east-end side of Merak Street or at the opposite side of the Suara Merdeka Archive Building. It's about 300 meter from Suara Merdeka Archive Building or less than 200 meter from the exit gate of Tawang Railway Station nearby. Actually, this building is always easily visible by everybody who disembarks from railway station area and find the way to go the direction of the center of the city. The building is placed directly at the corner side of streets intersection across a large flood drainage pond in front of Tawang Railway Station.

But unfortunately, the building appearance is not found as good as its setting. the building looks very aged and mostly looks as an abandoned building with wild plants are already grown to cover its roof and many other parts of the building. It seems the building is started to be consumed by dense vegetation that grown from its backyard.

An old banner remind stays over the entry door under the balcony terrace and fortunately some texts still indicates that this building is former the management office of the Old City Conservation Area (BPK2L), a bureau that is ever founded to manage and revitalize Semarang Old City Conservation Area. The building is formerly a Dutch vocational school, known as De Technische School Semarang that is built 1917. 

"Praoe Lajar" Cigarette Factory Building at Merak Street

"Praoe Lajar" Factory Building and "Suara Merdeka" Building are situated side by side against each other at Merak Street. History mentions that this building is built on 19th Century. "Praoe Lajar" itself is an old trademark of a famous local cigarette, most probably one of the oldest cigarette manufacturer that is still exist today.

This building could be easily recognized by its appearance with a contrast color scheme, a contrast combination of white and red color. A linear red big facade signage clearly and simply describes the name of the building "Pabrik Rokok Praoe Lajar" ("Praoe Lajar" Cigarette Factory).



Building's main entry is located at the east-end side, at the streets intersection point that lead to Tawang Train Station at northern side and to center of Old City Conservation Area at southern side. The main entry is also differed with some rich detailing such as half-circle glass transom over balcony and rich stained-glass patterns with company logo.

The Archive Building of "Suara Merdeka"

This building is situated at the west-end side of Merak Street. This a linear two storey old building with a kind of twin featured entry gates. The building shape nicely play around with the building's external parts around its front facades. The existence of long balcony at the upper floor and external long continuous corridor at the lower floor creates a smooth transition in between external part and internal part of the building.

Originally this building is owned by Het Noorden, a Dutch language newspaper company during Dutch Colonial Era. Currently, this building is known as archive warehouse belong to "Suara Merdeka", a largest newspaper publisher in Semarang City and Central Java. This is the place where somebody could find Suara Merdeka's newspaper when it appeared at very first time. Not just as common as an ordinary warehouse, this place is also serves public and researcher interests in related with history. For many year ago, this buildng also knwon as Masscom Graphy Building.

A Borsumij Warehouse

This is just a simple old building, a warehouse that is placed at Garuda Street No.9, a street that is situated behind the famous "Blenduk" Church. Currently, the building is identified as a warehouse belong to The Education Bureau of the local government.



There are a white painted plaster facade text signage of "Borsumij" that is found on the wall on top of the main ventilation grilles. At least this is an indication that this building is related with the existence of Borsumij, a Dutch Colonial Company. Borsumij was an acronym of Borneo Sumatra Maatschappij, a colonial trading company. This building may be related with the neighborhood old office building, the ITC Building that is also known as formerly office of Borneo Sumatra Maatschappij

The existence if this warehouse building also describes that various building types and functions are found in the inside of old city conservation area.

Are These Typical Old Houses from Old City with a Mix of Local and Colonial Style?

There are two-storey old buildings that found in similar typical appearances in Semarang Old City Conservation Area. These buildings seem having almost similar details on its wooden roof fascia with ornamental patterns at upper floor, balcony balustrade with rich ornaments on its thin vertical members, thin steel pipe pillars around balcony and plenty of doors and windows with double wooden panels within its curved transom details over.

These buildings are found around "Blenduk" Church at Letjen Soeprapto Street and behind The "Marba Bulding at Kepodang Street. At a glance, wooden ornament details on roof and balcony fascia including its combination with clay roof appears like simplified wooden details that found on typical traditional Javanese houses. At the other side, seemingly the curved transom and plaster relief details over typical large tall windows and doors are typically found on European buildings.

An Old Building with Turquoise Accent Color

This building is attached directly behind formerly "Societeit The Harmonie" or currently known as Gedung Bank Mandiri. The building could be directly recognized by the appearance of its single lone tower with prismatic wood shingle roof on top of it. Ornamental plaster details that painted in turquoise colors at the bottom of the roof are becoming visual point of interest belong to this building.

Turquoise colors are also spreading-on other small details on its facade. Windows and doors related elements are also found in this turquoise color withhin major white background color on overall building facade. This make the building visual appearance is slightly raised-up among its surrounding neighborhood buildings. It could be said that this is one of colonial old building that makes 'Letjen Soeprapto' Street appears in colorful appearance today.

Telkom MSC Building at "Jl Letjen Soeprapto No. 7" Street, an Old Building with Sky Blue Color

The Building is situated across the street at the opposite side of another old building with red color previously described in this blog. Based on historical notes, during Dutch Colonial Era, this building also known as Koloniale Petroleum Verkoop Mij., formerly Javasche Bank. Currently the building is painted in light blue color to the entire exterior surfaces with horizontal patterns in darker blue color. This might be related with the company's corporate color.

The overall building appears in symmetrical shapes arrangement with a featured dome-like roof in the middle part. But, the existence of the main roof dome not indicate building's main entry position, since the building has twin entry doors that are place at the end sides of the building that are elaborated with the appearance of prismatic clay roofs.

Louvered windows in painted-wood within its canopy and round ventilation openings over are becoming dominant elements on the facade. As different as another old buildings at old city area, there are raised-landscaping boxes that makes the building slightly setback against pedestrian side.