There is this settlement by the Brantas river in Malang that takes so much attention from youngsters these days. It's called Kampung Warna-Warni Jodipan, or Colourful Town of Jodipan. I heard that it used to be an ordinary settlement (which was said to be quiet vile) until a group of students from local university decided to make a change, simply by painting the houses in colorful tone which successfully inspired the people to make their household a better place to live in
We can safely say that the initiators were probably inspired by Cinque Terre, Italy. The romance I got after hearing the story was how these young people able to make such a huge change to a conservative environment. The first thing you have to know about Malang, is that the city was crowded by students. It has two state universities and more than five local universities if my count was right. Malang City per se, is a small city. You can go from one side to the other side of the city within 45 minutes. And yet, inside, there are probably thousand of young minds wandering the city, chasing the things they called education and experience. As I was once a comer in that city, I stayed there for about four years, I often heard how these comers usually bring bad influence. From the way they drive, the way they speak, the way they spend money, etc. And it turns out that today, the line between comers and the natives are blur. The young soul of Malang are now enjoy the taste of consumerism, supported by the increase of cafes and shopping places in the city. Well, it doesn't sound bad at all to the modern minds. It increases the economy, business, and Malangnese prosperity (perhaps). But try seeing it from the conservatives point of view. All that we bring was nothing more than a loud noise and places that sell foods they don't even like.
I don't know how Malang before all these modernization come, but it was definitely not the way I see Malang today.
Then Jodipan happened. It probably still a form of modernization, but was created in a subtle and good manners, means the creator refuse to change the settlement entirely, but instead bring out the true color of it. No I wasn't talking about the paint. I was talking about the people. Their hospitality, their modesty, their collectivist culture, those are what I'm talking about.
You can still see things you, big city people, rarely see in your place anymore. Kids playing soccer, parents gossiping in front of their houses, old men clipping their nails (:P), and it's probably weird, but I love seeing it around. It makes me feel warm inside. And the things I miss the most about Malang was there too, people talking in East Javanese accent and language! Local language always amazes me. That's why I always smile when I heard people talk in their mother tongue inside a city bus in Jakarta. It proves that they had an exotic cultural background, something I wish I had.
And to make it more fantastic, there are some spot which creativity shines through its edge. It seems like you can feel the young hands making it all possible from the way they decorated it. They had this mini library beside a small food stall. I really wish people would actually open the cabinet and read something from there. Look at the way they keep this old public phone. Whoever decorate this place knows well how to remind people to have a good grip at cultural roots. The details are not only painted on the wall but also on the floor. And it is also a heaven for you Instagrammers, since they provide A LOT of photo spots for you to use to beautify your feeds.
Well, as it now become a tourist attraction, of course you can see a bunch of people with cameras and selfie stick wandering around. It might not be a good idea to live in such place for super introverted people who values silence like me, but like I said, people of this settlement are collectivist people values such crowd, as long as you are not being annoying and impolite around. And by annoying and impolite, I mean please don't speak rude and dirty words out loud, don't show any PDA with your lover (I just feel like over PDA-ing ruins the homeliness feel it gives you from the first place). I think they have more than one entrance. You'll wander in the hallways, and at the end of the road, the center of attraction, you'll see Brantas River.
Since I am very bad at explaining direction, you can just google it to get there. The parking lot is acceptable even for you who reach it by cars. The entrance ticket (yes they charged you of course) was two thousand rupiahs (which was not even close to a dollar). If you have a chance to get there, please keep the place clean, and always remember to be as friendly as possible.
Personally, I have so many attachment with Malang. It can be said that I get the knowledge of who I really is while I was there. And Malang environment taught me a lot about maturity. And if you asked me how I would describe Malang, then I will say if you want to see the miniature of Malang, just go to Jodipan. Because I feel like the town explains it best. It was colorful, both modern and cultural, crowded by tourist with hospitable host. And if I can suggest something to people of Jodipan, try to sell your staple food. It would be perfect.
