Exploring Gedung Arsip Nasional and Candra Naya Building in Jakarta

Front Side of National Archive Museum

Some of you might think that Jakarta is only about business or offices building just like other big cities. I also think the same way for the very first time visiting Jakarta, and even until now, I could not resist myself to staring at those skyscrapers and wondering how did they build it. One day, I got a chance to visit Jakarta's three historical places in a row. I visited Gedung Arsip Nasional or the National Archive Building and Candra Naya. I think you should visit one of these places just in case you feel kind of 'enough' with the crowd at Fatahillah Square or Malls at Jakarta.

Architecture Design of National Archive Museum

The National Archive Building is located at Jalan Gadjah Mada No.111 West Jakarta. You can reach this place by taking TransJakarta or Commuter Line and take off the train at Jakarta Kota station or Mangga Besar Station. It is very easy to find this building since it is located right on the roadside.

The gate is quite wide and big compared to other old museums in Jakarta such as Taman Prasasti or Museum Bahari, so you can drive in and park your vehicle at the parking area next to the building. The building itself is in red brick color which gives a very colonial ambiance in every inch of it. There is a small pond at the middle of the front park, and if you are lucky you can find some lotus flowers blooming with bees or butterflies flying around.

The building stands stably in the middle of the area since the 18th century. The main building consists of two floors, and there are two small buildings on the left and side of the building. I think it was used for security offices back then. There is also a building on the backside with two floors as well, but from its design, the building looks like a dormitory. I am sorry I did not take any pictures of it since I was not allowed to come in because there was a wedding preparation on that day. Yup, the building can be used to conduct your wedding reception, and you can ask the marketing team who stand by for price list. I also a bit surprised that this kind of building can be used for the wedding reception.

I do not think that there is any ticket to enter this building since there was no counter at all when I visited this museum. For your information, this building is open only until 3 PM, so if you plan to visit this place I would suggest you come in the morning. Also, if you plan to visit at the weekend, please do not be disappointed if you cannot explore all areas in the building because of the wedding ceremony (that happened to me as I mentioned above).

Moving on, I decided to go to Fatahillah Square, my favorite place at Jakarta Old Town. I checked on Maps and it is less than 3 kilos away, so I chose to walk. I enjoyed my walk as I looked at some of unique buildings and also the situation surroundings.

Candra Naya Building from distance

A small building in between of skyscrapers complex of Novotel Hotel Mangga Dua and a Coffee Shop, small building stands stably there, the Candra Naya. I decided to go there and visit the building right after I did a quick search on the internet that said the building is one of Jakarta's heritage buildings. It is said on the internet that the building is now a museum, and I do not think that it is as popular as other heritage and modern museum-like Museum MACAN.

In between the two skyscrapers of Mangga Dua Square, the building nestled in the center of the area which makes the building some kind of "unseen" from distance. I visited this place on the weekend, and I see fewer people around even though there are two restaurants next to the building. I was hoping that I also met someone exploring this building just like me, but the thing was on that day the museum only got four visitors, and I was the fourth one. Where did I know? There is no entrance ticket, but there is a visitor book for you to fill. I think the book came from the foundation that takes care of the building. So if you are around this are, please do visit this place ya!

The building architecture represents oriental architecture as you can see from the roof design and also some lanterns hanging, the gate, and also the colors. There is no clear record of from which year this building was built, but this building was used as Mayor House of  Khouw Kim An in the early 19's.

It is said that the building was built to celebrate the born of Kim An's Father, Khouw Tian Tjoan, by his father Khouw Tian Sek around 1808. Actually, there is no exact record of this building history because there is no Nien Hao to predict it. Nien Hao is the Chinese Calendar which shows who was the China Emperor who ruled the period.

The main function of the building itself is as the office of Tjeng Tjoan while the backside of the building was used for his family. This building is big enough as a shelter for 14 wives and empress and 24 sons. His son, Kim An, was a successful entrepreneur who heirs this building. Kim An was also the former leader of the Chinese Society and also a shareholder of Batavia Bank.

In 1946, Xin Ming association was founded, a social association whose objectives of the association are to provide a hand for Chinese Society during World War II. The association provides health service which later on known developed into hospital known: Sumber Waras Hospital, sports activities, educational site from elementary to high school which later on developed into Tarumanegara University.

Later on, in 1965, based on the request from the National Association of Ethnicity Unity to change the Chinese surname to Indonesian nationalized name therefore comes Candra Naya name for the building.

After I explored the building, I continued my walk to Fatahillah Square to finish the trip. If you are visiting Jakarta for a heritage walk, make sure you come to these two beautiful places. Especially if you love architecture and also historical stories, you have to visit National Archive Museum and Candra Naya Building.

However, just a note to please don't be sad if you are unable to get into National Archive Museum because sometimes you will see a wedding ceremony. Also, there is no entrance ticket for Candra Naya museum, but the thing is there is no parking area around it but I think you can park your car at the hotel next to the building. Also, these two buildings do not have good lighting, so make sure you bring your own flash or make sure that your phone is good enough to take a low light photo. I only used my iPhone for those images, and I hope that you still can see the details clearly.

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