Purwokerto
Encyclopedia
Purwokerto is a city on the island of Java
Java
Java is an island of Indonesia. With a population of 135 million , it is the world's most populous island, and one of the most densely populated regions in the world. It is home to 60% of Indonesia's population. The Indonesian capital city, Jakarta, is in west Java...

 in Indonesia
Indonesia
Indonesia , officially the Republic of Indonesia , is a country in Southeast Asia and Oceania. Indonesia is an archipelago comprising approximately 13,000 islands. It has 33 provinces with over 238 million people, and is the world's fourth most populous country. Indonesia is a republic, with an...

. It is the capital of Banyumas Regency, Central Java
Central Java
Central Java is a province of Indonesia. The administrative capital is Semarang. It is one of six provinces on the island of Java.This province is the province of high Human Development in Indonesia and its Points Development Index countries is equivalent to Lebanon. The province of Central Java...

 region. The estimated population of the city in 2005 was 249,705.

Geography

Purwokerto is located near the base of Mount Slamet
Mount Slamet
Mount Slamet or Gunung Slamet is an active stratovolcano in Central Java, Indonesia. It has a cluster of around three dozens of cinder cones on the lower southeast-northeast flanks and a single cinder cone on the western flank. The volcano is composed by two overlapping edifices. Four craters are...

, the highest volcano
Volcano
2. Bedrock3. Conduit 4. Base5. Sill6. Dike7. Layers of ash emitted by the volcano8. Flank| 9. Layers of lava emitted by the volcano10. Throat11. Parasitic cone12. Lava flow13. Vent14. Crater15...

 in Central Java. The city is bisected by the Kali Kranji (Kranji River), and lies near two major east-west roads, Jalan Sudirman and Jalan Gatot Subroto. Its geographic location is 7°26′S 109°14′E.

History of Purwokerto

History of Purwokerto as capital of Banyumas residence cannot be separated from the history of Banyumas itself.
Banyumas established in 1582. Its founder is Raden Joko Kahiman which later became the first regent knows as Duke Mrapat. The history starting from the era of the Sultanate Pajang, under King Sultan Hadiwijaya.

The story started from an incident, errors of the Sultan that resulted in the unfortunate killing of Adipati Wirasaba VI in District Lowano (Purworejo now). To make amends for his mistake, the sultan called successor of Adipati Wirasaba. One of his sons-in-law, Joko Kahiman, met the sultan and the sultan gave him authority to become the regent of Wirasaba VII (Adipati Wirasaba VII). He divided the wirasaba regency into four regent:
  1. Banjar region given to Kyai Ngabei Wirayuda
  2. Meden territory given to Kyai Ngabei Wirakusuma
  3. Wirasaba territory given to Kyai Ngabei Wargawijaya
  4. Kejawar territory controlled by himself by opening up mangli forest and named as Banyumas.


The capital of Kejawar territory was in bayumas. Due to flood in 1861, the capital then relocated to Purwokerto, a town located about 18 km northern part of banyumas.

Air transport

Nearby airport is the Tunggul Wulung airport located in Cilacap town, approximately 40 km southern part of Purwokerto. Tunggul Wulung serves direct flight (three times a week) from Halim Perdana Kusuma airport Jakarta. The travel time from Jakarta to Cilacap is 45 minutes

Train

Train is one of the main mode of transport to reach Purwokerto, all train from Jakarta, Bandung, Yogyakarta and Surabaya are available ranging from economy to first class train. Total journey from Jakarta is 6 hrs (first class) and 10 hrs (economy class).

Road transport

The city can be reached from all big cities in the island by intercity bus. Purwokerto bus terminal is the third largest terminal in central java province after Terboyo (semarang) and tirtonadi (Surakarta).

Places of interest

Purwokerto's central public square has six banyan trees
Banyan
A banyan is a fig that starts its life as an epiphyte when its seeds germinate in the cracks and crevices on a host tree...

: a tree at each corner, and two in the center. The Purwokertonians often spend their free time in the square, and it is a common place for children to play. Vendors in the square sell children's toys and local foods. To one side is the regional government building, Kabupaten. Just east of the Alun-alun is the old cemetery on Ragasemangsang Road.
One tourist
Tourism
Tourism is travel for recreational, leisure or business purposes. The World Tourism Organization defines tourists as people "traveling to and staying in places outside their usual environment for not more than one consecutive year for leisure, business and other purposes".Tourism has become a...

 destination near Purwokerto is Baturaden, located 15 km north of the city. Baturaden is classical highland country at the foot of Gunung Slamet volcano. Baturaden is a popular site for local tourism, with a children's playground, hot spring
Hot spring
A hot spring is a spring that is produced by the emergence of geothermally heated groundwater from the Earth's crust. There are geothermal hot springs in many locations all over the crust of the earth.-Definitions:...

s, trekking and camping
Camping
Camping is an outdoor recreational activity. The participants leave urban areas, their home region, or civilization and enjoy nature while spending one or several nights outdoors, usually at a campsite. Camping may involve the use of a tent, caravan, motorhome, cabin, a primitive structure, or no...

. There are two natural hot springs in Baturaden, Pancuran Telu and Pancuran Pitu. The campground is called Wana Wisata and Baturraden Adventure Forest. There are also some hotels, villas and budget hotels available in Baturaden.

Food

Purwokerto is renowned for its local cuisine, particularly, mendoan (fermented soy bean covered in wheat flour dough and deep fried), ranjem, nopia and mino (small nopia), Tempeh keripik and many different kinds of chips. Another famous food is gethuk goreng, made of cassava and a lot of Javanese sugar, which is sold by different shops under various names. In the morning, one may find a serabi seller on almost every corner of town.

Another Purwokerto delicacy is 'Soto'. The conventional soto seller is gathered in Sokaraja, located to the east of Purwokerto, known for its soto Sokaraja. Soto from Purwokerto is different from soto Sokaraja; Soto Purwokerto is usually made from chicken while soto Sokaraja is usually made from beef. Both are different from other sotos in Indonesia, because it is mixed by spicious nut sambal. The most famous soto sokaraja seller is Soto Kecik which is located near the budha's vihara at sokaraja.

Medical facilities

Purwokerto is now set as the medical center of southern part of the Central Java Province. Many government and private hospitals are exist serving both general and specific needs. Some of the hospitals are as follows:
  • RSU Margono Soekarjo general hospital
  • RS DKT hospital
  • RSIA Santa Elisabeth hospital
  • RS Islam hospital
  • RSIA Hidayah hospital
  • RSIA Bunda hospital
  • RSIA Ananda hospital
  • RS Geriatri hospital, specific for elder
  • RS Orthopedi hospital, specific for orthopedic treatment


The main state hospital is Margono Soekarjo general hospital, located on the eastern edge of town. This name is commonly shortened to "RS Margono Soekarjo" and was named after the first surgeon in Indonesia, who was born in Purwokerto. His resting place is in Pesarean Kebutuh, Sokaraja Kulon.

Education

The major university in town is Universitas Jenderal Soedirman, located on the northern outskirts of Purwokerto.
There are many other private universities and academies that made the city one of the education centre in southern part of central java.

The universities and academies are:
  • Universitas Muhammadiyah Purwokerto
  • Universitas Wijaya kusuma
  • Sekolah Tinggi Agama Islam Negeri Purwokerto
  • Sekolah Tinggi Ilmu Ekonomi Purwokerto
  • Sekolah Tinggi Ilmu Ekonomi Satria
  • Sekolah Tinggi Manajemen Informatika & Komputer Widya Utama
  • Sekolah Tinggi Teknik Wiworotomo
  • Akademi Kebidanan YLPP
  • Akademi Kesehatan Lingkungan
  • Akademi Manajemen Informatika & Komputer
  • Akademi Pariwisata “Eka Sakti”
  • Akademi Perawat Muhammadiyah
  • Politeknik PRATAMA

External links

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