Jakarta has always been a love-hate relationship for me.

Love it for the vast amount of possibilities offered: career options, art and exhibitions, malls, coffee shops, events, the I-can-walk-a-lot-everywhere situation as well as the city being where most of my cousins resides. Hate it for the traffic, the politics, and the certain level of cuek bebek attitude from the people.

“Travel makes one modest. You see what a tiny place you occupy in the world.” Gustav Flaubert.

Would it be safe to say that Jakarta is the Indonesia’s equivalent of New York?

Earlier this month, my Mom and I had the chance for a weekend getaway in Jakarta. We went there to attend a wedding reception at… Hotel Mulia! Yeay! While being there, my Mom took the chance to met with several of her old friends for a quick reunion.

We took the first flight to Jakarta on Friday, Oct 5. Our driver picked us up at the airport and then took us to my Mom’s college friend’s house in Meruya to drop our baggages.  We stayed the first night there.

Afterwards, I asked our driver to take us to Kota Tua. Of the many times I went to Jakarta, never have I ever got a time to visit Kota Tua area. Jadi, mumpung trip ke Jakarta kali ini santai dan I have a car service ready for me, ya udah, why not!

We arrived in Kota Tua at 09.30 a,m. A bit too early because most of the cafes were still closed (generally they open at 10.00 a.m.) We visited Museum Wayang to pass the time. Initially I wanted to visit Museum Tekstil too, since I am fond of fabric and design and I have been wanting to go there, but by the time we finished strolling around Museum Wayang, it was almost 10.30 a.m. and we kind of had to rush because my Mom had arranged a lunch meet up with her old friends. From Museum Wayang we went to the place I initially wanted to go to…

Located in Gedung Kerta Niaga, it is a cafe, but unlike regular cafes where they serve coffee and pastries, Acaraki is a cafe that serves Jamu. Yep, you read that right. Jamu, the traditional Indonesian herbal drinks.

I found out about Acaraki days before we went to Jakarta while I was browsing for places to eat in Kota Tua area.  It is a newly opened cafe. When I visited, the barista said that they started operating just about 3 months ago. The name Acaraki was taken from a Sanskrit word. Back in Majapahit era, Acaraki means “peracik jamu”. You can find out more about Acaraki over here.

Mom and I ordered a drink named SARANTI.

Apparently, it was an improvised version of traditional Jamu Beras Kencur. The ingredients of Saranti was rice, kencur and ginger with added creamer/milk. We sat at the bar and since we were the only customers there, the acaraki wasn’t so busy and he explained the whole process of making Saranti.

What’s so special was, they use regular coffee making tools to make the jamu beverages in Acaraki. The acaraki showed me the ingredients and let me smell them (the rice, kencur and ginger). Afterwards he proceeded to ground the ingredients, mixed them with milk, frothed and then served with ice. Surprisingly, the Saranti did not taste nor smell like a regular jamu. The smell was nutty, and it tasted somewhat like a salted hazelnut latte which I love!

Around 11.30 a.m. we took of from Kota Tua to go back to Meruya and went to Central Park Mall to have lunch with my Mom’s old friends. At 04.00 p.m. Mom and I departed from her friends and we went to our next destination, Plaza Senayan. I had a plan to meet up with my cousin, Lulu and then Mom wanted to hang out with her other friends also there.

Nah kalo di Jakarta, Plaza Senayan & Senayan City adalah tempat yang paling senang saya kunjungin. Enggak belanja juga sih, tapi there’s a sense of nostalgia aja di sana. Mungkin karena 2 mall itu adalah mall yang sering saya datangin saat internship dulu. Terus karena kerasa old vibe juga sih di Plaza Senayan, karena mall-nya ‘kan mall lama dan agak-agak klasik hehehe. Terlebih karena ada toko buku favorit yang nggak ada di Surabaya, yaitu Kinokuniya!

While waiting for Lulu to arrive, I spent my time strolling inside Kinokuniya and sipped some coffee at Starbucks with Mom and her friends. Around dinner time, we went across to Senayan City. We ate The Halal Guys, since my Mom wanted to try them.

Afterwards, we parted ways. Lulu took a bus ride to go back home, my Mom’s friends went back to their staying place in Kemang while we went back to Meruya.

It was a nice day! I got to spend time alone with my Mom (girls only!), went to lots of places, and met my cousin albeit for a very short time.