East Java Tourism News

Relaxing on the green hills of East Java orchards

September 5th, 2008

“You are allowed two pieces only,” said the guide as he set out with a small party on a walking tour of orchards covering the hillsides in Batu, East Java.

The guide meant to invite everyone to help themselves to the fruit ripening on the trees, but it sounded like a warning rather than a warm invitation.

His off-putting remark did not seem to bother the visitors. Some had come from Malaysia, others from North Sumatra and Aceh. They bustled off to find appealing fruit to pluck from the trees.

These tourists were taking a tour available in many locations in the East Java town of Batu, popularly known as Apple Town. Batu has been the place for growing as well as buying, selling and consuming apples. More recently local growers have branched out to harvest other fruits and vegetables, both commercially and for tourists.

Tourism is today a significant part of what goes on here. We’ve all heard of green tourism and ecotourism. Batu offers another variant, agrotourism.

Large agricultural holdings have effectively opened their doors to the public and allowed visitors to observe and learn how the fruits and vegetables they see in markets and on supermarket shelves get there.

But it is not just about buying a ticket and taking a walk. Agrotourism has grown to include sizable hotels and hillside resorts which offer visitors the chance to take a break, breathe fresh mountain air and get closer to nature.

Such hotels may be amply equipped with swimming pools, tennis courts and restaurants but they also offer villa and chalet facilities so guests can get away from it all in a setting independent from hotel crowds and the worst excesses of mass tourism.

The Batu facilities are undoubtedly set up to accommodate groups as well, as reflected in the manner in which outdoor activities are offered.

School and corporate groups find such locations appealing for team-building seminars, workshops and weekend retreats. One popular outdoor attraction for team building, the flying fox or zipline, is even set up in one field to allow participants to fly over an orchard laden with fruit.

Despite these entertaining distractions, the food produced here is the main draw and the raison d’etre for the rest of the facilities.

Batu has been an apple town for a century. As the story goes, the first tree was planted by a Dutchman in 1908.

This version is disputed by another origin tale of a loving couple from Batu. The young man was challenged by the lady he longed for to climb nearby Mount Butak. As he climbed, he came across an apple tree. He brought some fruit back down the mountain as a gift for his intended. From this fruit the first orchards were planted. Local folklore offers one more story in which the apple is an emblem of love.

Whatever its origins, Batu today is a town of much more than just apple orchards. Though there is no denying apples still play a central part in agriculture in these parts.

The guide points out how the trees are specially tied to restrain their growth and prevent their branches from growing too high. Consequently, visitors can easily pick the fruit. Commercial pickers do not have to struggle to get at the fruit.

Besides the apple orchards, there are groves of orange trees and fields of strawberries. Bonsai trees and cacti are extensively displayed for sale, and flower gardens offer up colorful decorative plants to take home.

The climate is cooler in these parts and some trees and plants in this area are suited to the cooler temperatures. There are alpine and evergreen trees that would not look out of place on mountain slopes in Italy, Switzerland or other European locales.

This is, however, clearly East Java, as a quick eyeful of giant succulents and cactuses mingling with the temperate plantings remind us.

The neighboring town of Malang, just some 10 kilometers south, is also growing. The two towns are practically merging into one another.

Despite the growth, East Java hill resorts offer relaxation and a fruitful diversion from the busyness and bustle of modern life.

Source: The Jakarta Post

Entry Filed under: East Java News