Bung Karno Library in Blitar City, East Java Province

Visiting Blitar City is during holidays is considered a good idea. The problem is many tourists don’t know the regions’ best vacation spots yet. Have no worries. Some of these places are located in the downtown, which is easy to reach. For instance, it is called Bung Karno Library. The location is in Bondogerit Village and belongs to Sananwetan Sub-District. The original name is Perpustakaan Proklamator Bung Karno, actually. This presidential library these days has become an interesting tourist site, which is crowded enough regardless of the time of the visit. So, what is in there?

The Nuance
The nuance is considered peaceful during regular days but it becomes crowded during holidays. As for the environment, it is definitely neat and clean. The management is excellent, after all. The good news is the library is located in the same area with Bung Karno Museum! Thus, tourists can explore multiple interesting vacation spots on the same day. In that area, tourists may find a sitting statue of Soekarno (the first president of Indonesia). Even though take photos is allowed, tourists should not make loud noises or litter inside the library.

Exploring Bung Karno Library
The prime reason for visiting Bung Karno Library is indeed to see all collections of books. It is said the library has about 68,000 book titles! The size of the building is big enough to accommodate those books and all visitors. It consists of two floors and two buildings. These buildings are separated by a hallway too. No wonder, it takes some time and efforts in order to explore all parts of the library. In some cases, visitors even need the help of a guide to get thorough information about the building.

When tourists reach the west part of Bung Karno Library, they may find Bung Karno Museum where lots of memorabilia collections are stored. At this place, tourists won’t find any books though. What they find are old coins, stamps, paintings, etc. Before heading to this spot, however, it is recommended to visit the second floor where books and rare collections reside. This includes the famous Bung Karno’s speech text. Unfortunately, tourists are not allowed to take photos in this area.

The next recommended area to explore is located in the east part, where magazines, serials, digital collections, and references are stored. In this spot, tourists can even find a room that displays historical films. It is able to accommodate up to a hundred people, in fact! Overall, once again, tourists should consider hiring a guide in order to explore the library better.

Nearby Attractions

• Bung Karno Grave
• Bung Karno Museum
• Gong Perdamaian

How to Get There
Bung Karno Library is located in a strategic area, so everyone can easily find it. Still, everyone should reach Blitar City first. For those coming from Surabaya City, a trip to Blitar may take around 3 hours and 30 minutes and the best route to take is Surabaya – Mojokerto Street. For the information, the distance is 155 km. Once arriving at the downtown, tourists can simply take Kalibrantas Street and head to the library right away. The distance is 2.6 km, so the trip only takes 8 minutes.

Where to Stay

• Saptra Mandala Hotel