"Surabaya - Eastern Java" Surabaya by DSwede

My month stay went by rather slowly. Not much exciting or new in Surabaya. I went out to a few bars and saw a few movies, but some of it just goes to prove that you get what you pay for. For example, taxi, dinner, movie and taxi home amounts to about $5. A decent dinner and a few drinks will cost you less then $10. But the quality of live music, quality of the theaters and the surroundings are a bit lacking.

I did venture out for some time to the Island of Lombok, since it was only a ~30 minute flight.

After this assignment finished, I was off to further west in the area of Balongan, Cirebon and Indramayu.

I will say that while I was rather disappointed during my first visit to Surabaya, it has greatly improved. Originally there was nothing much to do in Surabaya, except visit a big shopping center. However in the years since, the city has been rejuvenated a bit with some trendier areas and entertainment venues. But don't be completely persuaded, it is a big, dirty city with a large industrial area.

Visit my Java Island page for more general comments.

(for more pictures, feel free to visit my Indonesia Gallery. If you enjoy the pictures, please leave a comment.)

• Pros:A good place to start excursions on the east side of Java.
• Cons:Most of the city is still quite dirty and unattractive.
• In a nutshell:The city is rejuveniating and improving, making it much more attractive.