Meet the Twin of Arc de Triomphe in Kediri East Java

SURYA.co.id | KEDIRI - The rain was drizzling all over Kediri, East Java on that afternoon. Cold breeze made all the body a little bit shiver when arriving the parking lot in Monument of Kediri in the area of Simpang Lima Gumul. It looked like the cold breeze wants to welcome us as soon as we arrived there.

After went through 200 meters tunnel and stairs, we arrived in a field full of green grass, and here we were seeing a creamy beige monument.

That monument’s height is 25 meters with width 804 meters square. On the other hand, the area is around 37 hectares. The architecture is similar to Arc de Triomphe in France that symbolize glory and prosperity of a nation and country.

The difference between monument in Kediri and Paris is the relief. In the Kediri, there are reliefs of Kediri’s history, including its art and culture. There are 4 Ganesha’s statues on every corner. Ganesha is a God that has wisdom and intelligent, even solving all obstacles.

Full of Meaning
The Government of Kabupaten Kediri claims that the numbers in the monument are full of meaning. The numbers 25 and 804 represent the anniversary of Kabupaten Kediri, 25 March 804 Masehi. Ganesha is the official symbol of the Government of Kabupaten Kediri.

The Monument of Kediri has three stairs in below area. In that area is the most crowded area because it could be used by local residents. Just like that evening, there were many youngsters doing the freestyle dance. At the same time, there were families sit and enjoy the view here.

In another spot, there were some teenagers taking selfies with a background of the monument. Not far from that place, there were kids around 5-10 years old playing around.

“If there is no rain, the visitors are more crowded. Moreover, there are more and more visitors over the weekend, from kids, teenagers, and adults. All of them are here.” said Muslikan, local a resident, said.

The monument was constructed in 2003 using local government’s budget with more billions rupiah to have an 8-stories monument complete with its lift and three stairs.

From the highest story, the visitors could the full view of Kediri’s panorama that has miscellaneous things to see, such as buildings in the city area and agricultural fields in the suburb area.

This place becomes the new icon of Kediri. The access to go there is pretty easy. The visitors could go there riding motorcycles or cars on the smooth road.

This place is located around 6 kilometers from downtown Kota Kediri; otherwise, it is located around 3 hours driving or 120 kilometers from Kota Surabaya. The visitors could choose the trip via Kertosono, Kabupaten Nganjuk or Kecamatan Pare, Kabupaten Kediri.

The Facilities
This monument has quite complete facilities, such as a parking lot, lots of restrooms, convention hall, and a multi-purpose building. There is also a free hotspot area. This is why many visitors like to stay here until late in the evening.

In the Monument of Kediri’s area, there is a recreational site called Gumul Paradise Land (GPI) Water Park that is managed by PT Panorama Wisata Sejahtera.

The admission on weekdays is Rp. 30.000; meanwhile on weekend and peak season are  Rp. 35.000.

GPI Water Park provides various attractions, such as speed slide, body slide, pools, fun boomerang, and flying fox. There are also bathrooms, cafeteria, musala, locker rooms, and merchants. All the facilities are in the wide and tidy area.

Nadlirin from the Departement of Culture and Tourism of Kabupaten Kediri told that Monument of Kediri is a low-budget travel destination that has various visitors, both local and from out of this town. The visitors do not need to pay admission to enter this place, except they want to go to the water park.

“According to the data, the visitors in 2013 is 328.420; in addition, there are 455.771 in 2014.”

To increase the visitors, the government would make a better service, including the facilities. In 2015, the government gave Rp. 1.2 billion from the budget to build a train monument on the west side of the monument.

This new monument is a playground and public area concept without leaving the identity of Kediri that is a town full of sugar factories, even though there are not as many as before.

“From the history, during the Holland imperialism in Indonesia, Kediri had many sugar factories. Moreover, Kediri was called Land with 1000 Sugar Factories. This historical value will be preserved from this tourism concept. ”Nadlirin said.  

So do not forget to put Monument of Kediri on your weekend list. Happy holiday.

Translated by: Vicensa Naomi