Capital of the Kutai Regency, 45 km and three hours upstream from Samarinda, or just one hour by road. Passing sawmills and stilted villages along the way, the Mahakam River is broad and sluggish at this point.
The people of this small, neat and thriving river town are quite tourist-friendly. Tenggarong is far cheaper and more relaxed than Samarinda and there’s little officialdom to contend with. For information and advice on traveling the Mahakam, the tourist office is in the rear of the pasar. The provincial tourist office is at Jl. Kusuma Bangsa Balaikota, Samarinda, tel. 75123 /741669.
Every year during the last week in September Tenggarong celebrates the Erau Festival, the anniversary of city’s founding. Lasting two weeks, this cultural event is held at the Taman Puskora (Cultural and Sports Center) and includes traditional sports, rattan-lashing and blowpipe competitions, a motorcycle race from Loa Janan to Tenggarong, and performances of traditional dances.
Pasar Pagi is Tenggarong’s main market. Dayak crafts are sold here: baskets, old stone necklaces, masks, mandau, and woodcarvings. Souvenir shops in town sell Dayak Kenyah crafts, mostly new. Crafts can be purchased more cheaply in the villages, but you won’t see the variety available in Tenggarong.
An ATM is located at Lippo Bank north of the dermaga on Jl. Sudirman. Near the Sporting and Cultural Complex is an unusual mosque built during the reign of Haji Aji Pangeran Sosro Negoro (1926-35). Inside you’ll find what is surely the only Indonesian public library housed in a minaret.
Take a small ferry boat across the river to Kumala island where you can visit a Kalimantan theme park with Balinese style temple, authentic longhouse (lamin), and take a cable car with a spectacular views over the river and city. City area code: 0541.
History
Tenggarong was formerly the site of the Kutai Kingdom which had its roots in the old Hindu kingdom of Martapura (Mulawarman) founded upriver at Muara Kaman around A.D. 400. At its zenith, it controlled the entire Mahakam basin and adjacent coastline.
In 1782 the sultanate moved to a safer spot upstream, the site of present-day Tenggarong. The original sultan’s palace was reached by a long flight of steps from the river. Thus, the Buginese people gave it the name Tenggarong (“Palace Steps”).
Aji Sultan Muhammad Parikesit, the 18th and final sultan, lost power when the Indonesian government abolished his kingdom in 1960. He donated his palace to the people as a museum; the government presented him with a new house in exchange. The sultan died in 1982.
Mulawarman Museum
This imposing white palace, on Jl. Diponegoro opposite the ferry dock, is the town’s top attraction. An earlier wooden palace, called Istana Kutai Kertanegara, was torn down and this one built in its place in 1936. Designed by a Dutch architect, the large, solid structure was built in classical 1930s futurist style - what Dutchmen considered suitable for an Indonesian sultan.
All the gifts Dayak tribes presented to the sultan in recognition of his sovereignty are on display here. China’s long contact with the Kutai and Dayak people can be seen in the ceramic collection.
Not to be missed is the elaborate two-seated throne and the fantastic bedroom with bridal bed decorated with extravagant beadwork, chairs made from deer antlers; also Dayak Benuaq weaving, Bahau hudog masks, and Kenyah crafts. All are in good condition.
See also the startling representation of a lembu suana, a mythological animal with an elephant’s trunk, tusks and cow’s legs, which originated in Burma in the 1800s. Museum labeling is hit-or-miss, but many items are described in English. Good luck understanding the “English-speaking” guide, but that’s part of the charm of Indonesia. Open Tues.-Thurs., Sat. and Sun. 9 am-4pm; Rp2500 entrance.
Stay & Eat
The Hotel Fatma, Jl Sudirman the Jl KH Ahmed Muksin 39 (tel. 661-356), 100 meters from the Pulau Kumara pier, offers budget rooms with balconies over the river for Rp50,000-200,000. Peng. Anda II, Jl Sudirman 129 (tel. 661-409) has clean rooms for only Rp75,000, though some class rooms only have electricity after dark. Hotel Singgasana Tangga Arung, Pahlawan 1 Bukit Biru, tel. 664703, email: : hotelsinggasana@kutaikartanegara.com
is a business hotel with a beautiful panorama over the river, the city and forested hills.
You’ll find the usual collection of warung strung out along the riverfront between Lippo Bank and the main dock. The Tepian Pandan opposite the museum is about the only proper restaurant, with a wonderful location and excellent Chinese food (Rp40-50,000); fresh grilled prawns are a specialty. See the sparkling lights of the huge Tenggarong bridge at night. For sate lovers, there’s the foodstall next to the canal. A few places serve beer, though you’ll need to ask for some ice as they come straight off the shelf.
Getting There and Away
From the bus terminal, 5 km south of town beyond the suspension bridge, you can hire taxis to town (Rp25,000). To catch your flight, get a minibuses (Rp15,000) heading for Samarinda. The giant muddy Mahakam is the highway into to the interior. Oceangoing ships travel as far as Samarinda, 60 km upstream from its mouth, to load huge logs floated down to the port.
The lower half of the river valley is populated by Muslim Malay groups, including the native Kutai. Dayak tribes which originally moved upriver to avoid Islam have, since WW II, moved back into downstream river towns to avail themselves of education and jobs.
Don’t expect to see longhouses lining the banks as you chug up the Mahakam; Western-style dwellings have replaced nearly all of them. Neither will your journey take you through impenetrable tropical forests - much of the jungle is secondary growth or has been clearcut by Weyerhauser. To see Dayak life, head up the river’s tributaries, walk inland, or travel far upriver (ulo) to the Apo Kayan/Krayan regions.
