Taman Balai Kota Bandung (Bandung City Hall Park)

This is the center piece of Bandung City Hall Park. Designed by Dr. R. Teuser, the park is one of the oldest in the city. It was built in 1885 and was named Pieterpark in honor of an Asisten Residen (the title for the city's administrator before it became a municipality in 1906) Pieter Sijthoff.

In the old days, the park was also often called Kebon Raja (The King's Garden) because it was located just across the street from, Sakola Raja (Dutch: Kweekschool, or The King's School).

In 1950, the park's name was changed to Taman Merdeka (the Independence Park), and on December 4, 1996, the park's name was again changed to Taman Dewi Sartika in honor of a Bandung-native national heroine Dewi Sartika whose statue has since been placed there.

Theme Day: Kosong

Kosong is an Indonesian word for empty, which happens to be this month's theme at CDPB (City Daily Photo Blog).

Photographically, I think it is impossible to visualize emptiness, for even in an empty space, there must be something, a few things, visible or invisible. In a photograph, one of those things is the frame.

So, visualizing emptiness is about interpretations. And this is mine. An empty bench in an office waiting room. Is it a good sign (that every visitor has been served timely that one one has to wait)? Or a bad one (that nobody wants to deal with that office)?

Happy Theme Day, everyone!

Click here to view thumbnails for all participants

Tall Flag Carrier

A tall flag carrier is part of the marching band auxiliary components that - together with other auxiliary elements - functions to add visual elements to the band's performance.

Different types of marching band have different auxiliary elements. A ceremonial marchng band, for example, might include a troop of traditional color guards; whereas corp-style field band would probably include a dance line.

The auxiliary elements of a marching band are sometimes collectively called the color guards or the visual ensemble.

I took this photo of this tall flag carrier girl practicing her skills at Bandung City Hall park a couple of days ago. I used slower shutter speed to capture the motion of the flag.

The Crossing Bridge

This is the pedestrian crossing bridge from where I took the photos of Jalan Merdeka (Merdeka Street) that I posted in the previous two posts.

In contrast to the street below, which looks clean and well-maintained, this pedestrian crossing bridge looks dirty and in disrepair. Some of its tiles have come off. Considering its location, which is just next to the city hall, I don't understand why it has been left dirty and in disrepair like this. I can only guess that the maintenance of this facility is not a priority because not many people use it. As I said in one of my previous posts, a lot of peole here prefer to jaywalk than using the pedestrian crossing bridge like this.

Wide Angle View of The City: Merdeka Street, North

This is the view of Jalan Merdeka (Merdeka Street) facing north. I took the picture at about 5 PM from the same pedestrian crossing bridge where I took yesterday's photo. The City Hall is the white building that is partly visible on your left hand side of the picture.

Bandung's traffic is not always as light and smooth as this. In some places and at certain times, it can get very crowded. Terrible traffic congestions usually take place during weekends, and the holiday seasons (when many visitors flock the city) and at commercial areas, such as Cihampelas, Purnawarman, Sukajadi, Dago (Ir H. Djuanda), and Junjunan (Terusan Pasteur) and Riau (L.R.E. Martadinata) streets and the areas around the alun-alun (city square). Traffic congestions during the daily rush hours are also generally quite bad.

Wide Angle View of The City: Merdeka Street, South

This is the wide angle view of Jalan Merdeka (literally: Freedom or Independence Street) south of the City Hall, which in this picture is on your right hand side (invisible). The tower and the high rise building on the top left corner are, respectively, Bandung Cathedral (the Saint Peter Church) and Panghegar Hotel.

Car Wash in Bandung

I snapped this photo with my cell phone camera while waiting for my car being washed at a tire shop and car washing station on Setiabudhi Street in the north of Bandung.

Hand car wash like this is quite easy to find here and is relatively cheap. Basic cleaning services cost between IDR 20,000 to IDR 30,000 (USD 2 - 3). Additional services are usually offered in the form of maintenance and beautification packages by car washing stations that also label themselves as "Salon Mobil" (Automobile Beauty Salon).

Labu Siam, Jipang

A relative of the cucumber, melon, and squash of the cucurbitaceae family, labu siam or jipang (sechium edule) as it is called locally is a very popular vegetable here.

This vegetable was reportedly brought to Indonesia by the Ductch from Thailand, and hence its name "labu siam" (Siamese pumpkin/gourd).

Labu siam/jipang is the fruit of a vine plant. The size of the fruit is about 10 to 20 centimeters. It grows in many parts of the world and is called with different names. In English it is generally called chayote, cho-cho, mirliton, or vegetable pear. In French, it is called christophine. What is it called in your language?