Night time roaming in Bandung has become somewhat regular and common. But how about taking part in a tour that specializes in visiting supposedly mystical or haunted locations? This is exactly what one community, called the Mystical Tourism Community has done.
The community adviser, Iman Abdurahman said there are a lot of places in Bandung known for their urban legends, myths, and hauntings. He said there are 7 places that are always the object of these mystical tours.
"Our expeditions purpose is not for ghost hunting but to explore the myth and history of the place, " said Iman to Merdeka Bandung, Saturday (03/10).
Here are the 7 mystical tourist attractions:
1. Statue of the Pastor in Maluku Garden
This offbeat statue is located in the Maluku Garden complex, across the Military Regional Command (Kodam) III/Siliwangi and Bandung Civil Registry Office. The man the statue portrays is of H.C. Verbraak, a Dutch pastor who served in Aceh and other Indonesian regions in the year 1870.
According to legend, the statue walks at night! Iman Abdurahman said the community had once carried out a sance in the location to try and make contact with the other world.
As a result, he said they proved the rumor saying the statue can walk at night to be not true. According to him, the myth came from some persons hallucination. The amount of detail put into the statue is amazing, including its gaze looking so real, and perhaps people who see it can become afraid and started to see things making them think it is alive.
2. Babakan Siliwangi Street
According to Iman, there are stories of a ghost child appearing at Siliwangi Street. The local residents often take an initiative to hang dolls on trees so the ghost will play with the dolls instead of playing in the middle of the road. Reportedly, accidents that has happened here is caused by the appearance of the ghost playing on the road.
When the Night Tour team conducted a thorough investigation, Iman said that the myth of the ghost is also not true. The result of said investigation shows that accidents may have happened because of the positioning of the road, lack of lighting at night, and carelessness.
3. The Dutch Cave at Dago Pakar
There is a myth saying that we are not allowed to say lada (black pepper) or pedas (spicy) in Bahasa Indonesia when you are in the cave. People say that lada is the name of a local cult figure, and if someone say that name, he or she will get bad luck. Iman thinks that the mystical aura in Belanda Cave is very strong mainly due to its historical significance and backstory.
4. Belitung Street
Another infamous street known for its mystical happenings is Belitung Street, precisely around a national high school. Reportedly, people often see the appearance of a Dutch girl named Nancy. Unfortunately the night tour has never conducted any type of sance or investigation into this place.
5. Tebing Keraton (Keraton Cliff)
The cliff in question is a wide expanse of cliffs and trees extending sideways in the Dago area. Iman said that according to the local stories, this place is so beautiful that it is given the name Tebing Keraton. There is a myth saying that there is a keraton (palace) of otherworldly things around the cliffs.
6. The Old Building Behind Ledeng Bus Station
The building is one of the most famous buildings in Bandung thats supposedly haunted. According to Iman, a participant of the Night Tour said that he saw a woman clad in a red dress asking the team to leave the building. On the way back home, another participant claimed to hear a tigers roar.
7. Palaguna Building
The building is located between Asia-Afrika and Dewi Sartika Streets.The night tour has actually done extensive investigations into this particular location. It turns out that based on the results of said investigation, the team is almost brave enough to declare that there is actually a presence of a mysterious woman.
So there you have it! 7 of Bandungs most notable spooky locations. Because of their success, the community has also opened networks in other areas such as the Northern Coast of Java, Jambi, Padang-Pariaman, Balikpapan, and Melawi in Kalimantan.