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PEKANBARU |
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| The booming oil town of PEKANBARU is a major gateway into Indonesia
from Singapore, via Pulau Batam and Pulau Bintan. Most travellers head
straight through but it's worth considering a journey break here - it's
six hours west to Bukittinggi and another nine or ten hours east to
Singapore. Pekanbaru's main street is Jalan Sudirman, which runs north-south
from the river through the centre of town to the airport. Most hotels,
restaurants and shops are within easy reach of this thoroughfare.
However, the tourist information office is inconveniently sited at Jl
Diponegoro 24 (Mon-Thurs 8am-2pm, Fri 8-11am, Sat 8am-12.30pm; tel
0761/31562). The one must-see in town is Yayasan Sepena Riau , Jl
Sumatera 7 (Mon-Sat 10am-4pm), a small private museum and souvenir shop.
It's an absolute treasure trove of artefacts collected by one family
over many years, including items connected with traditional Riau
weddings. The markets are fun too: Pasar Pusat is the food and household-goods
market, and Pasar Bawah and Pasar Tengeh in the port area have an
excellent range of Chinese goods, including ceramics and carpets. |
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