The East And North of Kalimantan, Part 3: To Samarinda And Back Again

Due to our hectic schedule, I did not have time to take photos of our hotel in Balikpapan, Platinum Hotel & Convention. We didn't even get to see the facilities (Was there a swimming pool? I don't know). However, I could say that it is a good hotel to stay when you are in the city. I even saw Ruhut Sitompul during breakfast time.

 

If you are staying in Platinum Hotel, I suggest you to focus on the pastry. I love them all! The porridge is also good, but I forgot to take picture.

On Day 3, we were scheduled to go to Samarinda, the capital of East Kalimantan. But before that, Wda would meet with Bappeda officials. She told me to have a bit of fun while she was there, so I asked the driver if there are any local culinary spots, not Javanese or Bugis food, and particularly not Soto Lamongan. He told me about Mantaw Canton, a breakfast-type eatery that serves mantau (a type of white bun pau), coffee and other foods.

At first, I was like, "But Sir, Canton was even more foreign to Kalimantan than Javanese or Bugis", but anyway, after a quick browse, I found that mantau is indeed the specialty food of Balikpapan. So to Mantaw Canton I went.

Trivia: The origin of Chinese community in East Kalimantan dated back to the Dutch colonial era, when the Dutch established a special settlement for the Chinese people along Mahakam river to create jealousy among the local people (this is part of the Dutch's divide and conquer strategy). The Chinese settlement was definitely more strategically-located than the local people, and at first, the relationship of the two communities did not go well. However, the local people later established a trade company called Handel-maatschappij Borneo Samarinda (HBS), collaborating with Sarekat Islam (SI), and they managed to build a healthy competition and good relationship with the Chinese community. When Japan lost the war and the Dutch wanted to come back to East Kalimantan, both the local and the Chinese community fought fiercely against it together (Source: here).

Ok, back to Mantaw Canton.

 

The views from the front side of the eatery look promising.

I arrived at the place at around 8.30 am, which is breakfast peak hour. Families and working people were coming in droves. Since I came alone (the driver went away to wait on Wda), the waiter asked if it was okay to sit further in the back. Sure, I said. I ordered my go-to drink in cafes (black coffee, no sugar) and a fried mantau bun, because the waiter suggested it. I didn't order anything else, because I already had breakfast at the hotel. Bad decision, I know, but I couldn't pass on the pastry at the hotel. Anyway, I guess it was unusual for a woman to order black coffee with no sugar, as the waiter triple-checked with me.

 

I got a seat in the back. I took this photo after the breakfast rush hour subsided, just a bit after 9.30 am.

I have tried the store-bought mantau, and usually I have them steamed. The fried one in Mantaw Canton is an innovation of the owner, so it's a must-try. I was glad that I had the black coffee to pair with the fried mantau, the bun gets a notch sweeter after being fried so they made a perfect combo.

As I munched on the mantau, Wda called me and said she had completed her interviews and even managed to meet the sultan of Kutai Kartanegara. Whoa, I wanted to meet the sultan too. She picked me up at the eatery and we drove to Samarinda for the next appointment and to drop off our fixer to his home. Our fixer is based in Samarinda, but his network spans across the province, including Balikpapan. He invited us to have lunch at his home because his wife had cooked us some foods, which happened to be...*drum rolls*...Bugis foods. LOL.

Our fixer is a Bugis, so it is only natural that his wife cooks Bugis foods. However, here comes the plot twist, his wife is actually a Javanese! I think by this time Wda and I have given up the hope to taste the local culinary, because there is no such thing.

 

Anyway, here is the view along the Balikpapan-Samarinda tollroad. As you can see, there is a black patch on the soil. Our fixer and driver said that it was the young layer of coal (lignite). I remarked in passing that Balikpapan had cool weather compared to Palangkaraya and Pontianak, which I found weird because Kalimantan, which is known for coal and peatland, should have scorching hot weather. They both said that we were lucky to come during the rainy season, but it sure felt scorching hot in dry season.

Trivia: The 97.27-kilometer-long Balikpapan-Samarinda tollroad, or the BalSam tollroad as people call is, is the first one in the island. It was completed in July 2021 and inaugurated by the president in August 2021. After 76 years of independence, the development finally reaches Kalimantan.

The lunch spread at our fixer's home. His wife really went all out, everything is delicious.

 

Although we didn't get to know the local culinary of East Kalimantan, we really enjoyed the Bugis-themed lunch at our fixer's home. We had kappurung (sagu with fish soup), grilled fish, shrimp and if I'm not mistaken, three types of sambal. I have sampled kappurung when I was assigned to South Sulawesi in 2008, but this one is more delicious. At the end of our lunch, our fixer said,"If you come again to Samarinda or Balikpapan, just give me a call. You have a family here."

Then, we were back on the road again.

 

We couldn't do any sightseeing in Samarinda because of the appointment and we needed to come back to Balikpapan before it got too dark. However, passing the great Mahakam river in Samarinda already brought me joy. There are several bridges that connect both sides of the city. The most famous is the Mahkota Dua bridge, which spans at around 1 kilometer!

The Mahkota Dua bridge, shot from adjacent bridge

 

On the second video, we were passing another bridge when the driver started telling us about an incident of collapsed bridge. If you know Bahasa, put the sounds on and you can sense my anxiety rising as I comment, "I don't think this is the kind of information on bridges I'd like to hear when we are passing one."

Pak Niel, the sourceperson in Samarinda, turned out to be quite knowledgeable about North Kalimantan. After discussing the new capital, we changed gears and asked him about North Kalimantan. Both Wda and I have travel experiences across Indonesia, but still, this would be our first time exploring a new place without any important events or schedules.

He told us the important information, that it is safe for us to walk at night. There might be crocodiles or other wildlife animals, but those are mostly living on the upstream area. Phew, what a relief.  Kalimantan may not have volcanoes as other islands in Indonesia do, but it is famous for having many rivers. Encounters with river-based wildlife animals are the least wanted in my list. 

We drove back to Balikpapan, took the second antigen test for our flight tomorrow (we both tested negative, alhamdulillah) and later had dinner at the hotel's rooftop, because we were too beaten up to step out of the hotel. The cafe at the rooftop had live music, but it was too loud that we couldn't chat. So we finished our meal quickly and went back to our room to rest.

 

Have you ever visited North Kalimantan? I hope to see your comment on the next post :)