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Things to Do In Banda Aceh Besides Visiting Tsunami Sites

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Things To Do In Banda Aceh

Hi everyone. Thanks for the great response to yesterday’s article about Banda Aceh – 5 Years On Since the Tsunami. It obviously struck a chord with many people, and it’s really something else to see the area with your own eyes.

However today, I wanted to concentrate on non-Tsunami things to do.  It’s a bit hard to ignore that, because so much here was affected by that event.  I was also feeling a bit eerie when I saw the news about today’s Tsunami in Samoa. My thoughts are with those all affected.

Today, my guide was Maimum, or his nickname, ‘Doank’.  I met him last night and he is one of the local bloggers here.  He kindly offered to show me the surrounding areas of Banda Aceh on the back of his motorbike today.

I thought he was a bit foolish to do this because I weigh twice as much as him, and his motorbike struggled up a few hills, but his mechanical beast is still alive.  Maimum, if the suspension on your motorbike needs fixing, let me know.  Here he is below:

Maimum Aceh Blogger(1) | Airasia Pesta Blogging Communities Trip 2009 | Things To Do In Banda Aceh Besides Visiting Tsunami Sites | 2004 Tsunami Aceh, Aceh, Banda Aceh, Bandah Aceh, Earthquake, Indonesia, Indra Patra Fortress, Pesta Blogger, Pesta Blogger 2009, Travel Blogs, Tsunami In Aceh, Tsunami Indonesia, Tsunami Photos, Tsunami Pictures | Author: Anthony Bianco - The Travel Tart Blog

Today, we went north east of Banda Aceh city, to the areas known as Ujung Bate and Krueng Raya.

Maimum took me to the Indra Patra Fortress, a set of ruins that were built by the Acehnese kingdom in the 1400s to protect their territory from potential invaders.  There are a couple of forts there that I would not have otherwise known about, as it’s not listed in my guidebook, and only a local would know about this!

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Things To Do In Banda Aceh – Photos

Here are some photos of the Indra Patra Fortress below.  We had the place to ourselves, and this is right next to the beach!

Indra Patra Fortress | Airasia Pesta Blogging Communities Trip 2009 | Things To Do In Banda Aceh Besides Visiting Tsunami Sites | 2004 Tsunami Aceh, Aceh, Banda Aceh, Bandah Aceh, Earthquake, Indonesia, Indra Patra Fortress, Pesta Blogger, Pesta Blogger 2009, Travel Blogs, Tsunami In Aceh, Tsunami Indonesia, Tsunami Photos, Tsunami Pictures | Author: Anthony Bianco - The Travel Tart Blog

Indra Patra Fortress 2 | Airasia Pesta Blogging Communities Trip 2009 | Things To Do In Banda Aceh Besides Visiting Tsunami Sites | 2004 Tsunami Aceh, Aceh, Banda Aceh, Bandah Aceh, Earthquake, Indonesia, Indra Patra Fortress, Pesta Blogger, Pesta Blogger 2009, Travel Blogs, Tsunami In Aceh, Tsunami Indonesia, Tsunami Photos, Tsunami Pictures | Author: Anthony Bianco - The Travel Tart Blog

After being roasted by the midday sun, we stopped for a quick lunch break and I had my first sample of the superb Acehnese coffee.  There is a bag of this stuff with my name on it somewhere, and I’m taking some home with me.

Later on, Maimum took me to ‘Little Aceh’ – the Taman Shulthanah Shafiatuddin – which is effectively a museum of all the architectural styles located in Aceh province.  This park was completed in 2003, about 1 year before the Tsunami hit, but it was wiped out.  It has since been rebuilt and has opened recently.

Some of the house designs are intricate and detailed, and are shown below:

Moz Screenshot | Airasia Pesta Blogging Communities Trip 2009 | Things To Do In Banda Aceh Besides Visiting Tsunami Sites | 2004 Tsunami Aceh, Aceh, Banda Aceh, Bandah Aceh, Earthquake, Indonesia, Indra Patra Fortress, Pesta Blogger, Pesta Blogger 2009, Travel Blogs, Tsunami In Aceh, Tsunami Indonesia, Tsunami Photos, Tsunami Pictures | Author: Anthony Bianco - The Travel Tart Blog

Acehnese House 1 | Airasia Pesta Blogging Communities Trip 2009 | Things To Do In Banda Aceh Besides Visiting Tsunami Sites | 2004 Tsunami Aceh, Aceh, Banda Aceh, Bandah Aceh, Earthquake, Indonesia, Indra Patra Fortress, Pesta Blogger, Pesta Blogger 2009, Travel Blogs, Tsunami In Aceh, Tsunami Indonesia, Tsunami Photos, Tsunami Pictures | Author: Anthony Bianco - The Travel Tart BlogMoz Screenshot 1 | Airasia Pesta Blogging Communities Trip 2009 | Things To Do In Banda Aceh Besides Visiting Tsunami Sites | 2004 Tsunami Aceh, Aceh, Banda Aceh, Bandah Aceh, Earthquake, Indonesia, Indra Patra Fortress, Pesta Blogger, Pesta Blogger 2009, Travel Blogs, Tsunami In Aceh, Tsunami Indonesia, Tsunami Photos, Tsunami Pictures | Author: Anthony Bianco - The Travel Tart Blog

Acehnese House 2 | Airasia Pesta Blogging Communities Trip 2009 | Things To Do In Banda Aceh Besides Visiting Tsunami Sites | 2004 Tsunami Aceh, Aceh, Banda Aceh, Bandah Aceh, Earthquake, Indonesia, Indra Patra Fortress, Pesta Blogger, Pesta Blogger 2009, Travel Blogs, Tsunami In Aceh, Tsunami Indonesia, Tsunami Photos, Tsunami Pictures | Author: Anthony Bianco - The Travel Tart Blog

Achenese House 3 | Airasia Pesta Blogging Communities Trip 2009 | Things To Do In Banda Aceh Besides Visiting Tsunami Sites | 2004 Tsunami Aceh, Aceh, Banda Aceh, Bandah Aceh, Earthquake, Indonesia, Indra Patra Fortress, Pesta Blogger, Pesta Blogger 2009, Travel Blogs, Tsunami In Aceh, Tsunami Indonesia, Tsunami Photos, Tsunami Pictures | Author: Anthony Bianco - The Travel Tart Blog

There are two good sites on things to do and see in Aceh Province.

The first one is actually Maimum’s site, called Come2Aceh.com (in Indonesian), and the official government site in Indonesian and English is VistAceh.com.

And check out Indonesia (Country Guide).

Anyway, I’m off.  I’m in an internet cafe that doubles up as a gaming room, so my eardrums are being belted by gamers shooting things and large explosions.

More soon!

This trip is kindly sponsored by Air Asia.  Check out their site for their extensive network all around South East Asia.


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8 thoughts on “Things to Do In Banda Aceh Besides Visiting Tsunami Sites”

  1. Avatar Of Mymoen

    i’m just trying my best.. Hopely, u will enjoy in sabang.. and find big motorcycle.. :D.

    Actually, Aceh is nice place to visit. There’s many nice place, friendly face and full with smile.

    If u has comeback to brisbanne, don’t forget to say to your friend, “in Aceh, there’s friendly guys, and handsome (for girl only).. 😀

  2. Avatar Of Luc J

    Just off the coast of Bandah Aceh there’s an island Pulau Weh. I was there more than 10 years ago for some diving. It was one of the prettiest islands I’ve ever seen with gorgeous beaches. Have you been there? I wonder what’s left of that after the tsunami.

  3. Avatar Of Foxshrek

    nice.. juz bought ticket to Aceh this feb 2011..
    20 persons.. we ain’t got “to do” list currently..
    appreciates if someone could give suggestion..
    this article very helpful..

  4. Avatar Of Mumun

    I just stumbled on to your blog and this one was very interesting. I’ve been to Banda Aceh and yeah, everything was about the tsunami. I actually did visit because I wanted to see post-affect of the tsunami. But it never occurred to me to seek point of interests that aren’t related to the tsunami. Now I have another reason to go back, besides the fact that I haven’t tried their ‘kopi tarik’ 😛

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