Always in the shadow of Jakarta, Surabaya ironically has a long history of being a Icommerce centre in Southeast Asia.
It’s easy to miss out on Surabaya’s appeal as most tourists just stop over on their way to the famous Mount Bromo. However, the second la rgest city in Indonesia after Jakarta has more than meets the eye. It has over 1,000 years of history as a centre of commerce in Southeast Asia due to its central location and a thriving port.
Most residents of Surabaya are proud of their city claiming it’s the best city in Indonesia (Bali is a n outlier a nd is useful for bringing in tourism receipts, so goes the thinking). One very noticeable thing about Surabaya is its vehicle traffic – it’s nothing like Jakarta’s. And that’s already a big advantage.
Secondly, there a re a lot more greens in the city which also has a river snaking through the centre. Not surprisingly, Surabaya is known as one of the greenest and cleanest cities in Indonesia. Its many urban parks are equipped with fountains in almost every neighbourhood with one park, Bungkul Park having been awarded the Asian Townscape Award 2013 from the United Nations as the best park in Asia.
