All aboard the Prambanan Express!
You can buy a new car in any town but where can you ride on a new train? Often you hear of people restoring old trains and their line but when on read in a local Central Java newspaper that there would be a brand new train running between Solo and Yogyakarta starting in March of this year there was an air of anticipation and excitment.
The KA Prambanan Express began running on the 13th of March 2006. In Indonesian style the name has been shortened and it is now known as the PRAMEKS.
This gleaming new train was built in Indonesia in the INKA train factory in Maduin, East Java. It has six carriages and a huge diesel motor in the leading carriage when it is arriving in Yogya.
The train runs between these two cities and takes an hour to travel each way. There are 12 stations along its path but it only stops at a few of them. The Prameks does the journey seven times a day beginning with the 05.45 service from Solo and the 06.06 service from Yogya. The trip costs 75 cents. Travelling between these two cities one traverses a varying landscape but the train line has mostly followed the level ground.
The scenery is rice fields and small areas of green where forest abounds. Much of the area is inhabited and small towns are continually popping up. A huge volcano is always in the background.
Out of the window for most of the journey you gaze upon Mt. Merapi, one of Indonesia's highest and most active volcanoes. It is a perfect cone as the train passes around it. At the time of archipelaGo's journey on the train Merapi was belching out smoke and lava and was is a state of high alert. Quite spectacular.
The top speed of the train is 105 kilometres an hour but the state of the track means that it often is limited in speed.
So where can you find a brand new train? In Solo in Central Java travelling to Yogyakarta in DIY and returning, seven times each day. If you are in the neighbourhood give it a try.
Note: Despite its name the express does not stop at the Prambanan station. It only uses that name because it is well known.
below left: Dasboard of the train
below: Inside a carriage
