Surabaya

From Jembatan Merah to Ampel on foot and by becak

Surabaya's old quarters fill two days. Walk the Kalimas riverbank from Jembatan Merah, the Red Bridge, past colonial banks on Jalan Rajawali, take a becak to the House of Sampoerna and explore Kembang Jepun in the Chinese quarter; on the second day visit the Ampel mosque and the Arab quarter around it.

Day one, the old port. Start early at Jembatan Merah, the Red Bridge, and walk the Kalimas riverbank past the old trading houses and the colonial bank buildings of Jalan Rajawali. Take a becak to the House of Sampoerna for a mid-morning visit, when the rolling floor is busiest. After lunch, cross into Kembang Jepun, the main street of the Chinese quarter, and duck into the small temples in the lanes behind it. At about 4 pm, ride north into Ampel. Leave shoes at the gate of the Sunan Ampel mosque, walk the grave courtyard of one of Java's nine Muslim saints, then eat your way back through the covered market.

Day two, the heroes' city. Go to Tugu Pahlawan when it opens and spend an hour in the Museum 10 November beneath the obelisk; the dioramas and weapons explain why the battle matters to every Indonesian. Taxi to the Hotel Majapahit on Jalan Tunjungan for coffee in the old garden courtyard, then walk the renovated pavements past the art deco shopfronts. Late afternoon, climb aboard the KRI Pasopati submarine by the river. Finish with a sunset drive over the Suramadu Bridge and back, or a seafood dinner near Kenjeran beach.

With a third day, leave at midnight for a Bromo sunrise, or take the train to Malang.

Rawon, rujak cingur and lontong balap from the Surabaya kitchen

Surabaya takes East Javanese cooking seriously. Start with rawon, beef soup turned almost black by keluak nuts, served with rice, salted egg and bean sprouts, with the late-night rawon setan as the cult version. Try rujak cingur, a salad with slices of cow's nose in petis sauce, and lontong balap, rice cakes with bean sprouts.

East Javanese cooking is earthy and bold, and Surabaya is where it is taken most seriously. Rujak cingur is the local salad: vegetables, fruit, tofu and slices of boiled cow's nose under a thick sauce of petis shrimp paste and peanuts. If that sounds too much, start with lontong balap, rice cakes with bean sprouts, fried tofu and lentho fritters in a light broth, or tahu tek, fried tofu and egg chopped with scissors under peanut sauce.

Seafood comes from the strait. Lontong kupang uses tiny shellfish in a garlicky broth and is best eaten near Kenjeran. Old-fashioned semanggi, clover leaves with sweet potato sauce, is sold by women carrying baskets, a dying sight worth looking for.

Each quarter has its own table. In Ampel, look for nasi kebuli, goat curry and flaky roti maryam from Arab-run kitchens. Kembang Jepun and the lanes off it have Chinese noodle shops and bakeries. For souvenirs, families queue for lapis legit, the many-layered spiced cake, and for cold relief there is es campur or es kacang ijo, made with mung beans. Most warung close by mid-afternoon or open only at night, so ask locals which shift a stall works.

Bromo sunrise, Trowulan and the bull races of Madura

Surabaya is a good base for East Java's highlights. Mount Bromo tours leave around midnight for a sunrise over the Tengger caldera, about four hours away; the Majapahit ruins at Trowulan make a day trip, and across the Suramadu Bridge, Madura stages its karapan sapi bull races in the dry season.

The city works well as a base, and the trips out are often the highlight. Mount Bromo is the big one. Tours leave around midnight and drive about four hours to the Tengger caldera, where jeeps take you up to a viewpoint for sunrise over Bromo's smoking cone and Semeru behind it. You walk across the sand sea and climb the steps to the crater rim, then sleep in the van back. Going independently means a bus from Purabaya to Probolinggo and a minibus up to Cemoro Lawang, best with a night on the rim. The dry months from June to October give the clearest dawns.

Trowulan, near Mojokerto, about an hour and a half south-west, holds the brick ruins of Majapahit, the 14th-century kingdom whose capital stood here: split gates, bathing pools and a good site museum.

Cross the Suramadu Bridge and you are on Madura, an island with its own language, salt pans, batik and spicy satay. Bangkalan is just over the water. The famous karapan sapi bull races are held in the dry season, with the big finals usually around August to October; ask locally for dates.

Malang is a cooler hill city under three hours away by train, a good stop on the way to Bromo or Batu's orchards.