Where will I live
The ACICIS program seeks
to find a balance between supporting students and allowing them enough independence
to explore their new environment fully. While ACICIS staff provide help and
information, students are responsible for finding and arranging their own accommodation.
This is not difficult. In university towns such as Yogyakarta and Malang, plenty
of student accommodation is available.
Options range from renting a house, renting a room in a 'homestay', or
renting a room in a student hostel, or kos. (Kos comes from the
Dutch word "indekos" meaning boarding house). Students find
that each option has its "pros and cons", all of which are
part of learning about life in another culture.
The majority of students choose to live in a kos, where they are
surrounded by Indonesian students and have constant opportunities for
language practice and learning. On the down-side however, many kos have
rules that can seem quite restrictive to non-Indonesians. Most female
kos, for instance, have a 9pm curfew and do not allow male visitors
beyond the front guest area.
 Accommodation
options vary considerably in price although all are relatively inexpensive
by Australian standards. Kos accommodation is probably the cheapest
option and renting a private home the most expensive, with the cost
of homestay accommodation lying somewhere in between. In general,
it is recommended that students live with Indonesian families or
students and steer clear of creating expatriate enclaves. How to
find accommodation is covered comprehensively during the Orientation
program, including tours of good accommodation areas. ACICIS staff
and Indonesian volunteers will give as much assistance to students
as they require with respect to finding the accommodation that suits
them. There are three main accommodation areas
close to UGM. They are:
Pogung Baru
The Pogung Baru area is one of the most popular amongst ACICIS
students. There are numerous kos, quality is high, and food and
transportation are easily accessible. The down side is that there
are sometimes too many ACICIS students staying there - if you're
determined not to speak English, maybe look elsewhere.
Pogung Baru is just off Jl Kaliurang, behind the Bank Bukopin &
Vidi I Hotel. It has long been a favourite with western students,
with its nice houses and rooms, easy street lay-out with map, proximity
to Jl Kaliurang, good warung & supermarket, and it's close to
UGM. With middle-class families, there are good facilities and usually
a telephone.
Recently some students have said that there are too many foreigners
in Pogung Baru; that while it's nice and convenient, it's becoming
too plastic, too sterile. It will probably remain popular, but students
looking for something more 'authentic' should go in behind Pogung
Baru, to Pogung Lor & Pogung Kidul (Lor = north, Kidul = south),
which are more 'studenty'. You can walk to ricefields from here.
Further west and south is Pogung Rejo, which gives on to the ricefields,
and is great for afternoon strolls and contemplation.
Bulaksumur
The Boulevard is the famous street running from the 'bunderan'
(roundabout where the buses stop, where the Ranti Rapih Hospital
is) north to the grand UGM ceremonial building. The Boulevard is
the site for the UGM fair, demonstrations, sport and breakfast stalls
on Sundays, wandering booksellers, drumband and karate practices,
and sometimes the UGM horses wander there.
If you stand at the Bunderan looking north to the university,
Bulaksumur, where you've been to the ACICIS office/RD's house, is
to the right (east). The Bulaksumur complex is large, divided into
blocks A to G. These are pleasant, shady, tree-lined streets, with
long bungalows built in the 1950s for university staff. It's quiet
and relaxing, but with an older, fairly established population,
may be too quiet for party animals. Some students have enjoyed the
leafy calm and the gardens for several months, then moved down to
Karangasem Baru or Pogung Rejo; others have found it very good for
their whole stay. Very convenient to the UGM, Mirota Kampus, &
Warnet.
Karang
The Karang area is located between Jalan Gejayan, Ring Road Utara,
Jalan Kaliurang and the Selokan Mataram (Mataram Drain/Canal), not
far from UGM.
Nearest Jl Kaliurang and the Hotel Vidi III is Karangwuni. This
area is rich in kos, of a highly 'authentic', Indonesian-student
style. It is very handy for evening meals and accessing public transport,
which can be harder to find on the south side without walking to
the Fakultas Kedoktoran Hewan intersection. Walk round and along
the maze of streets and gang, or stroll the length of the Selokan
several times, taking different routes to get to know the area.
As you go further in or further east, you come to Karanggayam. Further
along still is Karangasem, highly recommended by students (enter
from Karanggayam, or the Selokan or Jl Gejayan). At the end of the
rectangle, near Jl Gejayan, is the area called Gejayan. Go north
up Jl Gejayan towards the Ring Road for the Condongcatur area.
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