Jembatan Merah (Red Bridge)

Jembatan Merah — the Red Bridge — spans the Kalimas River in the heart of the old colonial quarter and is the symbolic centre of old Surabaya. The bridge itself is modest, but the surrounding neighbourhood is the best place to understand the city's Dutch colonial past.

Dutch commercial warehouses, offices, and trading houses line the nearby streets, many in various states of picturesque decay. The area gives a vivid sense of what Surabaya was when it was the busiest port in the Netherlands East Indies. Start here and walk south into Chinatown or north toward the Kalimas harbour.

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The Red Bridge was the scene of one of the most intense battles of the Indonesian National Revolution. In November 1945, British and Indian troops clashed with Indonesian nationalists here in fighting that left thousands dead. The Battle of Surabaya became a defining moment in the independence struggle, and 10 November — Heroes' Day — is still a national holiday.

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