Nagoya (Indonesia)

Nagoya, also known as Lubuk Baja, is the main town of the island of Batam in the Riau Islands of Indonesia.

Understand
Nagoya is located on Batam Island's northern peninsula. The local government would like Batam Centre to become the center to governmental offices, business and commerce. However, private enterprise has voted for Nagoya. Nagoya is the city center where you can find most hotels, food or entertainment.

The name comes from Japanese engineers who arrived on the island in the 1970s to work on early infrastructure projects. Lubuk Baja was where they came to drink and eat, so they dubbed it after the city of Nagoya in Japan, and the name has stuck &mdash; although the name remains informal, and in all official contexts it's Lubuk Baja.

By boat
The closest ferry terminal is at (Jodoh), a short drive from central Nagoya, with frequent services on Horizon Fast Ferry from Singapore's HarbourFront terminal. Visa on arrival is available. The old ferry terminal at Batu Ampar is now closed.

By car
Nagoya is well linked by road. During peak traffic periods, it takes about an hour to drive from Nagoya to Batam's furthest places, such as Tanjung Uncang or Nongsapura.

Get around
Taxi to Sekupang costs Rp 12.000 per person if you are sharing, Rp 40.000 if chartered. Going to Harbour Bay ferry terminal is about Rp 15.000.

Do
Do what all seem to do: hang out at Nagoya Hill Shopping Mall.

Buy
For clothing check out Batam City Square / Nagoya Hill Mall. Sporting equipment is dominated by golf equipment, which can be found in a large sporting store in Nagoya. Tourist from Singapore love to shop for local products from Hypermart in Nagoya Hill Mall and Mega Mall. Some favorite grabs includes LAYERS /LAMOIST BATAM Style kue lapis, keropok gonggong (crackers), Indomie (local instant noodles), and cheap tidbits. Some local shops usually accept Singapore Dollars, because of Batam being very close to Singapore geographically. In any case you need extra cash to shop, you can still exchange your currency at the local money changers which offer competitive rates, or you may use a credit card.



Budget
Nagoya has many outdoor food courts called pujasera, akin to Singapore's hawker centres.

There's a variety of local food stalls located on the left side of Nagoya Hill entrance where you can find sate, ayam panggang and ikan bakar.
 * Nagoya Food Court, opposite Hotel Sahid Rashinta. Nagoya's largest with 400 seats.  Try 888 Seafood Tofu Claypot, Pork Knuckle, Tom Yum soup or New Hai San Seafood 新海汕海鲜 (Tel:+62-811-77-9656) steamed orbfish (清蒸白鲳).
 * Pujasera A1, near Lucky Plaza. Has a wide variety of Indonesian and Chinese food, including another branch of New Hai San.
 * Pujasera Sindo Happy, at the intersection of Jalan Iman Bonjol and Jalan Windsor.

Mid-range


If you'd like local food with air-con and perhaps a little more hygiene, head to the food court in any shopping mall. Nagoya Hill's Food Street, in particular, is large, cheap, tasty and always packed.


 * Ayam Penyet Ria, Nagoya Hill and elsewhere. Famous for their ayam penyet "smashed" fried chicken, but also does good gado-gado and other Indonesian favorites.
 * Bakso Lapangan Tembak Senayan, in BCS Mall, Nagoya Hill and Mega Mall.

Splurge
You can find excellent Western food in downtown Nagoya Entertainment District outlets, such as Red Cock, Bistro and Lucy's Oarhouse.

Drink
The Nagoya Entertainment District is Batam's most notorious den of sleazy nightlife.