A slum area on Indonesia’s Java Island has become an unlikely tourist attraction, as well as a social media hit, after its homes were painted vivid colors to transform the district into what is now being called “Kampung Pelangi” (“Rainbow Village”).
A small previously unassuming village in Randusari, Indonesia, unveiled a stunning makeover that is taking Instagram by storm.
The village of Kampung Pelangi in Ambarawa, Central Java was allocated 300,000,000 Indonesian Rupiah ($22,522) by the local council committee in order to revamp itself and attract tourists.
The bold new color scheme was unveiled at the end of April after members of the community, including the mayor of a nearby village, got involved to paint the houses, the Independent reported Wednesday.
Currently, at least 232 houses have been painted in technicolour, but the Mayor of Semarang, Hendrar Prihadi, hopes to extend the colourful theme to 385 houses.
Much of the manpower was reportedly provided by The Indonesian Builders Association.
The buildings in the village have been covered with multi-colored stripes, leading locals to dub it a “rainbow village.”
However, up-close, visitors will realize that many of the buildings are covered in art work, including a wall which features a pair of angel wings surrounded by rainbow rays, a 3-D shark and flags.
Visitors have been flocking to the village to take photographs and pose for “selfies” next to the brightly colored homes.
“It’s because of the unique look of the village. We know this area used to be a slum district but now it looks so beautiful after the colorful makeover. I used to pass this area without any interest but now the colors change everything,” said one visitor Nihayatun Naqiyah, Reuters reported.
Slamet Widodo, a 54-year-old teacher, came up with the idea for the Rainbow Village, after hearig about similar success stories in Asia.
“The idea to create Kampung Pelango came after we saw the beauty of Kampung Warna-warni and Kampung Tridi in Malang, and later Kampung Kali Code in Yogyakarta,”