Ancient Srivijaya capital — pempek fish cakes, the Musi River, and Indonesia's oldest city
Palembang is one of Indonesia's oldest cities and the capital of the ancient Srivijaya maritime empire (7th–13th centuries CE), which controlled the sea lanes between China and India from this river city on Sumatra. Today Palembang is best known for pempek — a family of fish-cake preparations (kapal selam, lenjer, pistel, adaan) served in a black cuka vinegar sauce that is so integral to the city's identity it was registered as Indonesian cultural heritage. The Ampera Bridge over the Musi River and the Musi riverside kampungs are the city's soul.
Srivijaya, headquartered near present-day Palembang, was the dominant maritime power of Southeast Asia from 671 to 1025 CE — an empire that taxed the spice trade passing between India and China and spread Mahayana Buddhism across the region. Palembang later became a Sultanate (1455), was absorbed by the Dutch in 1818, and became a major oil production centre under Stanvac/Standard Oil from 1905. The Ampera Bridge (1965), a gift from Japan as war reparations, became the symbol of modern Palembang.