Interesting Facts and Information about Medan

History about Medan:
The city’s history is interesting. Guru Patimpur founded Medan village in around 1590 and gradually became Medan village, or Kampung Medan, and this in turn became present day Medan. The Batak Karo community were the first settlers in Medan. Later the king of Aceh, Sultan Iskander Muda, ruled the region and the resulting kingdom of Deli prospered. From 1658, the Dutch ruled the region and Medan became the capital of the northern province of Sumatra in 1915 and was declared a city in 1918.

Landmarks

Medan's Great Mosque

There are many old buildings in Medan that still retain their Dutch architecture. These include the old City Hall, the central Post Office, the Tirtandi Water Tower, which is Medan City's icon, and Titi Gantung (a bridge over the railway).
There are several historic places such as Maimun Palace (Istana Maimun) built in years 1887–1891, where the Sultan of Deli still lives (the Sultan no longer holds any official power), and the Great Mosque (Masjid Raya) of Medan built in 1906 in the Moroccan style by the Dutch architect Dingemans.
Since 2005, a catholic temple, in Indo-Mogul style, devoted to Graha Maria Anna Velangkanni (Our Lady of Good Health), is built in Medan. This particular Saint knows its origin with an apparition in the 17th century in India. The temple is an important building, of two stories and a small tower of seven storeys in Indonesian style, that already attracts attention from the main road (it is situated in the small road Jl. Sakura III besides Jl. Simatupang). It is already the second most important pilgrimage place in Asia.

Unique Transportation in Medan:

One of the unique features of Medan are the motorized becaks that are found almost everywhere. Unlike traditional becaks, a motorized becak can take its passenger anywhere in the city. The fare of riding a 'becak' is relatively cheap and is usually negotiated beforehand.
There are also more common transport like taxis and minibuses, known as sudako