February 1, 2022. That day’s journey was not initially meant to visit the Zero Kilometer Point of Ibu Kota Nusantara (IKN), but rather to head to Tembinus Waterfall, one of the natural attractions in the Sepaku area. From the Samboja T-junction, I followed the national road toward Sepaku. Upon arriving there, I continued along a hauling road leading to the waterfall’s location.

However, the location point I had for Tembinus Waterfall turned out to be inaccurate. I had to turn back. The problem was, the area was filled with trees of the same type, along with several four-way intersections that looked alike, making it a bit difficult for me to find my way back..

Amid the confusion, I came across a worker in the area that I later learned was the site of the State Palace—now standing in all its grandeur. He gave me directions to return to the national road. But as fate would have it, I took the wrong path a second time and instead ended up at a place no less remarkable: Nusantara’s Zero Kilometer Point.

That afternoon, the weather was clear. An open landscape stretched out before me, with neat rows of eucalyptus trees standing in the distance. Amid this uniformity, a single tree of a different kind stood alone—almost as if marking that this chance-filled journey had brought me to the starting point of Indonesia’s new capital city history.

From above, I recorded the Geodetic Point Monument—a marker that is both scientific and symbolic of IKN’s development. In the future, this site will be home to the Nusantara Zero Kilometer Monument, serving as the official landmark of IKN’s birth. To reach it, I descended a footpath into the valley. There, the modest blue monument stood amid eucalyptus vegetation, quietly witnessing the long journey that lies ahead.

That day, I learned that while my original destination was Tembinus Waterfall, it was getting lost that led me to discover Nusantara’s Zero Kilometer Point—the place where Indonesia’s great dream began to be measured and brought to life.