From the nation’s political capital of Jakarta to the spiritual capital Jogyakarta, a perfect launching pad to visit the UNESCO sites and worlds’ largest Buddhist and Hindu temples Borobudur and Prambaman, and one of my new favorite cities of the world.
It was here that I finally decided to try out a tasty pack of Dji Sam Soe… the tasty cloves that Indonesians love smoking. Man! It’s almost like this stuff is supposed to be addictive!
Our 1st night upon arrival we stayed at the hotel Manohara, a little posada situated right on Borobudur’s grounds which offers the advantage of the Sunrise tour, a 4:30am jaunt to the temple
Perhaps a bit misleading as the atmospheric fog really prevents any view of the sunrise… but completely worth it to get a more private opportunity to tour the grounds before the masses arrive (which they will by 6:30). Note to anyone going in the future… the sun does not rise until ~5:30 so there’s really no point in waking up at 4am unless to take darkness shots as these:
At last the sun begins to rise, really accentuating this marvel that was built 1300 years ago and still serves as center for pilgrimage by Buddhists around the world (also Indonesia’s #1 tourist site).
What still remains a mystery is that among the 504 encapsulated Buddha statues here, why is the main stupa empty?
Among the 11 different sections in the 4 galleries, 1,460 murals tell the story of Siddhartha Gautama
Just as with the pyramids at Giza, it really is incredible to fathom the amount of manpower required to build such an enormous temple back in 800AD
On the grounds too include other sites such as elephant rides
a museum celebrating the strong Javan sailing tradition
and just like with the Terra Cotta warriors of Xi’an, the maintenance/repair effort is endless
At last we are ready to leave this enchanted place, passing by the Candi (Temple) Mendut en route back to Jogya. Located 3km to the East, this small temple served as a stopover for pilgrims walking to Borobudur and is renowned for its intricate carvings narrating the animal story of Buddhist teaching.
After a quick recharge of salak and Indonesian ramen in Jogya
We are ready to venture out for our 2nd holy site of the day, the 9th century-built Hindu temple of Prambanan
Sadly this magnificent site was destroyed by an earthquake in 2006 and the primary 3 temples for Brahma, Vishnu, and Shiva were all closed to the public
making it more of a rapid visit for us. Here lies the temple of Nandi, the only one among the central Perwara complex in the Lara Jongrang area open for entry.
Prambanan is really quite an expansive area that consists of 16 different temple areas all spaced a ways apart. Had we the luxury of a Shiva’s magical bull perhaps we would have ventured further… but only made it to the Northern temples: Candi Lumbung, Bubrah, Sewu, and Plaosan…. which interestingly enough were all Buddhist-style sanctuaries.
and sadly also in ruins from the 2006 earthquake
only in a place as mystical as this…
Prambanan no differently requires its own repair shop
also with its own spectacular museum, showcasing the history and teachings of Hinduism
as our day began well before the sun rose, here the moon joins in
along the grounds are also various zoos… what are these?
Importantly we stayed around Prambanan long enough to make the famed Ramayana ballet, which to this day remains the most celebrated love story throughout the country. It began with a delicious Javan dinner with this as our spectacular backdrop
Where I saddled my recently discovered addiction for dji sam soe in favor of this magical tea, which I can describe no better than tasting of “red” (not that red… let us not forget this beautiful country’s long devastating battle with communism)
The Ramayana is the most celebrated story throughout Indonesia which tells of Rama and Sinta… the kidnapping of Sinta by the king of Lanka and her rescue by Rama aided by monkey king Hanuman. Not only does the Ramayana expound upon the nobility of virtue, fidelity, sacrifice, and dharma, but Rama and Sinta serve as the epitome of love and relationship which all Indonesians view as the paramount for a couple to achieve.
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