22/2/2015
Yogyakarta, Indonesia
Prambanan temple: A complex on 240 temples built by the Hindu Sanjaya kings around 850 CE. Dedicated to the Trimurti ( Brahma, Vishnu & Shiva )
Our next destination is the ViaVia cafe & Mediterranean cafe on Jl. Prawirotaman. Mr.Kent's notorious plan to take me to a restaurant that serves Snake meat was served was ( haha ) foiled .The Mediterranean cafe had good music and the perfect square wooden tables for our conversations. And thus we decide to explore the street. Interesting cafes, the kind that makes you want to unearth the stories behind them. Viavia cafe was one such chance encounter. Good music. Interesting people. The ambience was very very On-the-road ;)
We had a hearty meal and went back to our hotel.
Good wine & Wine-filled conversations.
We were supposed to go to the Borobodur temple the next day. The Anti-morning people that we are, we slept in and happily missed the 3 AM sunrise at Borobudur. But voila, There is a 6 PM sunset view at Borobodur. As we discuss lunch, it starts raining. It was a pretty sight with the diligent accompaniment of petrichor arising from the freshly drenched soil. But, the fact that it was sort of impossible to get to Borobodur remained. The wayanadan spirit is hurt and challenged. Lets take a bike trip in the rain. Grab those plastic rain coats from the random shop on the road and Lets get going! Well , I got to admit, that was by far the BEST bike trip I've ever had. Not that my collection of bike trips is vast. A quick late lunch at one of the Masakan Padangs. Ah I love those Masakan Padangs ( It's kind of the Indonesian version of our thattu kada cum Oon Ready places ). Fish, beef , chicken, spinach with rice and all this with the typical Malayali flavours. I love Indonesia for this. The view towards which we where speeding was breath-taking. Reminded you of wayanad in a lot of ways.
So we did reach Borobodur and as we prep up to Oohs and Aahs, the guard comes and tells us the temple closes at 5!! Waaaa ?? But what about the sunset at 6 and the amazing photographs of the sunset at 6 ? Looks like the website had not updated the timings !! And we catch glimpses of the huge temple . Sneaking our heads in through fences and taking pictures of the temple. One of the locals then told us about Manohara hotel where you can get a good view of the temple. It was also the place where heritage studies was being conducted on Borobudur. So in the pretext of getting a room there, we enter the hotel and order 2 cups of coffee at the restaurant. Woah! Brilliancy! Made a mental note to visit Borobudur with Appa ( He would love it ).
Nighty night. Sheraton Hotel , where we were put up, was set in a beautiful location. With a fuming volcano ( Mount Merapi ) for a backdrop and a room that opened to the pool we couldn't ask for more.
That said, we are going back to the Allwyn Kent mode of travelling next time onwards - Hostels and Lonely Planet !! Waiting for our next trip.
Yogyakarta, Indonesia
Prambanan temple: A complex on 240 temples built by the Hindu Sanjaya kings around 850 CE. Dedicated to the Trimurti ( Brahma, Vishnu & Shiva )
Notes :
1. The modes of transportation of the Trimurtis ( Angsa/Hansa- Brahma, Garuda- Vishnu, Nandi- Shiva ) have temples dedicated to them in the same compound right across the temples of the deities they transport . It was almost like the driver's quarters next to the employer's bungalow.
2. The proximity of Borobodur( the Biggest Buddhist temple ) and the numerous mosques to the Prambanan temple spoke a lot about the country's religious tolerance and mutual respect. For a moment I'm forced to think, Is this the level to which the events happening in India has brought me down to. Am I acknowledging the kind of insecurities I never thought would ever develop within me. ?
The architecture is beautiful and wonderfully engineered. You are left awe-struck at the impeccable arrangement of stones, the perfect packing on one stone over another and the engravings on the stones. Having withstood the numerous earthquakes and other natural disasters that the country is prone to, Prambanan temple is Robustness personified!
While you admire the beauty of this architecture marvel, you can't help but wonder( thanks to a little prod by the husband ! ) about the history of slavery that went into the making of it. The philanthropic part of one is forced to ponder over it.
On that note & some good Bintang beer & avocado shake, we move onto our next ( unknown ) destination.
We had a hearty meal and went back to our hotel.
Good wine & Wine-filled conversations.
We were supposed to go to the Borobodur temple the next day. The Anti-morning people that we are, we slept in and happily missed the 3 AM sunrise at Borobudur. But voila, There is a 6 PM sunset view at Borobodur. As we discuss lunch, it starts raining. It was a pretty sight with the diligent accompaniment of petrichor arising from the freshly drenched soil. But, the fact that it was sort of impossible to get to Borobodur remained. The wayanadan spirit is hurt and challenged. Lets take a bike trip in the rain. Grab those plastic rain coats from the random shop on the road and Lets get going! Well , I got to admit, that was by far the BEST bike trip I've ever had. Not that my collection of bike trips is vast. A quick late lunch at one of the Masakan Padangs. Ah I love those Masakan Padangs ( It's kind of the Indonesian version of our thattu kada cum Oon Ready places ). Fish, beef , chicken, spinach with rice and all this with the typical Malayali flavours. I love Indonesia for this. The view towards which we where speeding was breath-taking. Reminded you of wayanad in a lot of ways.
So we did reach Borobodur and as we prep up to Oohs and Aahs, the guard comes and tells us the temple closes at 5!! Waaaa ?? But what about the sunset at 6 and the amazing photographs of the sunset at 6 ? Looks like the website had not updated the timings !! And we catch glimpses of the huge temple . Sneaking our heads in through fences and taking pictures of the temple. One of the locals then told us about Manohara hotel where you can get a good view of the temple. It was also the place where heritage studies was being conducted on Borobudur. So in the pretext of getting a room there, we enter the hotel and order 2 cups of coffee at the restaurant. Woah! Brilliancy! Made a mental note to visit Borobudur with Appa ( He would love it ).
Nighty night. Sheraton Hotel , where we were put up, was set in a beautiful location. With a fuming volcano ( Mount Merapi ) for a backdrop and a room that opened to the pool we couldn't ask for more.
That said, we are going back to the Allwyn Kent mode of travelling next time onwards - Hostels and Lonely Planet !! Waiting for our next trip.
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