Prambanan, Java, Indonesia

After a much needed nap, we departed on our second tour of the day. We mini-bused to the Hindu monument of Prambanan. Prambanan is one of the largest Hindu temples in Southeast Asia, and was built in 850AD.
We lucked out for once and got a knowledgeable guide, with mostly understandable English. Prambanan is massive and interesting. I'd recommend viewing it before Borobudur though, as it pales by comparison. It was less crowded than Borobudur, and we could walk unbothered around the main temples through grassy fields.

Even a UNESCO World Heritage Site has to share its grounds with the local farmers. Click PLAY below to see a lamb try to escape its herder.

After Prambanan we rode the tour bus up hill to Boku Kraton; which is billed in Lonely Planet as "a stunning view of the Prambanan plain, best seen during the magnificent sunset." What we found were unrecognizable ruins of a 9th century castle on a hill with a view limited to just a couple miles visibility due to the choking smog that blankets most of Java. The sun disappeared into this band of smog long before it set. After a sub par "dinner included in the tour" (read: rice and tea), it was back down to Prambanan for the marquee cultural performance in all of Java, the Ramayana Ballet at Prambanan.

Two hours of over two hundred performers in costume and gamelan music, with the softly lit Prambana temples setting a timeless backdrop. It was a great show, with a portion of the stage actually burned down during the climax of the story. Half of the audience were the afore mentioned schoolchildren from Borobudur, the boys seated separately from the girls.

A word on Indonesian religion: While Bali is a Hindu island, the rest of Indonesia, including Java, is 95% Muslim. While I have only travelled to five Muslim countries, I can see that there are many different interpretations of the religion between countries, or even within a country. In Malaysia and Indonesia we've seen a lot of women in headscarves, and equal number without, and even one women in the full black chador, covered head to toe with only the eyes showing. Sitting motionless in a dark shop, we could have easily mistaken her for furniture.

Borobudur, Java, Indonesia

After our second consecutive too-short night of sleep, we awoke at 4:30 am for a sunrise tour of Borobudur. This tour was our central reason for visiting Java. Wikipedia: "Borobudur was built in the ninth-century and is the largest Buddhist monument in the world. It comprises six square platforms topped by three circular platforms, and is decorated with 2,672 relief panels and 504 Buddha statues. The main dome, located at the center of the top platform, is surrounded by 72 Buddha statues seated inside perforated stupa.

Borobudur is both a shrine to the Lord Buddha and a place for Buddhist pilgrimage. The journey for pilgrims begins at the base of the monument and follows a path circumambulating the monument while ascending to the top through the three levels of Buddhist cosmology, namely Kamadhatu (the world of desire), Rupadhatu (the world of forms) and Arupadhatu (the world of formlessness). During the journey the monument guides the pilgrims through a system of stairways and corridors with 1,460 narrative relief panels on the wall and the balustrades.
Evidence suggests Borobudur was abandoned following the fourteenth century decline of Buddhist and Hindu kingdoms in Java, and the Javanese conversion to Islam. Worldwide knowledge of its existence was sparked in 1814 by Sir Thomas Stamford Raffles, the then British ruler of Java, who was advised of its location by native Indonesians. Borobudur is Indonesia's single most visited tourist attraction."

I had taken Religion 101 in college and on one of the days I actually went to class our prof gave a fantastic presentation on Borobudur, and I was awed by it. His pictures of this massive ancient monument rising out of the jungle awed me, and I swore I'd see it someday.

At it's six AM opening it was surprisingly quiet. We were the first few in the gate, and could walk its cool pathways in silence, while marveling at the carved reliefs along the walls. The morning sun struggled to cut through the smog and left little shadow from the Buddhas. The only sound at the peak was of camera clicks, as one woman sat in the lotus position, meditating while facing the rising sun. But of course, this is Java, the worlds' most populous island with 120 million people, and silence never lasts long.

By seven o'clock Borobudur was overrun by hordes of giggling, running, junior high schoolchildren, all in matching school uniforms, the girls in matching headscarves. These kids had an agenda, and it had nothing to do with admiring the historic wealth of Java. They had been issued tape recorders in groups of three, with an assignment to stop every white person in sight, and ask if they could record their conversation while they practiced their English with set questions. I was in no mood for this sans caffeine and halfway up Borobudur, but Lindso patiently answered every question from every group. I sat in on on of her interrogations and it was a really cute cultural exchange.
"Where are you from?"
"Hawaii, in America"
(oohhs and ahhhs and wide eyes.)
"Do you like Indonesia?"
"Yes it is very beautiful, and the people are very nice."
(smiles all around)
"Is this your...umm....?"
"Husband? Yes."
(many nervous giggles)
Lindso asked the 11 year old girl manning the tape recorder if she wanted to visit Hawaii, and her answer in perfect English was, "Well yes, of course, but first I must do well in school, so that I can earn a very good salary, and then I will go." I bet she will too. Indonesia is a poor country, but everyone is very industrious, entrepreneurial, and hardworking. I would expect rapid improvements in income for Indonesians with the opportunities of globalization.


Later I discovered a photo shoot atop Borobudur. A couple of local models were being propped among the stupa, and I helped myself to a few shots.


Borobudur is truly an amazing sight. Generally ranked among the top twenty sights in the world, I'd put it in my top three so far, along with the Acropolis and the Alhambra.