Javanese Royalty and Temples

In the morning we ventured to see the Yogyakarta Kraton, the palace in which the sultan still resides. Though family rule dates back 9 predecessors, these days he claims title of governor and well-appointed businessman.  The compound is impressive and befits royalty, but the more interesting aspect is the village within its walls where over 25,000 people still live and work.  It gives you a brief glimpse into what things may have looked like during feudal times.  The area has more semblance of structure and organization -- more tranquil and mostly free of pesky touts and vendors, but by no means quiet.  We were disappointed not to see a Javanese music and dance performance at the palace, but it’s Ramadan, a month of fasting and austerity.

The adjacent bird and pet market was the antithesis.  Streets were narrow and crowded and jam packed with song birds, doves, roosters, “ornamental” species, their cages and feed, including worms, maggots, and crickets.  Eye opening if you’ve never seen it, but you can’t but feel sorry for the birds.  On the other hand, I earlier had seen a man lovingly bathe his well looked after rooster. 

A 3000 Rupiah (30 cents) bus ride took us the 17 km to Prambanan.  The more than thousand year-old Hindu temples were rediscovered in the 1700’s and later restored, until earthquakes several years ago wreaked additional damage.  The sight of thousands of stone blocks littered like Lego pieces around the remaining temples is a little disheartening.  Most of the smaller temples lay in ruins, but the main temple, Candi Shiva Mahadeva, was impressive. The intricate stonework was puzzle-like and the relief carving simply amazing.  Further afoot lay Candi Sewu, also surrounded by innumerable fallen blocks from its 248 satellite temples.  The site was under restoration and fenced off, but a friendly restorer beckoned us to straddle the fence and come in to have a look about.  He led us around the site while offering great explanations of all the structures, and we had the place to ourselves.  Of course we understood that nothing is ever free…  We then walked a couple miles trying to find our way up a nearby hill to see it all by sunset from a higher perspective, but it turned out to be a wild goose chase.

The sunrises are conspiring against us and not being spectacular.  The 4:30 AM wake-up for Borobudur delivered nothing but haze and clouds, but Borobudur definitely delivered.  An hour west of Jogja, this 1200 year old Buddhist temple ranks with Angkor Wat in Cambodia and Bagan in Burma as the must-sees in the region.  It was built at a time of Buddhist influence, which was later followed by the Hindu temples of Prambanan in now predominantly Muslim Java.  It sits on top of a hill and the 

multiple terraces require a 5km ritual walk to get to the top (unless you just take the stairs straight up.)  The temple with morning haze enveloping the surrounding mountains, complete with nearby volcano emitting a plume of smoke, is a sight to behold.  Words don't really do it justice, so the pictures are posted.