My internal clock must of been way off because I awoke at 8am, uh, are you kidding me? So I finished rolling my freshly washed/dryed/ironed clothes, thanks Lindsay, and put them in their appropriate zip lock baggies - yeah, I'm anal like that. Took my shower, chowed down some pancakes (courtesy of Shane), and said my goodbyes to Judson and the Mikeska clan. Augus was waiting for me outside and we had a full day planned.
After 2+ hours of traversing not only the landscape but the moped nation, we arrived at stop #1, Borobodur Temple, one of the Ancient Wonders of the world.
History teaches us it was built upon a hill almost as cap stone for the hill. It spans 6 tiers before you get to the cylindrical cones, they comprise another 3 levels, and then it is topped by a large cone in the center and top of it all. Now here's a fun fact, it was built between 775ad and 875ad as Buddhism & central Java was phasing out and Eastern Java was taking precedent. It was forgotten and only discovered in the mid 1800's under piles and piles of volcanic ash.
Now for the actual experience, I paid $15usd = 135,000 Rp for myself, the bule, and 15,000 Rp for Augus, the native. I think we all know the scam they got going on here ... Smart. So we begun the trek (about a mile) to get to the base of the steps that lead to the beginning steps of the temple, stopping along the way to snag a pic. Tradition says that on every level you are supposed to walk all the way around the entire temple reading the stone etchings on the wall. Apparently they tell the story of the Buddhist lifestyle and history as well as how the temple came to be ... Of course not in English. So Augus and I set off to make our rounds on this hot and humid day. Up the first set, avoid being caught in other tourists pics, take our own, make the round. Up the next set of steps, avoid the pics, take our own, make the round. And repeat and repeat and repeat. We make it up to the domes level ...
And continue until we reached the top, gazed off of all 4 sides at the awe inspiring views:
... and then made our descent.
At the base, there is some signage for a museum, free with our temple admisson, so off we go to that. I think we take a wrong turn because all we are doing is walking with no buildings in site. Finally we find it, sign the guestbook, and take a self guided tour through a few rooms ending with a life size boat. Yeah about 75 feet long, set in sand about 10 feet below the floor, rope protecting it from touch. Why is it there? Who knows, but it's cool so no complaints. We exit, I'm hot and hungry, and wanting to get back to the car, so we head towards the exit sign. But of course its not the real exit, our next stop is through the maze of warungs all trying to sell you their trinkets at "good luck" prices and "cheap cheap". Once through the souvenir city, heading toward another exit sign, you are spit out into the food plaza just outside some gates. After navigating through the throngs of venders all pushing their Picardo Sweat and Aguaria, we finally see what appears to be a parking lot, and like a beacon of light, our car. So heres the breakdown, 1 amazing temple, 1 suffiient museum, 1 overwhelming souvenir maze, 1 dirty food plaza, all equaling about 6 miles of walking, and one unforgetable experience.
Next stop was Jogjakarta and Malioboro Ave, a touristy place for shopping. I tell Augus my #1 priority is to eat. So we park and begin our exploration. Imagine if you will, the souvenir shops at your local theme park. Now remove the doors and AC, insert humidity and stale air, aggressive sales people saying cheap cheap all the time, and remember that everything is trinkets, souvenirs, fake bags, and painted (batik) shirts, and you have Malioboro Ave! Now from that list, what's the one thing missing? That's right, my #1 priority. After walking about a mile, we happened upon a mall, thankfully, with air con and a food court. Needless to say, after the meal I was ready to relax. So we headed to another mall, a few miles outside the mayhem, and I found a Starbucks. I know I know, in the states I'm not a fan, but over here anything American has a familiar and comforting feel ... even Starbucks. There I caught up in email and sports.
I won't even bother you with the details of our 2 hour search for a reasonably priced suitable hotel. It resulted in a room with aircon, but no shower, sink, or hot water, just a bucket and a spicket, and no tv. It was a reminder of how spoiled I was at Shane and Lindsay's. Luckily, it was located a few hundred meters from a cinema playing Sherlock Holmes. So $4, a ticket, popcorn, and tea later, life was good.
I wrapped up my evening taking my first cold bucket bath in a partially open bathroom. Just me, the water basin, a non flushing toilet, a drain, and some eight legged observers chiilng in the corners.
Nite nite from the iPhone blogger
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