Tuesday, March 31, 2015

Borobudur, Yogyakarta, Indonesia.


"License" to enter

So...what is Borobudur? As the ticket rightfully says - the BIGGEST Buddhist Temple in the world. Wikipedia describes it best :
Borobudur, or Barabudur, is a 9th-century Mahayana Buddhist Temple in MagelangCentral JavaIndonesia. The monument consists of six square platforms topped by three circular platforms and is decorated with 2,672 relief panels and 504 Buddha statues.[1] A main dome, located at the center of the top platform, is surrounded by 72 Buddha statues each of which is seated inside a perforated stupa. It is the world’s largest Buddhist temple,[2][3] as well as one of the greatest Buddhist monuments in the world. 

To know more, click Borobudur

I have been wanting to visit this world heritage place for sometime now but it has always been shelved when other places of interest pops up. Finally, we made it! On Nov 29, we step foot into Borobudur. It was built in 750A.D using architecture of India. The architect's name was Gunadharma.

We chartered a car for our day's tour. We intend to visit all key places within a day and leave the next day free and easy to tour the town. 


Yogyakarta township

Enroute to Borobudur 
Our transporter bought the tickets for us

It was hot yet drizzling, hence the cap & umbrella

Majestic and so inviting. Yet I felt at peace.

Do's & Don't!!!



As we did not have any tour guide, we went at our own pace and saw what needed to be seen and took some photos to remind us. 

Here at Borobudur, every wall tells a story. If I were to read and understand each and every wall...well, I would have been a historian and not a blogger. Hehehehehe....

The drizzle made it cooling to walk around but had to be careful as the floors were wet and staircases a tad tricky to climb. Some had railings while others do not. So, do hold on to the walls as you climb, just to be safe.

Below are some pictures which I thought was good to share. Enjoy ya.







Such precision even back in 750A.D.





Peek-a-boo.....the chinese will say good "Feng Shui". 


The stupors...

I just had to do it. Felt great.
After seeing my feat, quite a handful of visitors imitated my move. Copy cats!!!. Rocker57 asked me to act my age....oh well, let's just say I never left Neverland and that Peter Pan comes to visit once awhile. What can I say??? I am a lunatic?? Naaaah...just living my life and enjoying what I can when I still can.

But you have to admit it right? At 51, I am ok, right? No? Shhhh....keep your thoughts to yourself ok? Wakakakaaka....

On the way out, most of the souvenir shops were closed as we were early.








Seriously if you were to ask me, was Borobudur mesmerising, enchanting or captivating? Well, it didn't move me like when I first saw the Coliseum in Rome back in 2009. That sent goose pimples all over me. This monument somehow was just normal. Perhaps it could be because I've seen just too many in recent years. 

Don't let me influence you. Why not you go there and check it out for yourself? Perhaps, it may give you goose pimples...who knows?

Like all the places we visited, we bought a miniature stupor for our travel collection.

Borobudur gets a tick in my bucket list. How about you? If you have not visited, plan it now. And if you have trouble finding accommodations, why not try Grand Aston Yogyakarta Hotel.

Catch my next jottings on Prambanan Temple & Mendut as well as some food we ate. Until then....

Live to ride, Ride to live. Vrrroooooom!!! 

1 comment:

Ananth said...

Very interesting blog".
May I know how to book tour by car or bus to visit Borobudur & other places.
Ta. Ananth.
dr.ananth@gmail.com