Lovely Jogja!

 

Waaaaaay back in November, we were ready for a vacation, one where we got to get on the airplane.  We flew out of the new terminal at Soekarno-Hatta International airport and it was just darnright impressive.  We hung out at Starbucks before going to the gate.  Wecould have been anywhere.  It was all very easy.  The flight to Yogyakarta (Jogja) was an hour long so we arrived before lunch. 

By the time we got into town and to the Ministry of Coffee (a very cute cafe), we were exhausted. But, we carried on and headed (some of us were dragged) to the big traditional market.  Here we found lots and lots of things.. including wood flowers (there is a motorbike under there!), a sercret birthday present for Zoey, and lots and lots of vegetable women who wanted to touch Eben and Jaffa's cheeks.

We then made our way out to Borobudur and had a lovely dinner, then went to bed early so we would be ready for our 4:00am wake up call.  See my Borobudur post for that fabulous, mystical morning.

Mendut temple

Zeric and Memere learning their lessons from the reliefs



There we two other Buddhist temples to see out near Borobudur: Powan and Medut.  Powan was teeny.  Medut was big, beautiful and sunny, not as big as Borobudur but same era. Lots of stories in the reliefs, stories with morals about good behavior...

...like the one about the tortoise who had a great idea about flying so he convinced two birds to take a stick in their mouths and fly while he hung on to the stick with his mouth.  When they were up in the air, some animals below remarked on how smart the birds were to get the tortoise to fly.  The tortoise was so upset that the birds got the credit for his flying that he opened his mouth to shout, "it was my idea!" and fell to his death.

...and the one about the two-headed bird where one of the heads always got the great food (you know ripe fruit, curry dishes, chocolate cake) and the other head always had to pick through the grass and eat the bugs and worms and other yucky things.  The one who got the worms complained, asking if he could get some of the good stuff and the other head said no, that it didn't matter because all of the food went to the same belly.  The first bird got so depressed that he ate poison, and killed himself and by killing himself he killed the whole bird--including both the heads.

Penalties for boastful and selfish behavior are apparently severe.

The other highlight (you know, besides getting in touch with our human flaws) was a fabulous banyan tree just beside the temple; it had lots of great vine-like branches for swinging!

with the guard lion outside of a monastery near Mendut temple

Jimbaran

Thanks to our friend Charlie, we had one of our best meals at a restaurant called Jimbaran.  They had the most amazing fresh seafood and the best sauces, and we could watch them cook on the grill which was of interest to budding Chef Eben.  We devoured clams, crabs, lots of prawns, fish, and some local greens and rice.  And then we went back to the hotel for a nap.

The Kraton

We also took a terrific tour of the sultan's palace, the "kraton".  Hear the report on the sultan's unique political position here in Indonesia on NPR http://www.npr.org/2011/12/15/143752558/indonesian-sultanate-in-the-middle-of-a-power-grab.  The palace itself was beautiful and fascinating.  The guards were about as old as the palace itself, and many of them had daggers tucked into the back of their sarongs showing that they had been 'knighted' by the sultan.  The sultan respects all three major religions in Indonesia (guess!), and sometimes acts as the mediator between them.  As such, there were Muslim, Buddhist, and Hindu symbols throughout.  Our favorite Hindu one was the protector at the entrance.  There is strong resemblance with Jaffa and Eben's protector faces.  And the tattoo on Uncle Reuben's back.

It felt like we were stepping back in time, only I'm not sure what ballgown I should have been wearing.  And it was so blasted hot that it would have been linen anyway.

We were also just on time for a wayang kulit performance.  These are the flat puppets that are used in shadow shows.  We couldn't understand a thing (it was in Javanese, different from Bahasa Indonesia), but the kids were plugged into it like they plug in to TV.  Wow.

Zoey and Ganesha at the sultan's palace

Out on the town

Transport in Jogja was fun.. we took the bicycle taxis called becaks ('bay' chak - it fit about 1.5 grownup bums) and a horse drawn carriage.  And then there was our driver Pak Yanto.. who was just awesome and funny as is anyone who can come up with no less than 12 ways to say "I don't know" in three languages.  You had to be there.  Anyway, let me know if you need his number.

We spent some time on Jalan Marlioboro shopping.. WOW.  Jogja really is the capital of batik. Just ask Uncle Bill who got a chicken shirt out of the adventure.  Highly recommend braving the crowds.  They are friendly crowds, but bring Zeric to bargain for you and try not to be embarrassed when he offends the locals with his West African ways.

Finally, we headed to Kotagede, a town that used to be the capital of Jogja.  Now it is the silver town.  We got there a bit late which was good because we would have spent a lot of money on filagree and jewelry (precious metals are at their all time high, so no deals here!).  We did take a stroll through the local market and found loads of eats on the side of the road.  And the local KMart.  Given the amount of stuff we have from China at home, it really wasn't all that different.  Bummer that they didn't have the Donald Duck flip slops in Uncle Reuben's size, though.

Overall, we had a terrific time and hope to go back soon to explore the Hindu temples at Prambanan. 

Join us!



Tired travelers heading back to Jakarta.. perhaps in the baggage hold



"Women are like orchids,

they need to be misted and admired daily."

Today, I went to the orchid garden and it was phenomenal.  We started the visit with a lecture from a well-known orchid breeder (with a fabulous shirt) and he told us everything we needed to know about taking care of our orchids. Here's a synopsis:

• 70% humidity is ideal
• if you put the plant in a clear plastic pot (inside the clay/decorative pot) then the roots will get some light which is good.. more photosynthesis = healthier plant
• be sure that the water can evaporate from the pot, otherwise the roots will rot
• if you want your orchid to get bigger, gradually increase the pot size
• to fertilize, disolve the fertilizer in water and spray roots and both sides of leaves (daily, if you missed that from above)
• okay, about fertilizer.  you should look for a fertilizer that has nitrogen, phosphate and potassium.  for baby orchids, you should use one with a much higher amount of nitrogen.  for adolescents, a balance between the three.  when the plant is ready to flower, use a fertilizer that has a high concentration of potassium.. that will make it flower bigger, more, longer. 
• do not give your orchid any vitamins
• watch for fungus, snails and beetles.  beetles like to bore holes in the stems
• the larger the leaves, the less sun (both time and intensity) the plant needs

He then took us to the laboratory and showed us how they clone and cross orchid breeds.  It has to do with polinating the plant, then taking the resulting seeds (they are very very small.. there are approximately 5 million per flower) and keeping them in bottles to grow them for 6 months until they are ready for pots.  You can get hundreds of plants from one flower.

From here, we were left to wander the various gardens where all of the orchids were for sale.  Given that Zeric is the one with the green thumb, I took a lot of pictures in anticipation of returning for a buying trip not to long from now.  There were so many kinds and so many colors.. here are some for your viewing pleasure:

Magical Borobudur

If you Google Borobudur (or look at my oxtail post from October), you'll see that it is a 9th century Buddhist temple that used to be--and now is again--a destination for spiritual pilgrimages.  We arrived in the late afternoon, just in time to get a look at it before it got dark.  Even from the bottom it was impressive.  And serene.  Even with two kids running around chasing creatures in the grass.



Memere and Borobudur

  

So we got settled, watched some centipedes cruise around, ate dinner, watched the 30-minute movie (hey, a great way for the establishment to save on tour guides.. and, Jaffa watched it twice), then went to bed.  Because... we had 4am wake up calls so we could be ready to walk up the steep temple stairs at 4:30, just in time for sunrise. 

It was so very much worth it.  I didn't even notice that I hadn't had my coffee yet. What you see in the background is Mount Merapi, an active volcano.  Over the few days we had there, we learned how many different kinds of offerings you can give to Merapi to ask it to please please please relax for awhile.  The last eruption was (um, er) last year, and there is still volcanic stuff on some of the roads and through villages.  We talked softly to it too.

Again, from Wikipedia: 

The monument comprises six square platforms topped by three circular platforms, and is decorated with 2,672 relief panels and 504 Buddha statues. A main dome, located at the center of the top platform, is surrounded by 72 Buddha statues seated inside perforated stupa. The monument 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 Kāmadhātu (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 walls and the balustrades.

I have so so many pictures, here are a few:

Buddha in the bell, and horse and cart relief

view from the bottom, and going down the steep stairs

And of course, the kids posing.. understanding that this is a pretty special place!

and of course..