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Jogjakarta trip
Day 2 - 29th April - Borobodur (Part 2)
Though we had been quite thorough at the lower levels of Borobodur, we were hitting diminishing returns so we quickened our pace somewhat.
Though there're supposed to be 3 levels to Borobodur, each seems to be divided into multiple sub-levels (maybe 2).
Buddha in niche
Stair down
Final gateway to the top level, and a peak through
Steeling ourselves, we made the final push through to the top.
In contrast to the bottom levels with their reliefs, the top level of Borobodur is austere and plain, representing Arupadhatu (the world of formlessness).
Topmost stupa
Buddha uncovered
Guy with nice hair
Exploiting Indonesian schoolkids for photographic purposes
View of the surroundings from the top
Top stupa
Top stupa
Broad view from base
View from side
To get our "free" (i.e. paid for in the exorbitant entrance fee) mineral water, we had to visit one of the two museums onsite - one containing a ship.
"The Ship Reliefs of Borobudur: depiction of the Glorious Age of Indonesian Maritime Culture and inspiration for the present and future"
I'm guessing Indonesian pirates have been plaguing the Straits of Malacca for millennia.
Reconstructed ship: Philip Beale's reconstructed Samudraraksa (based upon reliefs in Borobodur)
Then we visited the other museum, which we assumed contained some sculptures from Borobodur.
We assumed wrong. Almost all of the museum's contents were sad, unmarked rocks. Though that means they didn't remove sculptures from Borobodur itself. I'm ambivalent: when you place things in-situ it's a lot more authentic and atmospheric, but they also get damaged more easily and they're harder to appreciate individually (due to a lack of labelling)
Buddha head
"The unfinished Buddha statue of the main stupa"
Some of the friezes were explained in the museum. For example,
Abortion. Presumably this and others representing sloth and the like came from the hidden friezes section at the bottom. There was no bestiality, though - presumably it was too haram/vile.
Exiting the museum, we were unfortunate (or otherwise) enough to contemporaneously walk the long, treacherous path to the exit with some ang mohs, for it meant that we were beset by:
A horde of touts. I have no idea why anyone would want to buy those parachutes made of very flimsy plastic.
Ang mohs get shaded as they get bothered.
Touts smell ang mohs like dogs smell fear
One tout was hawking a blowpipe. I was tempted to buy it to shoot touts with.
Toy train which shuttles you around the grounds
Discriminatory pricing: locals pay 10% or less what foreigners pay.
We stopped for lunch before going to Prambanan.
"Mie Rebus". Just instant noodle soup.
Mie Goreng - costing 2.5x Mie Rebus, just to fry it.
Just as in Malaysia, the concept of fresh noodles didn't seem to exist in most food stalls, with sellers preferring to use instant noodles.
"Es Jeruk".
We had a hard time figuring out what it was. It had a slightly sour taste, but did not have any particular taste. Guesses included pomelo (but then it didn't have the bitter aftertaste) or lime (but it wasn't sour enough). After tasting purer versions, I realised this Es Jeruk was diluted Kordial Oren, and real Es Jeruk was supposed to be Jus Oren.
Ayam Goreng. Times Two.
Kampung chicken is not just tough and scrawny, it's also tiny. God knows why people like it.
Kampung chickens. Note the bald necks.
I then reminded CWN to go shopping for towels, as our rooms did not have any (I dried off au naturel, which didn't work as well as the last time I did so - in a drier climate).
Socks for tudung women (?!)
The bras in the same shop were also mostly unpadded. Assuming they were representative of Indonesian bras, the conclusion is obvious (if unsurprising).
"Merokok dapat menyebabkan kanker serangan jantung impotensi dan gangguan kehamilan dan janin"
Indonesia: where they tell you cigarettes cause impotence!
Bus to Prambanan. The one to Borobodur was even better - someone brought on a basket of chickens.
It was obvious that Indonesia was a sexist society, because men gave up seats on the bus to women.
Quotes:
[On mie goreng] No wonder people here all look so shrunken and unhealthy. Too much MSG in their diet.