Monthly Archives: March 2008
Prambanan Temple
Credit: deka
Prambanan Temple is the largest Hindu temple in Indonesia which was built in the 9th century. It is not sure who has built the temple, but it is believed it was built by one of these kings, King Rakai Pikatan or King Balitung Maha Sambu during the periode of Sanjaya (Çanjaya) Dynasty. The location of the temple is on Prambanan village, about 17 kilometres from Jogjakarta.
Prambanan has eight shrines which is three of them are the main shrines. Those three shrines are called Trisakti, dedicated for Siwa or Shiva, Wisnu or Vishnu and Brahma. The biggest shrine is Siwa which is 47 meters high.
The Siwa shrine is in the middle among the temples. It has four chambers, facing four directions. The first chamber consists of the statue of Siwa which is three meters high. The other chambers consist of the statue of Durga or Loro/Lara Jonggrang, Siwa’s wife, Agastya statue, Siwa’s guru and Ganesha, Siwa’s son.
The Beauty of Ijen Crater
Photograph by: flydime
Ijen Crater or Kawah Ijen is another volcanic tourism attraction in Indonesia. The place is located at Bondowoso Regency, East Java. On the elevation of 2,368 meters, the place is really giving beautiful natural panorama. The crater itself is a lake with green water which has zero pH (acidity), capable to melt one’s finger. The temperature is about 200 Celcius degree.
The best time to enjoy the view is at morning, when the yellow sun light glows the yellow water and shines the surrounding mountain like mount Merapi, the sister of Mount Ijen. Morning haze is creating a tranquility that we don’t get at the metropolitan towns. At 2 pm, the crater is closed for the reason that the thick smoke from the crater that is poisonous.
Visiting Ijen crater is more interesting if we observe the local people doing their daily job as sulfur miners. Why is it interesting? Because the miners only use traditional tools and they should carry chunks of sulfur on their shoulder. Its weight is about 85 kilograms; they should walk up and down the caldera to deliver the sulfur to Pos Bundar, a place to weighting the chunks. The miners get wages IDR 300 for one kilogram. In a day they usually carry 85 kilograms.
Papandayan Crater
Credit: Wikipedia
Nature is amazing. That sentence is the most appropriate to express the unique and beauty of Papandayan Crater, a natural attraction at Garut, West Java. The crater of Papandayan Mountain is 2622 meters high. It is a worth visit place for those who love challenges during the travel to Indonesia. There are several active craters that tourist can observe closely. In 2002 there are several craters exploded such as Kawah (crater) Baru, Kawah Nagklat and Kawah 2002.
It is not only the tourist can observe craters but also nature preservation which perform its flora and fauna and giving the fresh air free.
Jogjakarta Bakso and Mie Ayam Festival
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Bakso: food consists of noodle and ball shaped meat served with sauce
Mie ayam: food consists of noodle and chopped chicken served with sauce
A Bakso and Mie Ayam festival will be held on Sunday, March 23, 2008 at Jogjakarta Expo Center, Jogjakarta. About 1000 thousand bakso and mie ayam sellers will participate on it. The festival provides twenty thousand bowls of those foods free for visitors.
Karimunjawa, another Place of Diving in Indonesia
Every body must know Bali, but only a few knows Karimunjawa. It is islands of 83 kilometers to the north of Central Java, precisely to the north of Jepara, a town of famous wooden carve. Karimunjawa consists of 27 islands in which 5 of them are occupied they are Karimunjawa, Parang, Nyamuk, Kemujan and Genting.
Diving
The main attraction on Karimunjawa Islands is the show of the beautiful underwater world. The underwater world has 274 colorful fish species and 133 interesting genera of aquatic fauna. It just becomes a new alternative of diving in Indonesia. Although all islands have beautiful view, but Tengah and Sintok islands are the most attractive.
