Continuing on with the fabulous streak of weekend getaways in Java, a group of six girls boarded a 6am train and made our way to Jogjakarta, cultural centre of Java. Most were going with the intentions of shopping, I just wanted to explore. Easy travel and easy living for the weekend as we checked into a proper, LOVELY hotel / guesthouse complete with… wait for it… HOT WATER!!!! Yes, yes, yes! Hot water how I love you. The bubbles you make when I shampoo my hair, the clean that I feel when you turn my skin from pink to red, oh dear, dear hot water, it is always far too long between our love affair embraces. Oh hot water, I do love you.
Ahem. Sorry about that. Carrying on…
So the girls were up for some frantic shopping but first, some fantastic eating. A small tourist oriented strip with restaurants bursting full of things we just can’t find in Surabaya… like incredibly amazing salads, unbelievable red wine, and Turkish coffee. 10 lbs gained during the two days in Yogya, easy.
Kiosk after kiosk, street stall after street stall, shop after shop of the same same and eventually we all went our separate ways in search of separate things. My wandering confirmed my dislike of batik, the uniquely patterned material used to make clothing, bags, hair accessories, wall hangings, and every other possible thing under the sun. Some pieces are interesting, some are even pretty, but yeah, it’s a take it or leave it kind of thing and on this trip, I was able to confirm that I was a leave it kind of girl. So, I wandered. Walked and people watched and absorbed. I like this place.
Girls reconvened for more incredible food and motorbike rental organization for the road trip the next day. We’re gonna go get us some culture. Well, sorta.
An early rise, six girls on three bikes, and vroom, vroom, we’re off! Can I please just add here that not only did I DRIVE, but I DOUBLED! Mind you, Hannah may be the tiniest human being on the face on the planet, but still, I am in control of this motorbike situation, fully in control. LOVE IT!
So a couple of hours and 50kms later, a whole lot of staring attracted, and we are there, Borobudur Buddhist temple. UNESCO world heritage site, built somewhere around 800AD, massive, masterpiece, google it. So much more than any of us expected. And bonus of the day… showing our Indonesian work permits got us in for $3 instead of the touristy $25. Thank you very much!
We got there early enough to avoid the throngs of local tourists and enjoyed a fairly chaotic free wander around this awesome artifact. I’m kinda a bit of a nerd about these things and could have easily spent the entire day just looking and poking and gazing but after a couple of hours and increasing heat, the group was ready to move on. Fair. It’s close enough that I can always come back when I want to. I just might do that.
A hot and sweaty ride back so a couple of the girls hit the pool at our place, some did a little more shopping, and napped. Our train back wasn’t until 1 AM! So we had loads of time to kill. Vikki and I decided to take the bikes back out and went in search of a nearby volcano, Merapi. A nice drive, despite my utter lack of navigational ability. Unfortunately by the time we arrived at the park entrance, it was closed for the day. Oh well. We wandered for a bit, crashed a kid’s birthday party, had our photos taken, and considered hijacking a piece of cake but restrained ourselves, then made our way back. Sore bums and backs after far too many hours on the bike that day. Solution? Massage!
I have never had luck with these things. Remembering the few isolated incidents in Thailand and Cambodia I was thinking yeah, probably not the best idea for me. I should just sit it out. But it sounded so lovely and it’s SO cheap here! Hmmm… I never learn, never learn, never learn. While my girl poked me with one finger repeatedly, prodded one spot over and over until it bruised, and stopped twice in the 30 minutes, once to chat with her friend and another time to leave and take a phone call, I just gave up. The other girls had success but I just don’t think I’m cut out for the “pampering” thing.
More great food, more great wine, and the wait for that late night train. Early morning return to Surabaya a couple of hours to nap, then back to work. Seriously, you can’t beat the weekends in Indonesia!
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