JOGJAKARTA

Candi Borobudur

Well, what to say about Jogja. I have been here a couple of times but this time has somewhat been a turning point for me personally. But let's save the story for another time and lets hop onto the adventure already ;)

A bench in Down Town Jogja

If I have to compare, Jogja is the Florence of Indonesia or the Kyoto of Indonesia. Rich in culture and art, and once you stepped in the city, you can feel the traditional feeling of it. Lots of Becak and Delman in the city center and unlike Jakarta, Jogja has no skyscraper at all. You can walk and enjoy the city center by foot with no hassle at all. The city itself known for the Batik, Wayang and Silverwork (in Kotagede area)

Me and a group of friends went to Jogja in October. The weather was nice, a little bit hot and no rain at all throughout our stay. Our main destination were Goa Jomblang and Pulau Timang. We stayed for 5 days and 4 nights, and ended up wanting to stay more. We also managed to visit some temples, kraton and some other beautiful beaches.

Candi Prambanan

The infamous temples, Borobudur and Prambanan, located outside of the city, approximately 2 hours driving. If you are a first timer in Jogja, these two temples are the must visit. They have a long magnificent history and awesome structure. I still wonder how they stacked up those rocks into one gigantic beautiful structure. 

They have special festival worth visiting every year for Vesak Celebration in those temples. Unfortunately it was so crowded with youngster the last time I went to see the festival (2013). It was raining cats and dogs halfway to the peak program and the magical atmosphere was nowhere to be found. They even canceled the release of Vesak Lantern (And I went there specifically to see those beautiful lantern ;( )

Gudeg Yu Djum

Other than the temples and tradition, Jogja is also known for its good food. My favorites are: Gudeg, Soto ceker, and Bakpia. Gudeg is the specialty of the city. It is basically made out of young green jackfruit and coconut milk, some are dry, some are stew like, almost like curry.  It tastes a little bit sweet and we eat it with other side dish like chicken, egg and krecek (fried cow skin with coconut milk and chilli).

Bakpia is the common souvenir of the city. The best one is the Bakpia Pathuk 25. It is located in an alley full of other Bakpia seller. Some of them have a very similar name so make sure you find the right number, 25! My favorite is the Cheese Bakpia. You really should taste them while they're still warm and just out of the oven *drool*

Sunset at Candi Ratu Boko

I never knew Jogja has so much beauty hidden within. This trip has opened my eyes to the real beauty of Jogja. Beautiful sunsets over beautiful beaches and temples are enough to make me want to go back to explore more as soon as the trip ended, and we actually have already made another plan to visit Jogja real soon~ *excited*

So to complete this post, here is the teaser of our adventure made by our private videographer for the trip ;P Sam Sabatinus. Enjoy!

PS: Be sure to stay tuned for more series of this trip. I will post each destination in separate entries. Don't miss it!

Cheers!

K.