Where to? First-time trip recommendation from a stranger: Java, Indonesia.

Back in April I was on a flight to Qatar on my way to Bangkok. The young man sitting next to me, a PHD candidate from Boston, was on his way to Java, Indonesia. During the course of our conversation I found out he was married to an Indonesian woman and would be spending the next year researching in Java for his PHD. He had been there many times. My only experience traveling in Indonesia had been to Bali a few times. And I’ve heard Bali is quite different from the rest of Indonesia. I posed a question to this young man. What would be a good destination in Java for first-timers like me in Java? Without hesitation he recommended Yogyakarta. I made a note of Yogyakarta, thanked him, and we both fell asleep for the better part of this very long flight.

I arrived in Bangkok for a graduation ceremony at a school that Laurie and I support. The school is run by my Meditation teacher, Hartanto Gunawan. In a casual conversation with Hartanto sometime over the course of the next few weeks I mentioned that Laurie and I would be returning to Asia in late May and our travels would possibly include a trip to Yogyakarta, on Java, in Indonesia. He asked if I planned to go to Borobudur. I let him know that I had never heard of Borobudur but I would look it up. He said it was one of the world’s seven wonders. It sounded like I should look it up so I did. Wow, how have I never hear of this place – Borobudur? It’s the oldest and largest Buddhist temple in the world. And guess what? It’s only a short drive from Yogyakarta!

Yogyakarta is a city in Indonesia, on the island of Java. Java is famous for volcanoes, temples, rice (3rd largest producer in the world) and much more. It’s the 13th largest island in the world and home to over 150 million people. Indonesia itself is about 87% are Muslim making it the 2nd largest Muslim country in the world behind Pakistan. When we were planning this trip we put Yogyakarta on the itinerary and planned to visit Borobudur.

We had booked 2 nights at Manohara Hotel, choosing it specifically as it was the closest to the Borobudur temple. We could walk and that would be convenient. The booking process was kind of a pain. Booking.com said the place was full, completely booked. But it was so close to the temple I decided to contact the hotel directly. Fingers crossed. They replied and said they could accommodate us for the 2 nights we wanted. Great news. Then they said we had to “wire” them a substantial deposit. Hmm, wiring money is not something that I’ve ever done in the US. I told the hotel that I would be in Indonesia (Bali) in a few days and would seek the help of my friend in Bali to assist with “wiring” the deposit. I was able to do that pretty easily. We were set for Manohara Hotel near the Borobudur temple.

We’re about 7 weeks into our trip and we took a short flight from Bali to Yogyakarta. From there we took a Grab taxi to Borobudur, about 90 minutes. As our driver was getting closer to Manohara Hotel we entered though a security checkpoint onto the grounds of a well manicured park. The short winding drive led to the reception area of the hotel. I could see on my google maps that the temple was close. Really close. We were inside Borobudur Park, which surrounded the temple. The hotel was inside the park and we could see Borobudur Temple from our hotel. It was a 5 minute walk. Wow. Just amazing and a super nice surprise. We were able to check into our room about 6 hours early and quickly walked 5 minutes to Borobudur Temple, one of the 7 wonders and were in awe. One of the world’s seven wonders right here in front of us. It is huge and beautiful and awe inspiring.

A little history of Borobudur Temple. Built in 780 (over 1200 years ago) and possibly abandoned sometime in the 14th century. Over the years it was completely covered with volcanic ash and overgrown with greenery. It was rediscovered in 1814 and 200 men took 2 months cutting down trees and clearing the area to reveal the temple. By 1835 the entire temple was unearthed. A restoration was done around 1907 and it wasn’t until 1973 that a plan was created to properly restore the temple which had been looted for a century. In 1991 it was listed as a world heritage site.

The best news is that starting in March of 2023 the temple attendance, the number of tourist allowed in per day, is regulated. Only 1200 visitors per day are allowed in the temple. It makes for a wonderful experience and no elbowing or pushing. Laurie and I were fortunate enough to receive a 3 day pass to stroll around the base of the temple as we wished, plus a 2 day pass with a guide which allowed us access to a certain area of the temple for 60 minutes each day. The guide was amazing and the experience was moving. The final day I was able to meditate near the top level when our guide gave us 15 minutes personal time.

The temple contains over 2000 reliefs, carvings of picture-telling stories of Buddhism and the life of the Buddha. Our guide related the stories of the reliefs from the 2 sections we were able to visit during our stay. It also contains over 500 Buddha statues. The top part has 72 stupas, or mound-like structures, with a very large one at the top center.

The experience of staying inside Borobudur Park, which is not only lovely but personally significant for me, was an experience of a lifetime. And it all came about by one conversation with a stranger on a plane, and his first-time recommendation for Java (Yogyakarta), followed by a mention of Yogyakarta in conversation with my mediation teacher a few days later. A place I never had heard of. A place that has left me grateful, emotional, inspired, fulfilled and more.

We have a few more days on Java, in Yogyakarta. More stories ahead I am sure. Thanks for reading.