Travel to Borobudur Temple

Buddha Statue and Stupa at Borobudur

The first time I saw Borobudur was from the television many years back. I was fascinated by the fact that such an ancient and unique structure still existed in our world. After doing research, I began to understand more on this UNESCO World Heritage site.

The monument was built in the 9th century(older than the Angkor Wat at Cambodia!) and dedicated to Buddhism. It was said to be abandoned in the 14th century during the Javanese conversion from Buddhism to Islam. It was later found by Sir Stamford Raffles (the one who found Singapore also!) and restoration on the structure has been performed till today. You can find more information on the Borobudur at this site.

The Borobudur was situated at a precarious location. It is located in an elevated area between two twin volcanoes-Sundoro-Sumbing and Merbabu-Merapi. Mount Merapi has erupted a number of times in recent years. The most recent one was in Year 2010. But fortunately, all these had not drastically impacted it's structure.

Prambanan Temple

After many delays (including the Mount Kelud's eruption last year which caused the compound to be shut off as it was being affected by the volcanic ashes), I finally embarked to visit this prestigious temple in March. We would travel to the Javanese City of Yogyakarta and made our way to Borobudur. During our journey, we also explored Prambanan-a collection of gigantic Hindu Temples, got close within the active volcano-Mount Merapi and more. For those interested, you can take a look at my itinerary below.

Day 1-Adisucipto International Airport-Prembanan Temple-Borodudur Temple
Day 2-Borobudur Temple (Sunrise)-Mount Merapi-Yogyakarta
Day 3-The Kraton (Sultan Palace)-Taman Sari (Water Castle)-Maliaboro
Day 4-Adisucipto International Airport-Return to Singapore      

Watch out as I relate my adventure in Central Java and it's ancient temples and volcanoes in my coming blogs!

I use yogyadriver for my trip around Yogyakarta. Write a comment and drop your email address (I will reply you) at the comment column below to enjoy up to 10% discount off the normal rate if you decide to use their service.

Related Posts: The Prambanan Temple, Dawn at Borobudur Temple

For Your Pinning

Travel Photos Series#1-Fo Guang Shan, Taiwan

Thanks to everybody, I realize that my photos are generally liked and welcomed by a lot of my visitors and followers. I decide to start this "Travel Photos Series" which will help display my travel photos as well as a short description for each of the photos. Hope everybody loves this new initiative and all feedback are welcomed.

Fo Guan Shan's Buddha Memorial Center

This photo was taken on 30 Nov 2013 during our visit to Fo Guang Shan(佛光山) at Kaohsiung, Taiwan. The Buddha Memorial Center was actually quite a new addition to the existing Fo Guang Shan's premise. I was really impressed by the new compound set up. A tiled pathway led to a grand golden Buddha statue flanked by two rows of symmetrically built pagodas. Definitely a photo opportunity I would not want to miss.

Related Posts: Family Bonding Tour at Taiwan Famosa, Taiwan Travel Tips