Bali Java 2010: Sublime New Year

After a very brief day at one of the most overdeveloped beach towns in Bali, the much hyped (I can't figure out why) Kuta, I flew an hour to Yogyakarta (pronounced Jogja) in Java to a charming hotel with rooms and a sitting area around a courtyard full of palm trees and traditional pavilion seating areas. That beach town was only "charming" for the time between when I realized I was no longer in a New England January until shortly after when I started complaining about the heat. It's frightfully hot, and at it is the rainy season (which surprised me as its the dry season in India, which is not that far away, but perhaps being in the southern hemisphere has an effect) but it blessedly rains every afternoon. Aimed with a very very large umbrella I head out when it clouds over. I am woken by the call to prayer at 5am and get up shortly after to walk around as it gets very hot by 9 or 10 with no shadows left to walk in.

Its a huge sprawling city of mostly modern buildings, each seeming to vie for each other in ugliness (photos coming soon) but within the walled area of the Kraton or palace precinct, and on blocks off the main roads, there are lovely tile roofed buildings and here and there a traditional building with a very tall peaked roof and folding doors which seem to make the whole building able to be opened up for air. I do enjoy the ac in my hotel room for sleeping.

Did buildings like this "ever" look good on some architect's drawing board? The one on the left is a luxury hotel, it looks like its made out of the type of plastic material you cover patios with.

January 2, 2010

I made it to the palace by 10 one of my first days here (I've lost track of days) despite the labyrinth quality of the old walled city, was in a hurry to get to a concert in time, and passed many shops of the beautiful batik fabric and clothing Java and Bali are known for, if I can only find those shops again. Gamelon is the tyye of music Indonesia is known for and the Javanese is supposed to be different than the Balinese in that the Javanese is more serene. It was in an open air pavilion and was the most mesmerizing music I've heard with an interesting slightly off pitch sound, with metal instruments hit by hammers, bells, gongs, some stringed instruments and some vocals. I've heard nothing like it in my life and may become a bit "gamelon" obsessed and as I'll have a lot of time in Ubud in Bali, the cultural and artistic center of Indonesia, I'll have much more opportunity. Tonight is a Ramayana performance-dance, the classic Hindu epic, that I've seen performed many times in India. It normally goes no all night and there are all night performances one can attend, but I'll opt for the 2 hour version.

Unlike India where English is spoken by everyone, there is not much English spoken here, though people are very friendly. It does leave cause for some confusion however. As I often like to figure out public transportation, I asked a tour agency on my block how to catch a local bus to the main bus station station that is not far away, though distances here seem much farther than on my map, and there is that scorching sun. I did as I was told and stood on the street, caught a bus going in the right direction, and asked for "terminus" I was on a street called Parangritis. The money collector said "terminus Perangritis?" I said yes and was charged much more at 10R than what the guide book said I would be, though the guide book also said as a tourist I'd be overcharged on buses. No need to get upset, as 9R is a dollar. Instead of the terminus, I indeed went to the "Terminus" as I realized the very straight road ended 28klm away at a southern beach town called Perangritis" Since I had no place to be and no schedule to keep, once I realized this (and thus the higher price) I enjoyed the breezy bumpy bus and the views as the shopping area gave way to paddy fields. It did make me realize that I should not fool around trying to take buses to the two main monuments I came to see, the Hindu temples of Prambayan and the largest Buddhist monument in the world, Borabadur. Hiring a car and driver are not quite the "deal" they are in India, but as I want to leave at dawn, its best to pay up and know I'll get where I need to be.

Though there are countless nice places to eat and have a tasty local beer in this mid-range tourist area, I had an early night New Years eve, in bed by 10pm as I was catching a 6am bus for an all day tour. It was nice as there were only three of us, a young couple from Tokyo who work in insurance and me. As the old lady, I nicely had the honor of the front seat. It was a spectacular drive up terraced ride paddys to a plateau, The Deing Plateau, where many old Hindu temples are spread around. The landscape reminded me in some ways of Himachal Pradesh in India, although this high landscape had palm trees. It also did not have the unique Indian combination of beauty and terror as the roads were actually two lanes with a white stripe down the middle and guardrails and drivers seemed relatively calm.

On the way down it became quite foggy and rainy and by the time we reached Borabadur for sunset (I'd wanted to just go to Deing as I'm going to Borabadur after the holidays are over so its quieter, on Monday) it was part of this package. It rained like a monsoon, flooding the roads as we got to Borabadur. We sat in a little restaurant and suddenly the rain stopped and for the first time that day the sun came out.

There were immense crowds, but as most people ran to the top of the immense 3-D mandala, and I did the proper circumnambulation of the 6 levels, starting from earthly to divine pleasures, I had most of the sublime carvings to myself, bathed in exquisite sunset light. I found myself being a tad judgmental about the behavior of the crowds, picking up a piece of tossed garbage here and there, feeling more like a Disneyland experience than a holy monument, I realized that the hundreds of seated Buddha's had a serene "it doesn't matter" expression on their faces. I only made it to the third level in my 2 hours, so I've left the "divine" layers until dawn on Monday. It was a wonderful way to spend New Years Day 2010!