Java Time

My next few destinations in Indonesia were all on the island of Java – the most populated island in the world (at around 150 million people)! One of the most famous sights on Java is the ancient Buddhist temple of Borobudur and something that has been on my bucket list for decades. So true to form – my time on Java consisted of a lot of temple ruins and some volcanoes thrown in for good measure (oh and don’t forget waterfalls). The other fascinating part of this trip is that I earned “rock star” status on some parts of the island. I am now pictured in MANY random stranger’s photos – particularly school kids who were visiting some of these same sights on school trips (from more remote areas). They don’t get many white skinned, green eyed tourists in the area and I was a bit of a novelty. Ha – go figure!

Borobudur

Of course I had to feature these pictures first since it was a bucket list item for me. This is the largest Buddhist temple in the world and was constructed in the 8th and 9th centuries. Words can’t describe how awesome it was – or how intense the equatorial sun was – boy was it HOT! 🥵

Other Temples and Ruins

I’ll tell ya that I came to Central Java for Borobudur – but I left in awe of some of the other ruins in the area. Some of these ruins were on par with Angkor Wat in Cambodia.

Misc Stuff (and Waterfalls)

So a trip to Central isn’t complete without visiting the Alien Batu – simply a volcanic rock that looks like an alien (aptly named 😂). Along with some waterfalls and a few museums – I had a really nice stay on the island! The Java Man museum was definitely a highlight for me – this area is famous for the archeological finds of fossils of pre-historic man.