We proceeded from Borobudur to Java’s second most popular temple complex, Prambanan.
Prambanan is a 9th-century Hindu temple compound Indonesia, dedicated to the Trimūrti, the expression of God as the Creator (Brahma), the Preserver (Vishnu) and the Destroyer (Shiva).
Prambanan is a UNESCO world heritage site and the second largest Hindu temple compound in Southeast Asia, after Angkor Wat.
It was a 90 minute drive across the volcanic Java plain from Borobudur to Prambanan.
Oh, hello there!Giant temples in the background. The central building is 47 (154 ft) meters high.Hot in the afternoon sun, but ready for more.The main temple area is surrounded by the remains of over 200 smaller temples, which have been destroyed by earthquakes and are slowly being reconstructed. Only two have been reassembled so far.Our guide said that each of the small temples would hold one Brahmin priest who would use the temple for meditation. Prambanan temple grounds held around 200 priests at its peak in the 9th and 10th centuries.We were impressed by the idea of someone meditating inside of a black stone temple in the heat of the day, but it was surprisingly cool inside.Nearly all of the visitors were Indonesian tourists, and there were very few foreigners. We were constantly being gawked at and asked to take photos. It was fun but also surreal and bit overwhelming!Random dude photo opportunities abound. “My uncle wants a picture with you” is not a request I’m used to hearing, but hey while in Prambaban 😂.The three main buildings are dedicated to Brahma, Vishnu and Shiva.Yo Shiva! Each of the temples had four rooms with statues inside, one at each of the cardinal directions. We toured around each temple and looked inside each room.Like Borobudur, stairs were steep. The corridor circumnavigating the temple was narrow, with a constant stream of traffic.Iconic flower / bell-shaped ornaments everywhere.Agastya was a revered Indian sage of Hinduism. Each room and statue in the temple represents a different virtue, this one represented cleverness and wisdom. We were encouraged to rub his belly.Ganesha - remover of obstacles, granting good luck, intellect and wisdom.Durga or Shakti, the divine consort of Shiva - energy, ability, strength, effort, power, capability.The blocks of Prambanan were originally dry-stacked, our guide described them as big lego blocks. Unfortunately they are not very resistant to earthquakes which are common in the region.Nandi the bull is the mount of Shiva - happiness, joy, and satisfaction.More photo ops!Finley was popular with groups of schoolboys visiting the temple. We thought he handled the constant hi-fives, photos, and “hey bro! hey bro!” rather well.With that, our big day of ancient temples was complete!We drove back to Yogyakarta and found a great vegan-friendly restaurant near our hotel, the Black Forest Cafe.It was the perfect chill zone after the biggest day out of our trip so far.
