Sparkling Bangkok

Bangkok. For some the city is a shopping haven. For others it's a street food paradise. Some others will be enchanted by its charming Wats and bustling city scenes.

I love the city for all those reasons. Looking for some cultural experience? Visit the Grand Palace and the Wats. Wanna try the exotic food? Great street food is everywhere, just follow the crowd and 90% of the time you won't be sorry. Or you wanna do some shopping? Jatujak Weekend Market has everything you need or go to Platinum Mall and MBK for bargains in air-conditioned room.

Despite the turn in our luck that we were in town on the onset of Shutdown Bangkok (Jan 13), we had good times there. I have to give it to the friendly Thais who are always full of smiles and willing to help despite the language barrier. In some other countries I have visited people would just be like "No English" and walked off. But none of that happened in Bangkok. In fact sometimes they're so nice, they can fool you into their scams.

Our holiday in Bangkok is full of stories, fun times, adventure, and some mishap. I miss those times already :).

Candi Sari

After our visit to Candi Sambisari, my brother and I made way to the nearby Candi Sari. It was rather easy to find from the main road, upon reaching a colorful looking mosque we just made left turn in to a neighborhood street and voila, it was there. The small Candi complex was situated in the middle of a neighborhood area with local kids playing around the compound. Nevertheless, the complex was clean and well-maintained.

Candi Sari was a Buddhist temple as indicated by the stupas at the top of its building. It was said that the building had two floors separated by some wood planks. At the present, the planks had gone, but the windows on top of one another suggested that it was once  a two-storey building indeed.

The reliefs inside and outside of the Candi building was beautiful. My favorite in particular were the guardians of the windows. They were of the shape of half-human and half-bird. They are called the Kinnars, which can also be found in Thai temples, among others.

After admiring the Candi building, we started to get creative silly and took some action shot (brother) and relief shot (me). Don't you think I kind of blend in with the Candi on the right picture?

A visit to Candi Sambisari

Since reading about it on a number of online Yogya guide some time last year, I had been curious to see this beautiful temple. Last week I finally forced convinced my brother to pay Candi Sambisari a visit. Actually, the Candi is situated not too far away from the main road (Jl. Adisucipto  / Jogja-Solo). However, we took a turn a little bit too early which caused us to make a loop around a local residency. 

The special thing about Candi Sambisari is that its actual location is below our ground. As we parked the car near the entrance, my brother actually asked me where the Candi was. He prolly thought I was playing a prank on him. We paid our IDR 2000 (=20 cents USD) entrance fee and went into the Candi complex. My first thought was that it was a beautiful little complex. Sure it doesn't have the grandiosity of the nearby Prambanan, but it was clean and very well maintained.

The Candi was first discovered accidentally by a local farmer. Once the archaeological digging took place, it was discovered that the site of the Candi was around 6.5 meters deep underground. Can you imagine thousands of years ago the living world exist beneath our (current) grounds? How fascinating it is, and thanks to Archaeology, we can learn about our ancestors' way of living thousands of years ago. 

 

Some of the reliefs that can be found on the Candi building. To be honest I'm only familiar with Ganesha and Durga but the point is the reliefs are well preserved and I'm glad I have the chance to see it. According to the information on the exhibition gallery, one main statue was actually stolen during the early years of the Candi's restoration. That is bad, people... bad.

The Candi was pretty quiet during our visit... Good! More photo ops ;).

An Afternoon of Three Candis (A Sneak Peek)

Around Yogyakarta there are so many candi to visit and I try to visit at least one candi every time I am in town. One afternoon during our Eid visit to Yogyakarta, my brother and I got to visit three candi (temples). They are among the lesser known candi, unlike the renowned Borobudur and Prambanan temples which each draws throngs of visitors (and charges higher entrance fees). This, however, become the charm of these candi as they were not crowded and it almost felt like we had the candis for ourselves. 

Information about Candi Sambisari here, Candi Sari here, and Candi Kalasan here. 

Parangkusumo Sand Dunes

"Gumuk pasir Parangkusumo", as they called it in Bahasa. I finally had a chance to visit it on Friday during our Eid trip to Yogyakarta after reading many web articles about it, let alone a number of videos that was shot here. It is located in Parangtritis area, about a good 45 minutes away from Yogyakarta. Or, if you are visiting during peak time like we did, you may have to actually spend a minimum of an hour to get there.

 The sun was scorching up on my head and with the sands on my feet, I almost felt like I was away in the Saharan desert. My brother and I walked up to the top, not so easily as the powdery sand kept engulfing our feet as we took each step. The bird-eye view was quite something, though. When we were facing South, the green hills were rolling in our back and to the front we could see the blue horizon of the Indian Ocean. Then on I realized I wasn't in the Saharan desert.

And that time of excursion was spent on exploring, taking pictures, and kick up some dust... literally.