What inspired me to make the epic trek to Yogyakarta were the UNESCO World Heritage Sites of Prambanan and Borobudur. I saw one at sunrise, one and sunset – which was appropriate because the way I made my journeys to each? Night and day. First on the list, the largest Hindu temple site in Indonesia: a trip to Prambanan.
Getting to Prambanan
…was a drama in itself. It is not actually in Jogja, but 17km northeast on the way to the city of Solo. All along the plan was to book an organised tour with my usual criteria:
- small group – I hate mass tours. I’m just not a ‘follow the flag’ kind of girl. And waiting for stragglers annoys the hell out of me
- mini bus or van, never a coach – again, too many people with the potential to piss me off (maybe I’m the problem?!)
- relaxed, friendly vibe – as a solo traveller, I’ve met some fab people on tours, people I’ve ended up hanging out with all day, drinking with in the evening, even travelling with to the next couple of stops.
I’m definitely a fan of a GOOD tour and, before leaving London, I’d shortlisted a few options for a trip to Prambanan…but held off booking anything. This is because, what often happens is you get to wherever and you find the same tour, but cheaper. Or a local or fellow traveller tips you off to something better. Or someone gives you a flyer at the airport and suddenly you become obsessed with not just booking a trip to Prambanan at sunset, but one that included a ticket to the Ramayana ballet that evening as well.
No problem. Except, problem. Spent an hour online when I checked into my hotel – sunset tour without ballet, ballet without sunset tour and with times that crossed over so I couldn’t do both. Damnit! Found a company that did everything…for US$100. No thanks. Could I buy ballet ticket and find my own way home? No ballet tickets online. Next available date? Saturday. When I’d be in Bali. Damnit! This is what happens when you try to booking lastminute.com… I headed to Malioboro Street, but was a little too dejected to shop. You know when you get something in your head and you can’t let it go or even compromise a little?
When in doubt, DIY
Then my phone pinged. Borobudur Sunrise Tours, who I’d WhatsApped in a mad blitz, could reserve me a 2nd class ticket for 150,000 IDR. I checked the Grab App I’d just downloaded. Yes, I could get all the way to Prambanan for 100,000 IDR, assume the same for return? Entrance to Prambanan for foreigners is 362,500 IDR (much, much less for locals). Yes, I could drive the cost down further by attempting to figure out public transport (The Trans Jogja route 1A bus runs from Malioboro to Prambanan with a single trip ticket costing 3,500 IDR), but the Grab fare was still less than I spend getting to the office each day on the tube. And I could get an afternoon to see Prambanan at my leisure, stay for sunset, see the Ramayana ballet and have private transfers door-to-door (kind of…) for significantly cheaper than any of the organised tours I’d seen. And it was available last minute. SOLD.
If you are also going to Borobudur, you can get a combo ticket for the equivalent of about US$40, saving around US$10 overall (must be used within 48 hours). I had already booked a sunrise tour with my entrance included (and sunrise entrance is charged at a further premium anyway), so not an option for me.
A trip Prambanan: the history
Prambanan or Rara Jonggrang is a 9th-century Hindu temple compound in Special Region of Yogyakarta, Indonesia, dedicated to the Trimūrti, the expression of God as the Creator (Brahma), the Preserver (Vishnu) and the Transformer (Shiva). The temple compound is characterized by its tall and pointed architecture, typical of Hindu architecture, and by the towering 47-metre-high (154 ft) central building inside a large complex of individual temples.
Wikipedia
The complex is vast. My Grab dropped me off at the ticket office at about 2pm, I picked up a bottle of water (the pricier tickets for foreigners come with a free soft drink) and a map.
Some quick facts:
- Prambanan is the largest Hindu complex in Indonesia and in all of South East Asia, second in size only to Angkor Wat in Cambodia.
- Construction began in the middle of the 9th century and with expansion continuing well into the next.
- The compound originally consisted of a staggering 240 temples. However, after 12 centuries of occupation, abandonment, earthquakes and ruin, few of the original temples still stand.
- All 8 of the main temples in the holiest, inner zone have been reconstructed, including those dedicated to the gods Brahma, Vishnu and Shiva and their mythical mounts Garuda, Nandi and Hamsi.
- 8 smaller shrines of the inner zone as well as a small handful of the 224 outer temples have also undergone some restoration
- The showpiece of a trip to Prambanan is the Shiva temple. At 47m tall and 34m wide, it is the largest structure on the complex and is embellished with intricately carved statues and reliefs.
- The bas-relief that adorns the main shrine tells the story of Ramayana (more on that later…) and can be read from the east gate clockwise around the inner compound.
I spent a couple of hours wandering about the compound. Most of my time was spent in the inner zone where you can get up close and personal with the main temples, even climbing up and into the structures (which surprised me, tbh). It was still holiday season, so the place was pretty packed and it was tricky to take photographs without a crowd in shot. Actually, it was tricky for me to do anything without attracting a crowd. I was quite the curiosity #TravellingWhileBlack.
Other attractions (…other than me, of course) include an archaeological museum, a play area for kids, a mini-train around the complex, a small deer sanctuary, an area to try traditional archery…enough to occupy a family on a trip to Prambanan for the best part of an afternoon (which is pretty much all you need before getting all templed out). We got hit pretty bad by the rain so I retreated to the shelter of a coffee stand ( there are a few simple snack places and warungs dotted about for a proper cup of ‘Java’ to wait out the storm
Sunset over Prambanan
Thanks to the rain, sunset was a bit of a washout, but even the dull light did something special to bring out the magnificence of the temple architecture. They call it “the most beautiful Hindu temple in the world”. I get it, I really do.
The park closed just as it started to rain again. And. It. Did. Not. Stop. Daaaaamn! Warning: at the exit, you are funnelled through a super touristy souvenir market so I got stuck battling both the weather and really pushy stallholders trying to sell me overpriced tat, all while trying to read my rapidly disintegrating map to try and find my next destination: The Ramayana Ballet.
What I should have done: called a Grab – a bike would’ve been perfect, even in the rain – to drive me the short distance to the theatre. It was probably less than a mile.
What this girl did: walk. Directions from the parking attendants let me know that the theatre was outside park and that I would have to walk along the main road. Which I did, all while having my umbrella blown inside out, dodging falling branches and trying to find the venue on google maps. The blue dot was just settling in the middle of NOTHING. It was a f***ing nightmare. Luckily, I saw 2 distinctly western tourists, also drowning, who told me they were heading to the bus station on the other side of the road which helped me orient myself a little better. Never do this.
The Ramayana Ballet
You have no idea how happy I was to not only make it to the ticket office, but to find that my random WhatsApp reservation was actually waiting for me. Every cloud…
There are actually 2 theatres on site. The open air carries performances May to October (dry season), while the indoor takes over for the remainder of the year. I purchased the lowest tier of ticket at 150,000 IDR, but you could also get class I at 200,000 IDR and special at 300,000 IDR. The outdoor theatre also offers VIP tickets at 450,000 IDR. Performances run 7.30-9.30pm, but not every evening so please be sure to check the latest schedule.
With an hour to kill, I went to the on-site restaurant – I was starving. The set-up was a full buffet that really seemed to cater to tour groups on packages, you couldn’t order any food à la carte – and it was pretty pricey too. Gutted – should have grabbed a snack at that coffee stand. I settled for a Bintang beer and ignored the rumble in my stomach.
Bonus: be cheesy like me and have your photo taken with the performers on the way into the theatre. I figured it would be rude not to…
Despite being ‘sold out’ the theatre was only about a third full, and despite having a ticket to the cheap seats, I was pretty much allowed to sit where I wanted. So I did, and settled in…
The story of Rama and Sita
You may be familiar with classical ballet…the Ramayana is something else entirely. It is performed in a traditional Javanese dance style characterised by controlled, elegant and refined movements. The dancers are accompanied by live musicians playing, again very traditional, gamelan instruments such as gongs, metallophones and drums. Through a combination of dance, music and drama, performers tell a story based on an epic HIndu saga, originally written in sanskrit in India c.500 to 100 BCE.
Rama, prince of Ayodhya, won the hand of the beautiful princess Sita, but was exiled with her and his brother Laksmana for 14 years through the plotting of his stepmother. In the forest Sita was abducted by Ravana [a rival king], and Rama gathered an army of monkeys and bears to search for her. The allies attacked Lanka, killed Ravana, and rescued Sita. In order to prove her chastity, Sita entered fire, but was vindicated by the gods and restored to her husband. After the couple’s triumphant return to Ayodhya, Rama’s righteous rule (Ram-raj) inaugurated a golden age for all mankind.
The British Library online gallery
As a fitting close to my day, the story of Ramayana performed relates to the version depicted on the bas-reliefs of the inner zone temples in the main park.
The costumes, the music, the intricate dancing – all were truly beautiful. However, I was kind of underwhelmed. Perhaps because my journey had just been so dramatic , it would have taken a hell of a lot to move me. By all accounts, the open air performance is even more of a spectacle, perhaps that would have wowed me a little more? Regardless, definitely glad I made the effort, would recommend. Just manage your expectations. And take a f***ing taxi.
The end bit
They call Prambanan “the most beautiful Hindu temple in the world”, and it really is something. If you are making a trip to Prambanan, give yourself a good couple of hours to cover the grounds (unless you are a real templeholic, I wouldn’t allow much more) and spend some taking in the largest of the main temples. Cab it to the ballet and, if you can, try and plan your trip for the dry season so you have better chance of catching a killer sunset and can see the Ramayana performed at its best in the open air.
I’m glad a kicked myself out of my comfort zone and hacked the trip myself, but if you don’t fancy it, there are soooooo many organised tours to choose from. No shame to have someone else do all the heavy lifting, it is exactly what I did to travel to Borobudur the next day…
