Indonesia Day 17 - Yogyakarta, Central Java

Greetings Friends,

I've been on the road in East and Central Java as well as Borneo since the last post. Riding in the back of a van on these roads is quite a trip. Kind of like the Indy 500 on most roads - who can go the fastest, pass the most cars and get there quickest. I'm amazed that there aren't more motorbikers dead on the side of the road - they outnumber the cars but obviously don't offer the same kind of protection that a metal can does :) I didn't think there were speed limits but I have actually glanced at a few while whizzing by at 80+ kph....

We are currently in Yogyakarta - also known as "Jogja" - finally in a "real hotel" with Internet service. Nothing is free (forget my post about having free internet - only the wireless was free - the business center cost me $1/minute) - but I digress.

We have visited several of the active volcanoes of the area (loved the cool temps). Drove across the sand sea of Bromo and Semeru - got up at 3am to catch the sunrise - to no avail. Clouds & rain prevailed that morning. Traveled north to Borneo to see the orangutans being rehabilitated at Camp Leakey (the Leakey family sure gets around :) - the fun part was when the young apes thought it was a game to try to grab you as you walked by. Knowing that they can be very agressive we were always on our guard. But looking eyeball to eyeball with a creature that has 95% of the characteristics of the human race is quiet interesting. We also saw the probiscus monkey, a local gibbon, lots of long tailed macques and some gorgeous birds flying by as we cruised the Kumai & Sekonyer Rivers - serious sauna land.

We have visited some very cool Hindu & Buddhist Temples (Borobudur and Prambanan) and watched the beautiful Prambanan ballet with the temples as a backdrop. (I'll add links to more details when I return home but you can google for more info). The Javanese massages are cheap and amazing....

Next we have a tour of "Jogja" with it's numerous temples, batik & silver crafts, royal palaces and another close view of volcano Merapi. The last segment of our journey includes lots more driving to West Java to take in the Dieng Plateau, waterfalls, more temples & volcanoes, tea plantations and a final island journey to Peucang Island for a visit to Ujung Kulon National Park.

Hope you are staying cool - I'm looking forward to zero humidity and cooler temps!

Cheers!
CJ