Borobudur, is a 9th-century Mahayana Buddhist Temple in Magelang, Central Java, Indonesia. The monument consists of nine stacked platforms, six square and three circular, topped by a central dome. The temple is decorated with 2,672 relief panels and 504 Buddha statues. The central dome is surrounded by 72 Buddha statues, each seated inside a perforated stupa and it is the world’s largest Buddhist temple, as well as one of the greatest Buddhist monuments in the world.
Built in the 9th century during the reign of the Sailendra Dynasty, the temple was designed in Javanese Buddhist architecture, which blends the Indonesian indigenous cult of ancestor worship and the Buddhist concept of attaining Nirvana. The temple also demonstrates the influences of Gupta art that reflects India's influence on the region, yet there are enough indigenous scenes and elements incorporated to make Borobudur uniquely Indonesian.
The monument guides pilgrims through an extensive system of stairways and corridors with 1,460 narrative relief panels on the walls and the balustrades. Borobudur has the largest and most complete ensemble of Buddhist reliefs in the world.
Evidence suggests Borobudur was constructed in the 9th century and abandoned following the 14th-century decline of Hindu kingdoms in Java and the Javanese conversion to Islam.
The Trip from Malaysia to Yogjakarta is around 2 hours via Air Asia, and once you are there there are tons of hotel to stay in ranging from your 5 Star hotel to the backpackers ones. I opted for Harper Mangkabumi about 15 mins away from the famous Maliboro Street. Booking via booking.com was awesome and each night was only around USD55. which is such a deal for a 4 star hotel. (and it comes with breakfast as well). And they also have an in-room massage service, which was totally awesome since i was knackerd from the previous day trip. Dinner buffet was only about USD8 per person. So yes Yogjakarta is super cheap!
The planner in me only took less than a month to plan and i was thankful for tripadvisor (where i found my tour agent, indoparidaso). I opted for the sunrise tour where the driver picked me up at 3.45am (yeap thats right!) and we headed to Manohara Hotel, the only entrance to Borobudur if you are planning on a Sunrise tour. You are then given a torch light and a map and off you go in the dark. It was quite a wait but the view was super awesome. It was an experience to be able to climb and be on top of the temple. Would i go again? Definetly!
