Tuesday October 8; Borobudur

Borobudur Temple entrance

View from top top

AdMaking ceramics with a toe driven turntable

I have a new travel phone with a new Indonesian SIM card.  I set the alarm for 05:30 so I could be at the temple for 6:00 AM.  When my alarm went off I got up and got dressed and started eating a banana. I made too much noise and Joan woke up.  When she checked her watch, she told me it was 1:30 not 5:30.  When I checked the phone I realised I had received a text message and no alarm had gone off.    Stupid phone.

Borobudur was as good as advertised.  At 05:59 the sun began to shine and at 06:00 I was inside taking my first picture.  Borobudur is a large temple.  It was built between 600 and 700 AD. The crowds were few and the photography was easy for the first hour.  The visitors were from all over the world, but the Indonesian school children were the most fun.  They asked questions and wanted to take a picture with me.  In return I asked to take a picture of them.  They obliged happily.

            In the afternoon we rented a car and driver and toured the surrounding countryside. We visited small communities and went inside people’s homes to watch them making tofu, ceramics and producing tobacco.  Whole families were involved in the production.  It looks like the kids that go to school are the lucky ones.