February 22, 2010

A Bengali in Yogyakarta


I arrived in Yogyakarta (Jogjakarta or Joghja) today - coordinates: 7°48′5″S 110°21′52″E, which is evident from the above photo (taken inside the airport). Took an AirAsia airbus from Jakarta and within one hour we landed in this famous city in Central java. During the Indonesian National Revolution (1945-1949) Yogyakarta was the Indonesian capital. It is an university town and famous for its culture.

Yogyakarta is one of the few special regions of Indonesia (like Aceh). It has a population of 500,000 and has an area of 32.8 km2 (12.7 sq mi).

We hanged around near Kraton, or the Sultan's palace. But it was already dark and it was closed. We went to the Depok beach to taste the famous sea food cuisine there (you buy fresh fish and hand over to the restaurant to cook). We were not that lucky - it was 7:30 and most of the fishes were sold leaving a few unknown fishes for us. Then we went to another restaurant near the city and the highlights included some grilled prawns. We opted out the sweet sauce - which had actually spoiled the dish (they were not innovative enough to suggest a spicy alternative). But the other items were good.

Tomorrows plan includes Borobudur (the Biggest Buddhist Temple in the Ninth Century), Kraton Yogyakarta, Taman sari and Prambanan (the Most Beautiful Hindu Temple in the World). Will keep you posted.

0 comments:

Post a Comment