Indonesia's Hidden Gem

Alun-Alun Keraton Alun Alun Keraton is the one of the city square in Yogyakarta located in Jalan Alun Alun Kidul. It is the large field with tons of food stalls and many attractions. The most popular are the two banyan tree located in the middle of the city square.  Many people called this a Masangin Ritual, locals said that whoever succeed to walk through between the two banyan tree with their eyes closed means that the person has a pure heart and also can grant what they wishes. Although there are so many people that don’t believe this myth, many of the visitors still tried to do it because of their curiosity. Alun Alun Keraton (1857) Best time to visit 16.00 - 20.00 No ticket prices Rotowijayan Street number. 1, Panembahan, Kraton, Kota Yogyakarta, Daerah Istimewa Yogyakarta

Keraton Looking more like walled miniature city than a site or palace, Keraton is the name of the palace complex and is the residence of the Sultan Yogyakarta and his family.  The massive compound is resided by 25.000 people, has its own industries, schools and shops. Although the palace is open for the visitors in the morning, Keraton still serve as a part of political sphere in Yogyakarta, as well as a place for political meetings.  The Keraton was designed to reflect the Javanese cosmos, the complex faced towards Mt. Merapi volcano in one direction and towards the Indian ocean, which the Javanese believe as home of the sea spirits in Indonesia. Best time to visit 15.00-18.00 Ticket prices Rp 10.000,00 Rotowijayan Street number. 1, Panembahan, Kraton, Kota Yogyakarta, Daerah Istimewa Yogyakarta

Taman Sari Located in Jalan Taman, Patehan, Kraton, Yogyakarta, Tamansari is a palace that was built by the Portuguese Colony as a gift for the wives of Sultan Hameng Kubuwono I.  The building was a garden chateau with an elaborate series of swimming pools, artificial lakes and a collection of 59 buildings with a ground that spread over 12,600 acres.  The sites also contains mosque, fort, meditation space, and an underground tunnel system that connects in between the structures.  Now the garden complex was abandoned by the royal family of Yogyakarta and now are being lived by local residents. Best time for visit 13.00 - 17.00 The price of the tickets are : -        Local tourist : Rp 5.000,00/person -        Foreign Tourist : Rp 12.000,00/person -        And extra Rp 2.000,00 if the visitor bring a camera v  Tamanan Street, Patehan, Kraton, Kota Yogyakarta, Daerah Istimewa Yogyakarta

Prambanan Temple Built on 850 CE by Rakai Pikatan and expanded by King Lokapala and Balitung Maha Sambu the Sanjaya King of Mataram Kingdom, Prambanan is the largest Hindu temple complex in Indonesia which consists of 240 temples but throughout the years many of this temples were destroyed and left. The base of the temple are called Bhurloka, which is a large space marked by a rectangular wall, that is 390 meters wide and has stone walls surrounding it. Bhuvarloka are the central body of the temples and the middle square of the complex, this area has 4 rows of 224 small individual identical shrines, The Bhuvarloka is 222 square and used to have stone walls. The top of the temples are called Svarloka is the innermost square that represents the realm of the gods. There are 16 temples that located in the Svarloka which consists of 3 main templed dedicated to, Brahma the god of creation, Shiva the destroyer of the universe, and Vishnu the keeper. Shiva are the largest temple

Borobudur Temple Sunrise on Borobudur Located in a town called Magelang near Yogyakarta, Java. Borobudur is the largest Buddhist monument in the world, with 113 foot high pyramid, 2,372 relief panels and 504 statues of Buddha. Build between 8 th and 9 th centuries by the era of Syailendra Dynasty, the construction of the temple has been estimated to have taken 75 years, and completed during the era of Samaratungga.  The monument has a structure of 9 stacked platforms, six squares and three circular topped by a central dome.  The lowest part of the construction is called Kamadhatu, the second one are Rupadhatu and the top are called Aruphadatu. To get to the site from Yogyakarta, the visitor must take a Jogja bus to Jombor bus station and then from the Jombor bus station, you must take a local bus to Borobudur.  However you can always use private vehicle which has a route from Jalan Magelang – Sleman – Tempel – Salam – Muntilan – Palpabang – Mendut then you will

Museum Nasional This museum has the richest and largest collection of art from back in the era of Hindu and Buddhist in ancient Indonesia. Located in Jalan Medan Merdeka Barat No.12, Central Jakarta, this museum was located in the opposite of the national monument or Monas. The museum offers 61.600 artifacts of prehistoric and anthropology and 5.000 archaeological artifacts from Indonesia as well as other countries in Asia. This museum is one of the finest museum in South East Asia region due to its sheer collection. The Museum are open on every Tuesday-Sunday from 8am to 4pm Best time for visit 14.00-17.00 Ticket prices Rp 5.000,00/person for adults, Rp 3.000,00/person for kids Medan Merdeka Barat Street number 12, Gambir, Jakarta Pusat, Jakarta

Museum Wayang Wayang is the most popular puppet theatre / art in Indonesia, where they usually told dramatic story through shadows. This particular art celebrates the culture of Indonesia and it was first originated back in the Hindu Kingdom era in Indonesia. Back in the day wayang also serves as the media for entertainment, education and to spread messages. Located in Taman Fatahillah this museum are one of the five museum that located in the complex of Old Town Jakarta. The museum includes the collections of wayang from Java, and other location across Indonesia as well as China, Vietnam, India, Cambodia and Europe. The building was first called De Oude Hollandsche Kerk or Dutch Old Church that first was built on 1640. Then on 1732 the building was renovated and changed its name into De Nieuwe Hollandsche Kerk or Dutch New church, the building stands tall until 1808 and then was almost destroyed by the earthquake that happened in the same year. The new building was fi