Yogyakarta in 3 days

Prambanan Temple Compounds (UNESCO World Heritage 1991; 17 km east of central Yogyakarta; the largest Hindu temple compound in Southeast Asia): the history (the Prambanan (the Javanese name: the Sanskrit name "Shivagrha" — "the house of Shiva"; built c. 850 CE during the reign of the Sanjaya dynasty king Rakai Pikatan (and his queen Pramudhawardhani of the Sailendra dynasty (the Buddhist dynasty that built Borobudur) — the Prambanan construction is interpreted as the political-religious assertion of Shaivite Hinduism over Sailendra Buddhism in central Java following the Sanjaya conquest)); the compound (the Prambanan complex originally comprised 240 temples: the 8 main temples in the central compound (3 Trimurti temples (Brahma, Vishnu and the central Shiva temple (47 m tall — the tallest and most important temple in the complex)), 3 Vahana temples (the vehicle temples opposite each Trimurti temple: Nandi the bull opposite Shiva, Garuda the eagle opposite Vishnu, Hamsa the goose opposite Brahma), and 2 flanking temples) surrounded by 4 concentric rows of 224 smaller identical ("perwara") temples (most of which are still in ruin following the 1549 earthquake that destroyed the majority of the complex); the Shiva Mahadeva temple (the tallest and finest of the temples: the interior cells contain the 3 m statue of Shiva (the "Roro Jonggrang" — the "Slender Maiden": the Javanese legend of Princess Roro Jonggrang who was turned to stone by the prince Bandung Bondowoso and became the Durga statue in the north inner chamber) and three of the most important Hindu statues in Indonesia (Durga, Agastya and Ganesha)); the Ramayana reliefs (the 1,500-year-old Ramayana narrative in 42 bas-relief panels on the inner wall of the Shiva temple balustrade corridor — the most complete visual Ramayana in Southeast Asia).

Mount Merapi (Gunung Merapi — "Mountain of Fire"; 2,930 m; 28 km north of Yogyakarta; the most active volcano in Indonesia (and one of the most active in the world — the Decade Volcano, one of 16 volcanoes worldwide classified as most worthy of study by the International Association of Volcanology (IAVCEI) due to its history of large destructive eruptions and proximity to densely populated areas)): the eruption history (Merapi erupts on average every 4-5 years in minor events and every 40-50 years in major events: the most recent major eruption (October-November 2010) was the largest eruption since 1872: the 2010 eruption killed 353 people (the majority from the pyroclastic flows (the "wedhus gembel" — "the curly-haired sheep" in Javanese, the local name for the pyroclastic surge clouds) that travel at 100-200 km/h at 700-1,000°C), destroyed 2,682 houses, displaced 350,000 people and deposited 140 million m³ of volcanic material in the flanks and valleys; the Gendol River (the southern flank river) was completely filled with volcanic lahar (the volcanic mudflow combining water and volcanic debris) to a depth of 10-15 m); the lava tour (the Merapi Lava Tour by jeep (the most popular activity on the Merapi southern flank): the 2WD jeep tour (IDR 450,000-650,000 (€27-40) per jeep (1-4 persons)) from the Kaliurang base through the 2010 lahar-devastated villages (the "ghost village" of Kinahrejo — the village of the Merapi "gatekeeper" Mbah Maridjan who refused to evacuate in 2010 and was found dead in the prayer position buried by pyroclastic surge deposits) to the active lava dome viewpoint).

Kotagede (the historic district 4 km southeast of the Kraton; the first capital of the Mataram Sultanate (founded c. 1580 by Panembahan Senopati — the founder of the sultanate that would eventually become the most powerful Javanese kingdom and the predecessor of both the Yogyakarta and Surakarta (Solo) sultanates of today) and the centre of the Yogyakarta silver-working tradition): the silver tradition (the Kotagede silver (the perak Kotagede) — the most famous silver craft tradition in Java and the most important traditional luxury craft in Yogyakarta: the Kotagede silversmiths (the silversmith workshops cluster along Jalan Kemasan and Jalan Mondorakan in the historic village): the techniques (the filigree work (the "teknik filigri" — the most delicate technique: the silver wire (0.2-0.3 mm diameter) drawn through progressively smaller holes in a metal drawplate and then twisted and arranged into the lace-like patterns: the most time-intensive Kotagede silver technique (a single filigree bracelet takes 3-5 days)), the repousse (hammered relief) work and the cast silver (centrifugal casting)); the motifs (the Javanese batik-derived silver motifs: the parang pattern, the kawung, the lung-lungan (the floral scrollwork derived from the Majapahit classical carving tradition)); the historic graves (the Kotagede royal cemetery — the most important royal burial ground in Yogyakarta: the tombs of Panembahan Senopati (the first Mataram Sultan), his successor Sultan Agung (the greatest Mataram ruler, who besieged Batavia (modern Jakarta) twice (1628-1629) and brought nearly all of Java under Mataram control) and later Mataram rulers; the cemetery is accessible for Muslim visitors after mosque prayer times).

Gudeg dinner (the gudeg — the most famous Yogyakarta dish and the food most identified with the city (Yogyakarta is known in Indonesia as "Kota Gudeg" — the "Gudeg City")): the dish (the gudeg: the unripe jackfruit (nangka muda — the Artocarpus heterophyllus: the young green jackfruit (harvested before the fruit develops its sugary flesh and strong aroma) cooked in coconut milk and palm sugar (the "gula jawa" — the dark brown palm sugar from the Arenga pinnata palm, the most important sweetener in Javanese cooking) with teak leaves (the daun jati — the large leaves of the teak tree (Tectona grandis) added to colour the gudeg the characteristic brown-reddish colour and add a subtle astringency) for 3-6 hours until the jackfruit absorbs the coconut-sugar-spice liquid and turns the dark mahogany colour and the soft, stringy, subtly sweet consistency that is characteristic of the gudeg); the flavour profile (the gudeg is the sweetest of all the major regional Indonesian dishes (the Javanese culinary tradition (the Central Javanese court cuisine of Yogyakarta and Solo/Surakarta) is characterised by its sweet orientation — the contrast with the saltier and more savoury food of the Sundanese (West Java), the spicier Padang Minangkabau (West Sumatra) and the fiercer Manado (North Sulawesi) cuisines)); the gudeg set (the complete gudeg meal: the gudeg (the jackfruit stew) + the krecek (the spiced crispy buffalo skin — the most important accompaniment to gudeg: the fried and then braised buffalo skin in a spicy sauce) + the opor ayam (the chicken in yellow coconut-milk curry) + the telur pindang (the marbled hard-boiled egg simmered in sweet spices) + the rice (the steamed white rice, or the lontong (the compressed rice cake wrapped in banana leaf)); the best gudeg restaurants in Yogyakarta (the Gudeg Yu Djum near the Jalan Kaliurang (the most famous gudeg stall in Yogyakarta, operating since 1950s) and the Bu Tjitro on Jalan Laksda Adi Sucipto (the classic late-night gudeg)).

Parangtritis Beach (Pantai Parangtritis — 27 km south of central Yogyakarta; the most spiritually significant beach in Java and the beach most directly connected to the Yogyakarta royal court tradition): the cosmology (the Parangtritis beach is the central point in the sacred south axis of the Yogyakarta royal cosmology: the Sultan of Yogyakarta is the earthly ruler whose realm is defined by the north-south spiritual axis connecting the summit of Mount Merapi (the volcano 28 km north of the Kraton — the sacred mountain of the north, domain of the spirit Kiai Sapujagad) through the Tugu monument (the white obelisk marking the north gate of the Yogyakarta royal axis), the Kraton (the palace at the centre), the Alun-Alun Selatan (the south royal square) and the Parangtritis beach (the sacred south coast (the domain of Nyai Roro Kidul — "the Queen of the Southern Sea": the most powerful spirit in the Javanese supernatural pantheon; a beautiful supernatural queen who rules the Indian Ocean from her underwater palace at Parangtritis and who is spiritually married to every Sultan of Yogyakarta in an ongoing supernatural alliance (the sultan must make annual offerings to Nyai Roro Kidul at Parangtritis to maintain the spiritual authority of the Yogyakarta kingdom)); the beach (the Parangtritis beach is dangerous for swimming (the Indian Ocean south coast of Java has extremely strong rip currents and shore-break waves — several tourists drown each year): the beach is visited for its dramatic landscape (the volcanic black sand, the limestone cliffs (the Parangkusumo karst outcrop), the dunes stretching east toward Bantul) and the spiritual atmosphere rather than for swimming)); the transport (the Parangtritis beach is 45-60 minutes south of Yogyakarta by ojek (motorbike taxi) or rented motorbike (IDR 80,000 (€4.88)/day)), or 1h by Trans-Jogja bus + local minibus).

Batik tulis workshop in Yogyakarta (the hands-on batik-making workshop — the most directly educational craft experience in the most important batik city in the world): the workshop (the batik workshop centres in the Kraton and Prawirotaman districts of Yogyakarta offer 2-4 hour guided batik tulis workshops (IDR 100,000-250,000 (€6.10-15.24) per person including materials)): the process (the batik tulis process: 1. the design (the participant traces or draws a pattern on cotton fabric with a pencil — the instructor provides traditional Javanese motif templates (the parang, kawung and truntum patterns)); 2. the waxing (the "nglowong" — the hot wax resist application with the canting (the small copper-spouted drawing tool): the canting is filled with hot liquid wax (a mixture of paraffin and beeswax heated to 65-75°C on a small alcohol stove) and the participant traces the pencil design with the wax; the challenge (the wax must flow at a consistent temperature — too hot and the wax runs uncontrollably; too cool and it clogs the canting spout — explaining why the full batik tulis mastery takes years to develop)); 3. the dyeing (the waxed fabric is immersed in a cold-process dye bath (the Naphtol or reactive dye (the synthetic dyes used in modern workshops; the traditional natural dyes (indigo (Indigofera tinctoria), soga brown (Peltophorum pterocarpum bark), mahogany (Swietenia mahagoni bark)) are used in specialised natural-dye workshops)); 4. the removing (the wax is removed by boiling the dyed fabric ("nglorod") or scraping ("ngerok")); the result (each participant takes home their individually made batik piece at the end of the workshop).

Ramayana Ballet at Prambanan (the Sendratari Ramayana — the "Ramayana Sendratari (dance drama)" performed outdoors at the Prambanan open-air theatre (the Trimurti Theatre: the purpose-built open-air amphitheatre adjacent to the Prambanan temple complex, with the illuminated Shiva, Brahma and Vishnu temple spires forming the backdrop for the performance)): the performance (the Ramayana Ballet is the most spectacular performing arts event in Yogyakarta: the performance is held on the full moon nights of May to October (the dry season) in the 1,200-seat outdoor Prambanan theatre, with the illuminated Prambanan temple towers as the backdrop: the story (the Ramayana — the story of Prince Rama (the avatar of Vishnu) and his wife Sita: Act I (Sita is abducted by the demon king Rahwana/Ravana from the forest (the golden deer episode — the maya deer sent by Rahwana to lure Rama away from Sita while Rahwana abducts her)); Act II (Hanoman (the white monkey general, the son of the wind god Vayu) is sent by Rama to search for Sita in Lanka (the island kingdom of Rahwana)); Act III (the war between Rama's monkey army and Rahwana's demon forces — the most spectacular section of the Ramayana Ballet with the fire-dancing performers, the battle choreography and the death of Rahwana); Act IV (Sita proves her faithfulness by the fire test (the "agni pariksa") and is reunited with Rama)): the dancers (the Prambanan Ramayana Ballet features approximately 50-200 dancers (depending on the performance scale) from the professional Yogyakarta dance companies, performing the refined Javanese classical dance style (the "gaya Yogyakarta" — the most codified and formal of all the Javanese dance styles, with each hand gesture (the "mudra") and eye movement having specific meaning)).

Angkringan (the angkringan — the most characteristic Yogyakarta street food format and the most democratic social institution in the city: the angkringan (from the Javanese "angkring" — "to sit with knees raised / to squat") is the portable wooden food cart pushed by a single vendor, set up at the roadside in the evening (typically 5pm-midnight or 2am): the cart format (the angkringan cart is a double-ended bamboo shoulder-pole carrier (the "pikulan") with two woven bamboo baskets suspended from each end, converted into a stationary roadside stall by adding low wooden benches and a charcoal brazier on which the vendor heats water for tea and warms the food); the food (the angkringan menu: the "nasi kucing" (literally "cat rice" — the small portions of steamed rice wrapped in banana leaf with a minimal accompani (a few shreds of tempeh, a tiny smear of "teri" anchovy paste, a few shreds of "oseng" stir-fry): the name "cat rice" because the portions are so small they could feed a cat; the most important angkringan food (the "gorengan" — the deep-fried snacks: the tempeh goreng (fried fermented soybean cake), the tahu goreng (fried tofu), the bakwan (fried corn fritter), the pisang goreng (fried banana), the sate usus (the grilled chicken intestine satay — the most distinctively Yogyakarta angkringan item: the chicken intestines cleaned, seasoned and grilled on bamboo skewers over charcoal, the most characteristically offal-rich item of the Yogyakarta street food tradition); the drinks (the "wedang" (hot drinks): the wedang jahe (ginger tea), the wedang uwuh (the "rubbish tea" — a blend of cloves, cinnamon, lemongrass and palm sugar), the kopi joss (the Yogyakarta speciality: the espresso-strength coffee with a piece of burning charcoal dropped directly into the glass — the charcoal is said to neutralise the acidity of the coffee)).