I headed up through the Dieng Plateau, a beautiful and quiet area, not too far outside of Yogyakarta (pronounced Jogjakarta, and often just called Jogja).


The name Dieng comes from Di Hyang, which translates to “Abode of the Gods.” There is a complex of Hindu temples on the Plateau, which are thought to be from around 600-700AD, and it is thought that originally there were up to 400 individual structures.


 

Unfortunately, the temples seem to have been turned into too much of a tourist attraction (even moreso than your typical temple), and there were quite a few people out trying to make a buck…including the Teletubbies, Donald and Daisy Duck, and Mickey and Minnie Mouse…dumb…

Not far outside Yogyakarta, I visited Borobudur, a Buddhist temple from the 9th century, and the largest Buddhist temple in the world. It was abandoned during the 14th century, as the people of Java converted to Islam.

 

 

My next stop was just a quick night in Surakarta, also known as Solo.

Solo would probably be a nice place to spend a few days, but unfortunately, I didn’t have the time. I only got to sample of small bit of the wonderful street food that you could find here.
While walking around the city, I found this massive tree

this rather grim park

a game of soccer in the street

and this mini-carnival in another park

which had some pedal-powered rides

I have a small new issue with my bike…the left hand combination switch is starting to go out (much like when the right side completely quit in Malaysia and I couldn’t start my bike). At this point it isn’t that serious…the high beam, hazard light, and info button no longer function, but the ABS/traction control, suspension adjustment, turn signals, and horn all work…we’ll see if I can maybe pick up another free switch from a dealership along the way…

I’ve been feeling a bit sick on and off for the last week and a half or so. Tonight I told myself that if I still feel sick in the morning, I’m heading straight into the doctor to figure out what is wrong…fingers are cross that I either feel fine or at least find out that it’s nothing serious!