The following day we continue from Jakarta to Jogyakarta and don’t have any problems to find a decent homestay and enjoy the short city walk. It is a really nice charming city, streets are full of scooters, motorbikes, scooters, motorbikes and horse yokes and scooters, yes, scooters!! few rickshaw and cars. You almost need a master to cross the road. Occasionally a local step in front of the cars to help you cross it as it seems that tourists don’t have suicidal attempts.
You can buy everything on the street. Clothes, food, kitsch, and everything in enormous amounts. The local market is even more packed. Food smells amazing, and considering there is always a lunch time in at least one time-zone we decide to have lunch “from the street”. Yes, my pharmacy is equipped with a bottle of spirit and pills of activated carbon, so there is no worries to eat something poisoned. There is plenty of food to choose from, and the food looks most appealing at the old granny and she is super happy when we point to some of the food – there is not much what what we know except chicken and rice and curry sauce with unknown ingredients. I still think that chicken satay was the best of all trip! So, the menu goes: tempe, peanut sauce, some veggies, curry sauce, a bit spicy, but definitely not too much. Sure, folks enjoy to observe us if we are going to eat everything or start to scream when we find something suspicious or just because is too spicy. Price? 10000 rupias each (0.6 €).
Next day we are heading to Boronbudur at sunrise and Parambanan temple at sunset. Like we haven’t done enough damage to out biological rythm, but anyways, there is still in plan to see sunset at some other amazing locations. While taking photos at sunrise I realized that the camera has difficulties with focus. Half an hour later when we actually arrive to the temple lens die. If something really piss me of, this is slow internet connection and dead lens on vacations. I was really looking forward to take some photos of those two temples, but I can’t do much with another 300 mm lens. And it is just the beginning of holidays.
The temples were great, just the prices were somehow unexpected ($20 and $18 for tourists), but anyways, they have to earn some money somewhere. In Parambanan we meet a kind girl our age that offers to show us around and explain a bit about of the temple – just because she needs to practise her Spanish. It was much fun. Her Spanish was actually quite good, it was understandable, except few times when it was “tourist” fault to not know anything about the hindu gods and that they have a different types of transport 🙂
Jogyakarta is nice and very cheap. We paid 10 € for the room with breakfast for both, and to eat outside (street) you need to be very hungry to spend more than a euro for a meal. I am still pissed off due to my camera, because I want to bust my creativity. Soon I realize that Jogya is going to be the only city in probably more that one week and if I want to get another lens I should get it here. It is expected that photo equipment is in the same price range as in Europe (sadly not as in states). Next day we manage to find even two photo shops and a lens in a budget that I am willing to spend. I decide to buy it and than the seller says is going to be 5% more, if I pay with the card. I think my withdrawal commission is lower than that, so I decide that I will put my millions on the table. 2.5 million rupias. You know how much is that?? Two times million plus half of million. And than we start to count. First million. And the seller – hum, this is already a nice holiday. I gave her a bed look for the second one – just don’t mention another holiday (indonesian budget of course, but anyway). And that was it. I still haven’t found a potential buyer for that lens. If anyone interested is Tamron 18-200 (Nikon compatible, price negotiable – you buy – lucky for me and lucky for you!).
