Text 19557, 76 rader
Skriven 2014-11-17 19:41:00 av MICHAEL LOO (1:123/140)
Ärende: Asia 309
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This is a new hotel complex, actually a bunch of bungalows
(very modern both in design and execution) around a central
pavilion where snacks and tea are on offer. Relaxing, and
I'd recommend it for a getaway even longer than that needed
for a visit to Borobudur, which is what we used it for. It
is nicer than the official hotel Manohara, and even though
Manohara has a monopoly on the highly recommended sunrise
tour, Rumah Boedi can get you aboard that for a modest fee.

Afternoon snacks in the public area including samosa and
pakora analogues, sort of tasty, and delicious though ant-
ridden rambutans.

Followed by chicken curry in the restaurant pavilion.
Little beers were 37500, no big beers available.

Borobudur is the largest Buddhist temple complex in the
world, a World Heritage Site that to me leaves other world
heritage sites in the dust. Hundreds of Buddhas in the
shadow of Mt. Merapi (one of the more unstable and dangerous
volcanoes in this part of the world) make for a religious
experience that moves even the unreligious.

We signed up for the not cheap but definitely worthwhile
sunrise tour run by the park and its hotel. An hour before
dawn a tuk-tuk came to fetch us, and it was a fun ride on
the bumpy roads in the dark to our staging point, the
Manohara hotel, where we met another dozen or so intrepid
tourists for the walk in the dark to the site.

We climbed, aided by flashlights, up innumerable steps to
the summit temple and awaited the sunrise, which turned out
to be filtered by a heavy fog; nonetheless the effect was
stunning, as gradually we saw the statues coming together
around us.

I believe there are nine levels, each exquisitely sculpted
(okay, if you look closely, some of the lower levels were
done by maybe apprentices, so less exquisite), and we
walked around for over two hours admiring, and even so, I'm
sure we could have stayed longer and seen more.

Toward the end of our stay, though, the crowds came - those
who didn't pay the substantial tourist premium for the
private sunrise experience -, and it was getting quite hot,
so time to move on. We walked back to the Manohara, had a
cold drink, and were taken back to our residence for a lazy
day.

Breakfast in that pleasant open-air pavilion - Lilli asked
for an omelet, and it came with extraneous stuff in it,
which distressed her until she tasted and it was fine. I
had a fruit plate - tasteless guava, decent watermelon,
quite good papaya, washed down with guava juice.

Altogether too soon it was time to go back to the Sheraton
for the last night before our flight. The ride back took
much less time than the ride out, it seems.

We were greeted like old friends and were given the
corresponding suite on the ground floor, which meant
that we had access to the pool from our patios (2).
Despite the mossy greenness of the water, I took full
advantage; Lilli, being of a more cautious bent, did not.

The free food and drinks at the lounge routine - it is
certainly glorious to be a high-status member.

Bed was welcome, but the 0500 wakeup was not. We'd
arranged for an 0545 pickup - could have made it 0600 or
even 0615, as it turns out, as emigration is easy, and the
hotel is less than 10 min from the airport.

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