Shiva Temple in Candi Prambanan. Photo By MA. GLAIZA LEE

MANILA, Philippines — We — Indonesia and I — started on the wrong foot. Think travel tax that cut a huge chunk out of my travel budget to broken luggage and being presumed pregnant.

As a self-confessed adventure and cultural traveler, I have always wanted to visit Indonesia to see its many temples, historical and cultural tourist destinations as well as experience its diverse culture and traditions.

So, when an invitation from the Embassy of Indonesia-Manila, facilitated by the Ministry of Culture and Tourism, to explore their country came, I saw it as a perfect opportunity that I must grab. But little did I know that, well, it would be a trip of many firsts.

When I arrived at the NAIA Terminal 1 and lined up at the airline counter for my boarding pass, the staff told me to pay for the travel tax. I then learned that my ticket did not include the travel tax amounting to approximately R1,600.

Caught unprepared, my travel companions and I nevertheless forked out money for the tax as we all thought that it was too minor an obstacle to deter our trip to Indonesia.

There was no direct flight to Indonesia. One needs to take a connecting flight either from Singapore or Malaysia. We did the latter. We had a stopover at the Kuala Lumpur airport. Although we had at least two hours before our flight to Jakarta, it wasn’t enough to go out of the airport and explore Kuala Lumpur.

When we arrived at Jakarta, we decided to stay at the Jakarta Airport Hotel, freshen up a bit, and have late lunch. We had four hours before our flight to Yogyakarta, our first destination. Our Indonesian guide thought that it was better to do an early check-in. We handed them our baggage so they could check them in. Little did we know that that was a wrong decision.

The Tale Of The Broken Luggage

So, we did what normal travelers do: We boarded the plane to Yogyakarta, slept on the flight, landed safely at Adisutjipto Airport, and waited for our luggage at the baggage carousel.

The baggage area was a little bit chaotic, to say the least. The carousel wasn’t the circular one that I was accustomed to, the one that just goes on and on, so, when you miss your baggage, you could just wait for it because the carousel will just keep revolving.

This baggage carousel was different. It wasn’t circular, but a one-lane carousel with an open end. The ground staff would just keep on putting pieces of luggage from one end of the carousel and they almost end up on the other end, in one pile.

Then, as one big force, the people would “attack” the pile and grab their bags without any by-your-leave courtesy. Imagine a 50 or 70 percent off year-end sale at Hermes or Prada outlets. It certainly made finding bags a real challenge.

When I finally spotted my luggage, I knew there was something wrong. I immediately checked it and I was right. Two of my padlocks were missing. The zippers were open. I was devastated to say the least. That luggage had been with me since I started working for the Manila Bulletin. I’ve been using that luggage for more than six years now, and it had never failed me. Good thing, there was nothing missing.

And just when I thought it was just an isolated incident, I found out the following morning, over breakfast, that one of my companions also had his luggage tampered with. His lock was also missing, and the zipper was opened too.

Our Indonesian guide told us to report it to the airport security. But looking at our itinerary for that day, we didn’t have time to go back to the airport. So, we told her we could do that the next day when we leave for Bali. She warned us that it might be too late.

Seeing our disappointment, our Indonesian guide called someone and tried to pull some strings. Luckily, she was able to convince whoever she called to expect us because we just had to report the incident. With that done, off we went to our destination, Candi Prambanan.

‘The Slender Virgin’ 

At least 15 kilometers northeast of Yogyakarta is yet another World Heritage Site, the Candi Prambanan. It is the largest Hindu temple in Indonesia that is dedicated to the three great Hindu divinities, Shiva the Destroyer, Brahma the Creator, and Vishnu the Sustainer.

Built during the reign of two kings, Rakai Pikatan and Balitung, in the 9th century, the Hindu temple complex has about 224 temples, with its tallest temple measures up to 47 meters high, at least five meters higher than Borobudur.

It was designed as three concentric squares, with each concentric court divided by square-plane walls.

The inner square, the center of the whole complex, contains 16 temples, the most significant of which is the central Shiva temple, flanked by the Brahma temple in the north and the Vishnu temple in the south. There are also the small temples dedicated to the gods’ animal vehicles: bull for Siva, eagle for Brahma, and swan for Vishnu.

The Siva temple houses four statues. Located in the central chamber is the Siva statue, while in the north chamber is the Dewi Durga Mahisasuramardhini statue, in the west, Ganesya statue, and in the south, Agastya.

The Brahma temple contains the god Brahma statue as well as the story of Ramayana carved in reliefs. Vishnu temple, on the other hand, has the god Vishnu statue and the carved story of Kresnayana.

The entire complex has decorated reliefs created based on Siva art. The reliefs illustrate the Ramayana period, or the history of the Hindu hero Rama.

Prambanan is also known locally as Roro Jonggrang, or the “Slender Virgin.” Legend has it that there was a beautiful maiden named Roro Jonggrang to whom a young and magically powerful man, Bandung Bondowoso, fell in love with.

Bondowoso wanted to marry Roro Jonggrang so he went to the King and asked for her hand in marriage. The King agreed despite her refusal. She didn’t want to marry him because she didn’t love him. So, she thought of a way to refuse Bondowoso.

After careful consideration, the beautiful princess gave Bondowoso a challenge: she would marry him if Bondowoso could build 1,000 temples in one night, before the break of dawn and before the rooster would crow. She thought that it would be an impossible task.

Using his magical powers, and with the help of his genies, Bondowoso managed to build 999 temples. When he started to build the last temple, Roro Jonggrang devised another plan so that Bondowoso would not be able to finish it.

She talked to the women of her village to start pounding rice so that the rooster would wake up and crow. The women pounded with all their might, which woke up the rooster as planned.

When Bondowoso heard the rooster had crowed, he thought that he had failed and decided to leave. But as he was leaving, he learned about what Roro Jonggrang did. He was wildly enraged. He went to Roro Jonggrang and turned her into stone.

The statue of the slender virgin was allegedly put inside the main Prambanan temple, and the group of temples located nearby, in the Candi Sewu, was the unfinished Thousand Temples.

Candi Sewu is comprised of a central temple, surrounded by minor temples. All of the temples in the Sewu compound share the attributes of the Prambanan temples. There are several temple compounds located in between Sewu and Prambanan, such as Lumbuna, Burah and Asu.

There are some stories that talk about how the Prambanan compound was deserted soon after it was built because of the eruption of Mount Merapi, and how it was rediscovered by C.A. Lons, a Dutchman, in 1733.

The Soul Of Bali

There can be no shortage of temples to visit in Indonesia. Visiting the many temples of Indonesia can be likened to a Christian pilgrimage or the act of visiting holy places and churches. So, off we went to become pilgrims of the Indonesian temples.

From Yogyakarta, we headed to Bali, the westernmost end of the Lesser Sundra Islands where Taman Ayun and Tanah Lot temples are located.

While waiting at the airport counter to get our boarding pass, an airport staff came to me and spoke in Indonesian. What she was telling me left me speechless. I didn’t know how to react, really. She presumed I was pregnant because I was wearing a dress. It turned out wearing a dress means, in Indonesia at least, that a lady is pregnant. Well, another lesson learned for me.

But that “lesson” never left me. All my companions started teasing me about it, even when we were already visiting the Taman Ayun temple, which literally translates to a beautiful garden.

Built in 1634 by I Gusti Agung Putu, the raja of Mengwi district, it is considered as a royal temple where the deities of the raja and other important gods are honored.

The temple is surrounded by a broad canal and can only be entered through a bridge leading to the candi bentar, the gate which gives access to the courtyard of the temple.

Upon entering the candi bentar, a straight, paved pathway leads through a well-manicured court garden, with a fountain at the center. The fountain was built with nine water jets, four of which are positioned in the corners, the other four on the sub-cardinal points, and the last one in the center symbolizing the Dewa Nawa Sanga. Each jet symbolizes the nine main gods of Balinese Hinduism.

Beyond the courtyard garden is the second candi bentar, winding up to the jaba tengah, the second courtyard which leads to the most holy courtyard of the temple, the jaba jero.

The walled courtyard, which has the most important shrines including five, seven, nine and 11-tiered merus, is only accessible during religious ceremonies.

Another fascinating temple is the Pura Tanah Lot, located in the sub-province of Tabanan, precisely in the countryside of Beraban, district of Kediri.

What sets this temple apart from the rest is its geographic location. It is situated on a bluff jutting out into the sea. During high tide, the temple looks like it is floating in the sea. The cliff temple is connected to the mainland through a bridge-shaped land, which is quite visible during low tide.

The street leading to the temple houses is a shopping haven. There are many stalls and shops selling goods, clothes and fashion accessories, among others.

For arts and culture items, Ubud is the place. It is considered the center of arts in Bali. Here, one can find wood carvings, gold and silver handicrafts and paintings.

Or you might want to visit Ketut Liyer, the Balinese shaman featured in the movie “Eat, Pray, Love” which featured Hollywood actress Julia Roberts, and ask for a spiritual guidance that could change your life for the better.

Although Indonesia and I started on the wrong foot, we ended up well and good somehow. Who knows? I might be able to go back to Bali and Indonesia for another visit, with a new luggage and no dress included in my wardrobe.