THE JAVA EXPLORER

WELCOME TO SOLO THE SPIRIT OF JAVA…….

Indonesia is a major tourist destination and the world’s archipelago between Asia & Australia, where old tradition are still existing. With more than 17.500 island, Indonesia can fulfill many vacationer’s dreams and fit many types of trips. The sacred mountains and the secular beaches on Bali, the shadow puppets, Borobudur & Prambanan temples and Palaces on Java, Toba Lake and Orang Utan on Sumatra, the Phinisi and the hanging graves of Tana Toraja on Sulawesi, the Dayak and Mahakam River on Kalimantan, the Sasak and the Komodo Dragons on Nusa Tenggaras, the hiding place on Ujung Kulon, is always something for everyone

Solo is a city in Central Java, which is situated 65 km northeast of Yogyakarta, and 100 km southeast of Semarang. The formal name of the city is Surakarta, but then it is locally referred as Solo. Solo is the twin sister of Yogyakarta, in fact Solo resembles Yogyakarta in its look and appearance. The city also boasts of a rich historical and cultural heritage, along with Yogyakarta, the city is actually the heir of the Mataram kingdom which was fragmented in 1755. Today, Solo has become a major commercial hub and an important center of art and education of Indonesia. Despite being classified as an urban city, Solo rich cultural heritage and is often considered to be the least westernized city in Central Java. Solo is also one of the premium tourist destinations of Indonesia that features all the requisites of being an avantgarde tourist destination. From spectacular natural attractions to thought provoking historical landmarks and monuments, you will find it all here.

KASUNANAN PALACE ( KARATON SURAKARTA )

Kasunanan Palace, Solo is an enormous landmark in the city. The Palace was the house of the Java king who ruled over Central Java, century ago. The palace is huge and was built in the year 1745. Some of the things you must see on a tour of the palace include the numerous statues, royal heirlooms, ancient weapons and precious. The Tower Of The Universe (PANGGUNG SONGGO BUWONO) which is a meeting place of The Goddess of the Sea is also a must see.

KASULTANAN PALACE ( KARATON JOGJAKARTA )

Built in the middle of the 18^th century, this walled-city serves as the home of the sultans of what remains of the Mataram Kingdom to this day. The palace is open to guided tours for properly dressed guests. Inside you’ll find many shady courtyards connected by beautifully decorated covered walks. Of particular interest are the ornate reception halls as well as the large open air pendopos for listing to gamelan performances. You’ll also find a small air-conditioned room where the desk at which the ninth sultan planned the overthrow of the Dutch is enshrined. Also interesting is the gallery displaying the royal family tree and photographs of many members. We thought the painting of the eighth sultan on his circumcision day to be particularly curious.

BOROBUDUR TEMPLE

Enjoy a drive through the lovely countryside roads with beautiful views along the way to Borobudur. Discover the mistery and history of the biggest Buddhist in the world. Borobudur temple is one of world heritage in Indonesia. The biggest Buddhist Temple of the world. Built around the 8th century. Structured from about 55.000 m2 andesite stone. Constructed without any andhesive. Borobudur temple consist of 504 Buddha statues, 32 lion statues, 72 stupas and 1 main big stupa or the biggest stupa in Borobudur temple and 1472 small stupas. The shape of Borobudur have full of philosophical ornaments which symbolizing the unity in diversity of path to reach the ultimate aim of life. Borobudur has 1460 panels of relief which illustrate a hidden beautiful learning of life.

With all its long history and natural surroundings, Borobudur temple is undeniably a cultural masterpiece. Visit the Magnificent of Borobudur temple early morning to see the beautiful of scene when the sun is rising, this visit is depend on weather. The real imagination that you can find when the sun comes out from the east horizon welcoming you in a brand new day.

PRAMBANAN TEMPLE

Prambanan temple known as the biggest and a most beautiful Hindu temple, located 17 kms or 20 minute at the east of jogjakarta. This magnificent Shivaite temple derives its name from the village where it is located. Locally known as the Loro Jongrang temple, or the temple of the “Slender Virgin” it is reputed to be the biggest and most beautiful Hindu Temple in Indonesia. The temple is believed to have been built by King Balitung Maha Sambu in the middle of the ninth century.

Its parapets are adorned with a bas-reliefs depicting the famous Ramayana story. It has eight shrines, of which the three main ones are dedicated to Shiva, Vishnu and Brahma (all are manifestations of God in Hindu). The main temple of Shiva rises to a high of 130 feet and houses the magnificent statue of Shiva’s consort, Durga.
Prambanan Temple is beautiful temple, in fact, it is a group of temples. The biggest temple dedicated to Shiva (one of manifestation of God) with two other smaller ones, on its right and on its left, dedicated to Brahma and Wisnhu (manifestation of God) respectively. Reliefs decorating the walls of the temple depict the story of Ramayana.

SUKUH TEMPLE

Sukuh temple is situated at Desa Berjo, Karangpandan and stands at a height of 910 meters on the slopes of Gunung Lawu. The temple stretches from the East to the West and the main gate of the temple lies to the West. The construction of the Candi Sukuh is pre historic and reminds one of the Meghalitic era of Punden Berundak (terrace graves). Candi Sukuh can be considered to be one of the interesting Hindu temples in all of Southeast Asia.

Sukuh Temple constructed in the 15th century. The remnants of the Sukuh Temple consist of Reliefs that describe the union of the male and female sex organs symbolically which can be found on the gate of the first terrace. Reliefs describing the Sudhamala and Garudeya stories and reliefs that describe the hand made iron activities (pande besi) are also found in the temple. The temple seems apparently devoted to the god Bima, the sword maker. Human statues and animal statues can also be seen inside the temple premises.

The main temple was discovered in 1815 which was discovered by a resident of Surakarta, Johnson during the period of the Raffles’ government. It is also pyramidal. Various efforts have been made to restore and secure the temple. Archeological department of the Central Java provincial government resumed restoration work in 1989-1991.

PANDAWA TEMPLE ( DIENG )

Dieng is one of regions in Central Java province. Because of the beautiful nature and unique traditions of the local community, Dieng was announced as one of tourism villages in Central Java province. The word Dieng came from sansekerta language; “Di” and “Hyang”. Di means high land, or mountain, and Hyang means heaven. By combining both words, we can conclude that Dieng means mountains ground, the home of Gods and Goddess..

Visiting Dieng you will find a wonderful and unique experience. Panoramic view of terraced field, tobbaco & potato plantations, coloured lakes, craters, the oldest Hindus Temple in Java.

SANGIRAN PREHISTORIC MUSEUM

Sangiran Museum and Early Man Site is a popular tourist spot, which attracts tourists from all over the world. Sangiran Museum and Early Man Site is actually an archaeological excavation site, covers an area of about 48 square kilometer and it is only 15 km away from north of Surakarta in the Bengawan Solo River valley. Excavation in the area began in the year 1934, when renowned anthropologist Gustav Heinrich Ralph von Koenigswald commenced his examination of the site. In the succeeding years, excavations in the area unearthed fossils of some of the first known human ancestors, Pithecanthropus erectus, which is also dubbed as the “Java Man”. Excavations in the area continued till 1941 and during these years, 50 fossils of Meganthropus palaeo and Pithecanthropus erectus/Homo erectus were discovered. All these fossils add up to almost half of all the world’s known hominid fossils.

Thus, Sangiran has emerged as one of the key sites for the understanding of human evolution and today it has become one of the most visited sites in the country. The importance of the site can be further understood from the fact that UNESCO recognized Sangiran as a site of World Heritage in 1996.

RADYA PUSTAKA MUSEUM

Museum Radya Pustaka is the oldest museum of the city. The actual name of the museum is Paheman Radya Pustaka and it was established on the 28th October 1890.

The museum has been educating and informing its visitors for more than hundred years and still continues to be one of the most visited museums of the country. Museum Radya Pustaka is situated at Jl. Slamet Riyadi and all the visitors of the museum are welcomed by the statue of Ronggowarsito, a celebrated Karaton poet of the past. The museum features a wide range of exhibits all of which will give you a fair understanding of the tradition and custom of Solo as well as Indonesia. Radya Pustaka Museum was built with the purpose of saving books and works of the poets, writers and intellectuals from the past. In fact the museum is renowned in the whole city for featuring an extensive collection of antiquities, gamelan, keris, puppets, scroll of wayang beber, some Javanese and Dutch books.

TRI WINDU ANTIQUES MARKET

Triwindu Antique Market is located at a short distance away from Mangkunegara palace. The dealers here collect and sell old European, Javanese and Chinese furniture, paintings and other old items. Apart from these items, coins; statues made of bronze or curved of stone; old bottles and old musical instruments are sold here too. The really prized items in this market are however batik stamps. The stamps are made of brass. One good way to recognize a really old batik stamp is by looking at its color. The authentic ones are black with crusted ink.

Take a walk around dozens of shops located in this market. You would be surprised by the quality and beautiful designs of porcelain made dinner and tea sets; goblets; vases and other souvenirs. All the items sold here can be bargained. Do not however forget to negotiate before you pay for them.

TAWANGMANGU WATERFALL

Grojogan Sewu Waterfall is located at Tawangmangu. Located at a distance of almost 40 kilometer from Solo, Tawangmangu is a recreational resort. Situated at an altitude of 1000 meter from the sea level, this place offers scenic views, fresh and cool weather and several luxurious hotels and villas. Visiting this mountain resort is a great way to beat the heat of Solo. The journey to this hill resort passes through serpentine and hair pin like bends. The lush green vegetation and fog cover is what makes the journey a treat for the eyes.

Apart from attractions like temples and a national park, this hilly resort is famous for Grojogan Sewu Waterfall. With gallons of water coming down from 87 meter altitude, this waterfall is a magnificent one. The waterfall can only be reached on foot and journeying across green trees and shrubs. The deafening roar of this waterfall makes it impossible to hear even a single word from a person standing just beside you. The water at the bottom of this waterfall is very chilly. People still bathe here and get refreshed.

MERAPI MOUNT

The internally giant smoking Mount Merapi is one of the active volcanoes found in Indonesia, present its peaceful and sleepy dense forest. Beyond this, there is vast deserted land lies with its deep and steep valley spread out among the mountain hills where sibilant pines and wild grass make out the dominating vegetation, all presents a very exciting panorama.

During its resting time of volcanic activities, it will enable those who have much interest in mountaineering to have fun and to make them more acquainted with the flora of its tropical rain forest. From the observation post located on Plawangan hill that can be reached through the forest resort on Kaliurang, you will see incredible sights of molten rocks mudding over the rim - sometimes accompanied with hot lava pouring out regularly and leaving along trail of smoke.

Mount Merapi is 2,920 m above sea level with an average temperature at noon and night is approximately 15-16 degrees. At present this resort is provided with an outstanding and modern golf course, which is settled on 800 meters of sea level. This golf course located only 30 minutes driving from the city of Yogyakarta.