Magical Borobudur – a temple of beauty

February 16, 2012 • Photography & Travel

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The alarm went off about 3:30am and shortly after we made our way down to the lobby from our room where our driver was waiting to take us to Borobudur. The streets were empty naturally at that time of the morning and our almost hour long drive finally brought us to the entrance to Borobudur. I’ve always wanted to see this Buddhist masterpiece of a temple and now I’m finally here in Central Java, pre-dawn and about to walk into the complex to watch the sun rise over one of the great wonders of the world for sure.

We were given flash lights and we made our way in the dark to the temple which was not lit up so I did not really understand the size of it till later in the morning. We climbed a tall stairway to the very top of the temple and then patiently waited as light started to fill the sky. What followed was a magical experience that is impossible to even describe as the light revealed not only this spectacular temple that we were standing on but the surrounding countryside enveloped in mist and greenery.

Here are a few photos that I took that I hope will help to convey a little of what we experienced this morning. I’ll share more photos in the coming days.

Borobudur temple at sunrise

A Buddhist pilgrim walks in front of my time delayed exposure leaving a ghostly trail with her flash light.

borobudur-temple-indonesia-central Java

borobudur-temple-indonesia-central Java

borobudur-temple-indonesia-central Java

borobudur-temple-indonesia-central Java

borobudur-temple-indonesia-central Java

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