Waisak at Borobudur Temple

The 'super moon' appears above Borobudur Temple

Buddhists follow the monks around the Temple praying

Monks complete the second circle of three around Borobudur

Monks carry candles as they pray

Monks deep in prayer

1000 lanterns were released sending off wishes to the full moon

Friends release lanterns as they send off their wishes

Lanterns head up to the full moon

A monk preparing to release his lantern

Blowing their wishes up into the lantern

Pure Happiness

Hands steady a lamp in the breeze

Taking a moment to pray before releasing his lantern

May all your wishes come true. What an incredibly moving evening

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Waisak Processing from Mendut Temple to Borobudur

Carrying offerings to Borobudur Temple

A monk throws petals at the crowds as blessings

Monks walk the 5 miles from Mendut to Borobudur Temple

Hundreds of monks in the procession to Borobudur

A monk walks to Borobudur

Monks along the road from Mendut Temple

Watching the procession from their balcony

Monks bless the crowd

Monks blessing with holy water and flower petals

A beautiful costume in the procession

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Waisak at Mendut Temple

Monks praying at Mendut Temple

Praying before the procession to Borobudur

Deep in meditation

A mother and her girls wait for the procession to start from Mendut Temple

Indonesian children make me smile!

Getting some shade from the blazing sunshine

A little boy who was actually very scared of my white skin!

Enjoying the celebrations

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Waisak at Borobudur Temple in the early morning..

Waisak is a holy day for Buddhists and is celebrated annually in Indonesia during the full moon in either May or June at Borobudur Temple in Magelang.  Also known as ‘Buddha Day’, the occasion commemorates the birth of Prince Siddhartha in Lumbini, his enlightenment, and his passing in Kusinara in 543BC.

I had been looking forward to having the chance to celebrate this special day at Borobudur for months, and it exceeded all my expectations, even the lack of a sunrise after arriving so early in the morning and a fair bit of rain in the afternoon, couldn’t dampen our spirits.  It was magical to arrive in the morning before the sun rose and before hoards of people set upon Borobudur, so we had relative peace as we watched monks praying and circling the Temple and it was just the start of an an amazing day..

Early morning at Borobudur Temple

Me touching the statue inside the dome for good luck

Sunrise over Borobudur

Monks arrive at the temple to pray

Monks start their prayers at Borobudur

Walking around the temple

Monks circle each level of the temple after praying

Walking around the next lower level

Monks from around the globe attend Waisak at Borobudur

A group of Muslim students completing a school assignment on Waisak at Borobudur

Finishing their morning prayers and walk around the temple

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Recycled Fashion Show Competition, Jogjakarta

Last minute costume adjustments

Waiting for the show to begin - such incredible make up and costumes

A very colourful candy lollipop costume

A feather covered model in the competition

Competiting in the Nature Theme - Butterflies

A colourful peacock

Another beautiful butterfly

An amazing Sea Creature in the Water Theme

Great octopus hair piece

Earth Theme

What a crazy costume - very creative!

Amazing 'Fire' costume

Spiders never looked so good!

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Jalan Jalan di Jogjakarta

Barber on the side of the road near Kraton

Getting his hair clipped by an interesting looking old barber

Birds for sale at the Bird Market

Incredible acoustics in the tunnel to the Water Palace

Tunnel through to the Water Palace

Arriving at the Water Palace

Pre-Wedding photos

Everyone loves to pose in Indonesia!

From the tower at the Water Palace

Riding the streets of Jogja

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Wedding Romance Week, Jogjakarta: Ivan Gunawan Fashion Show

The designer: Ivan Gunawan at Grand Pacific Hall, Jogjakarta

Ivan Gunawan

Ivan Gunawan

Ivan Gunawan

Ivan Gunawan

Ivan Gunawan

Ivan Gunawan

Ivan Gunawan

Ivan Gunawan

Ivan Gunawan

Ivan Gunawan

Ivan Gunawan

Ivan Gunawan

Ivan Gunawan

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Wedding Romance Week, Jogjakarta: Changing Mask Show

Welcome to Wedding Romance Week

One of the hosts for the event

Opening for the 'Changing Masks Show'

Two masked performers on stage

Incredible costume

One stamp of his leg and the mask changes!

Great performance before changing his mask again

After several mask changes the show is over - very entertaining to watch!

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Train Journey from Senen Station: Jakarta to Jogjakarta

An elderly man waits at the railway to sell his magazines to passengers

I love that in the middle of nowhere at empty stations, the staff still wear these uniforms and look like real station masters!

Passing a crossing in a little village on the way to Jogja

Trying to sell me tahu (tofu) through the train window

Tofu? A coloured ball perhaps? So many people sell their wares on the 9 hour journey

Strange looking iced drinks for sale

Beautiful mountain scenery

A lady watches as another food seller approaches

Rice fields line the railway lines for most of the trip

A worker rides between the rice fields and sugar cane plantation

A passenger gets some air between carriages - it was incredibly hot on the train!

Workers take a break in the fields

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Sunset outside the Hyatt Sanur, Bali

Mount Agung in the distance

Beach chairs outside the Hyatt

Nice view from my deck chair

Beach volleyball as the sun goes down

Good night Bali

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