IMG_2667_DXO, originally uploaded by intosite.

The photo was taken in Bandung Indonesia, on the way up to a Downhill mountain bike track called Cikole.

Indonesia - Java - Borobudur, originally uploaded by Stewart Leiwakabessy.

It was in 1997, when my Grandfather passed away, that we visited Indonesia for the last time. We went to Sumatra, Java and Maluku to visit our relatives. The plan was to have a look at the Borobudur, but due to the lack of time (we only had 3 weeks), Borobudur was off the list.

This year, 2011, I finally got around to go visit the Borobudur. And my, it was worth every single cent. The epic proportions of this compound, the carvings, the serenity, the fact that it's a UNESCO World Heritage Site and that I got up there to shoot photos of the Borobudur, it's surroundings and statues, that all made this year's vacation to one to remember. Here's to my late Grandmother.

Borobudur, or Barabudur, is a 8th-century Mahayana Buddhist monument near Magelang, Central Java, Indonesia. The monument comprises six square platforms topped by three circular platforms, and is decorated with 2,672 relief panels and 504 Buddha statues. A main dome, located at the center of the top platform, is surrounded by 72 Buddha statues seated inside perforated stupa. The largest restoration project was undertaken between 1975 and 1982 by the Indonesian government and UNESCO, following which the monument was listed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site. From: wikipedia.

Java is the world's most densely populated regions (population: 136 million). It is home to 60% of Indonesia's population. Much of Indonesian history took place on Java; it was the centre of powerful Hindu-Buddhist empires, Islamic sultanates, the core of the colonial Dutch East Indies, and was at the centre of Indonesia's campaign for independence. The island dominates Indonesian social, political and economic life. More information on wikipedia.