09 Oct 2022
Darwin was our tour guide. We were a group of 6 Israeli adults. He took us to see the city: we arrived at the evening so he took us to see the new beautiful Chinatown. Next day we toured the market, went into a Hindu temple, then to tour the Sultan Palace where we also watched a traditional dance show. We then toured the neighbourhood on motorised rickshaws. As some of us are artists, he took us to studios of arts and crafts, including those creating puppets for a Laterna Magica show made of leather, studios of batik printing, and silver smiths. In the evening we saw another traditional Ramajama dance/theatre show, and nearby we stumbled on a band of musicians and puppeteers practicing for a shadow. The next day he took us to see the magnificent Borobudur Buddhist temple on a mountain, a drive away from Jogia. This is one of the wonders of Indonesia adorned with carved bass reliefs and sculptures predating the Angkor Wat temple in Kambodia by centuries and believed to have inspired the creation of the latter. Darwin highlighted to us the unique mixture of the religions in Indonesia and their spatial spread along its main islands, as well as their role in the political and social fabric of life in Indonesia whose main religion is Islam. He did so eloquently, with grace and a from a spiritual depth and knowledge. We enjoyed our tour much due to him.