Terraces to the sky
On Mount Lawu's slope.
Michael Gunther — CC BY-SA 4.0 · Christophe95 — CC BY-SA 4.0 · Crisco 1492 — CC BY-SA 4.0 · Christophe95 — CC BY-SA 4.0
A fifteenth-century Hindu temple, among the last of the Majapahit era, built on successive terraces on the slope of Mount Lawu at about fourteen hundred metres, so it seems to climb towards the sky. Its standout features are split gateways in Balinese style, with stone terraces behind them rising to a pyramid-shaped shrine at the top. Mist often wraps it, making the scene magical, with tea and vegetable farms on the green slopes around and cool, fresh air. The temple is still a place of worship for local Hindus, and near the top is another small shrine and a path to a sacred spring. Tickets are higher for foreigners than locals, and visitors wrap a traditional cloth around the waist on entry out of respect, handed out at the gate. The mountain road is very steep, so hire a car and driver from Solo, and combine it with the Kemuning tea plantations and Grojogan Sewu waterfall in one day. Bring a jacket, as it is cool.
On Mount Lawu's slope.
Balinese style in Java.
Kemuning on the way.
Slopes of Mount Lawu, Karanganyar, about 40 km east of Solo
By hired car and driver in about an hour and a half, as public transport is hard and the last stretch very steep. Combine it with the tea farms and Tawangmangu.