A Beautiful Javanese Wedding

Javanese weddings are never dull. Seriously. Its always vibrant, colourful and rich in tradition. A month a go I was invited to my friend's Javanese wedding. Here are some photos taken during the reception.

It was hot day, thankfully we were given a fan as a memento

The lovely Bride & Groom: Sulis & Bayu

The newlyweds with batchmates

Wafa & I with the bride and groom

We had a 3 course meal. This was satay with ketupat.

Sup Bakso

Rice with veggie & chicken

 The mystical sounds of the gamelan 

Honestly, there are many things to write about Javanese wedding. Am just not in a writing mood. Sorry. Got so many things to do and so many things to think about. In the mean time, if you're curious and would like to know more about Javanese weddings read some of this links:

• Love and Marriage in Indonesia
• Traditional Javanese Wedding Ceremonies

Lady Marmalade

Last weekend was fun and tiring but definitely worth it. Although I think I got food poisoning from what I ate last Sunday. Anyway, my friends and I went to a cabaret show at Mirota Batik, Yogyakarta. Don't expect it to be as awesome as Moulin Rouge. Nevertheless for the price of Rp10,000 (RM3.70/USD$1) per entry it was definitely worth it. Dead cheap, pretty entertaining. 

 

We ended the night karaoke-ing of course

Will write about my friend's Javanese wedding next. =)

Monk-ing Around at Borobudur on Wesak Day

I've been to Borobudur countless times. I seriously lost count. Normally I go there to bring friends and family who came all the way from Malaysia. But yesterday we went to witness the celebration of Wesak Day. I went last year but this year I decided to go again just for fun.

The day started out misty and cool. We arrived around 730am. The sun was barely up but visitors were coming by bus loads. The ticket for today was Rp23000 (local price). I'm not sure how much other foreigners paid but normally the tix is USD$10. We paid local price cos we were foreign students studying in Indonesia. Before going up the steps heading towards Borobudur we were asked to wrap a piece of sarong around our waist out of respect.

Monks and buddhists gather at Candi Mendut at 8am and start walking towards Candi Borobudur. The walks takes about 3 hours. While they are walking the stage at Borobudur was still being set up. We took this opportunity to take photos. At that time the weather was still cool but as the sun started to rise above our head we were getting anxious cos it was hotttt! We didn't bother going up Borobudur cos the all of us has been there before. 

After waiting for 2 hours we were getting thirsty and hungry. Unfortunately they were not selling food in the compounds of Borobudur so we had to go out to find food. After drinking a refreshing es kelapa muda we headed towards Borobudur yet again. Penattttt kayyy! Naik turun twice!

Thank goodness the event was about to start when we came back. No more waiting! First there was the small food offering. Then some of the monks gather to pray onstage. 

We decided to go back around 1pm and not stay till evening. The event was much longer. In the evening there will be an opening speech, the monks & buddhists will gather and pray together. But the biggest highlight of it all is the candle procession and the release of 1000 lampions into the air to symbolize the lighting of the universe. Maybe we'll stay for that next time.

We were at least one shade darker but it was worth it. =)

Lika's Engagement

I've attended a wedding in Indonesia before this but this was the first time I attended an engagement ceremony. It's slightly different from Malaysia. Honestly, tak ingat sangat engagement kat Malaysia macam mane. The last engagement I went to was Sha's which was 2 years ago. Itupun gi skejap je (like around half an hour) cos I had a flight to catch. 

What's the difference between the engagement ceremony in Indonesia and Malaysia? I guess I can say its more intimate in Malaysia. But now engagement ceremonies in Malaysia are becoming more like a wedding reception. Seriously! The amount of money some people spend on their engagement is almost the same as their wedding reception. But if they have the money and memang the family nak buat besar-besaran, silakan.

Another thing that was different is the future bride and groom sat right next to eat other throughout the whole thing. In Malaysia, the guy doesn't have to go to the ceremony. At my friend's engagement I didn't understand what the MC was saying throughout the whole thing cos he was speaking in Javanese. So I can't really elaborate the whole event. But in the end, I had fun and am happy I get to experience a different kind of culture. 

Lika

After the engagement it was time to eat!

 Dentistry 2005  

My groupmates!

 

Dentistry 2004

They're officially engaged! Congratulations!

Don't worry that's not their ring, it's mine & Wafa's. Hehe.

One Hour Motorbike Ride Just For Seafood!

My friends (Wafa, Muna & Amir) and I went on a one hour motorbike ride to the beach just to eat seafood yesterday. But it was definitely worth it! Minus the part that our butts were cramped and my back hurts trying my best to sit slightly straight so that my *ahem-ahem* didn't touch Amir's back. Haha! 

The beaches in Yogya are not of the 'Places you have to visit before you die' kind. We just go there when we're either feeling bored or when we wanna eat fresh seafood. Anyway, we arrived at the beach about 2 hours before sunset. The first thing we did was go to the market and bought the fishes, squid, clamps & prawns that we wanted to eat. It was about 1kg of squid, 0.5kg clamps, 1kg of prawns and 7ounces of fish. Then we picked a place to eat and tell them how we want the seafood to be cooked.

While waiting for the food to be cooked, we took pictures & enjoyed our Es Kelapa Muda. Yummm!

Es Kelapa Muda

A jumping picture is always a must at the beach

Me attempting to do a somersault

Amir merenung masa depan. Haha!

Yayyyyy! The food is ready!

 From top left to the bottom: Udang goreng tepung, Sotong masak Padang, Udang masak asam pedas, Sotong goreng mentega & ikan bakar. The clamps were cooked with oyster sauce (not pictured)

 The four of us finished it all!

Burp!

Alhamdulillah.

;P