"YOGYAKARTA - SOUL CITY OF JAVA (under construction" Yogyakarta by ancient_traveler

Yogyakarta (also Jogja, Yogya, Yogyakarta, Jogjakarta) is a city in the Yogyakarta Special Region (Indonesian: Daerah Istimewa Yogyakarta, or DIY). Yogyakarta is often called the main gateway to the Central Java as where it is geographically located. It stretches from Mount Merapi to the Indian Ocean.

It is the only province in Indonesia that is still formally governed by a precolonial Sultanate, the Sultanate of Ngayogyakarta Hadiningrat.

riding becak

The key attraction of Yogyakarta is 'Kraton' (the Sultan's Palace). The Sultan's palace is the centre of Yogya's traditional life and despite the advance of modernity; it still emanates the spirit of refinement, which has been the hallmark of Yogya's art for centuries.

Yogyakarta is also the only major city, which still has traditional 'Becak' (rickshaw-style) transport.

Borobudur Temple, August 2010

Whatever Yogyakarta is, or aims to be, this fascinating city with its surrounding jungles, rice fields and mountains lies in the heart of Indonesia's most important ancient empires. Once you've seen enough of modern Java, you can then head for the countryside and marvel at some of ancient Asia's grandest wonder - the great 8th to 10th century Hindu and Buddhist temples of Prambanan, Borobudur and their subsidiary candis (temple) and shrines that dot the Javanese countryside. Yogyakarta is a place where nothing is learned until it is experienced.

www.yogyes.com
http://www.indonesia-tourism.com/yogyakarta/

• Pros:nice people, clean