May 21, 2026

May 21, 2026

Our hotel was built on the site of the former Ambarrukmo Palace of the Yogyakarta Sultan. Much of that palace still exists and is attached to the hotel. Last night we had a private dinner in a former audience hall. The food was delivered by palanquin by waiters wearing sarongs. (Sarong means ‘to cover’ in Malay) Our meal started with a Banana Crepe snack. I cannot stand the taste of bananas. I tried it anyway and found it surprisingly tasty. It makes me wonder if the US gets some different banana variety.

We were also served Java Beer. It was tasty but turned out to be non-alcoholic. It was developed a hundred years ago for the Muslim Sultan to entertain beer-loving Dutch envoys. Spices are used to provide the taste and foamy brown color. Aimee and I accidentally discovered it offered at breakfast this morning. We both had several glasses of this cinnamon infused beverage.

Today is a travel day. We checked out of our hotel and drove to the new Yogyakarta airport. It is over an hour away on the southern coastline. After security, Aimee had to buy an Oriental jacket to wear when she plays Mahjong with the ladies at home. While we were waiting for our flight to board, everyone in the airport suddenly rose at 10 am and listened to the national anthem being played over the loudspeaker. It caught me off-guard.

Our hour flight east took us down the length of Java and across to the island of Bali. Like Singapore, the Bali Strait is only 1.5 miles wide. As we land I can tell Bali is different. We see speed boats and para-sailing in the harbor. As we drive to our hotel I see colorful statues everywhere. That is because Bali is Hindu, while Java is virtually all Muslim. Beer and Pork will be easier to find here. Muslim traders took over the islands in the 14th century starting in Malaysia and spreading east. That explains the names of the major Javan cities. e.g. Jakarta (Victory Accomplished) got its new name when conquered by a Muslim Sultan. One ruler resisted and fled east. Bali was a small unimportant island that served as a refuge for the Hindu faithful.

When we flew east from Kuala Lumpur to Jakarta we gained an hour. We should have lost it. Oddly going east to Bali, we returned to KL time. That is due to a warped time zone map here. Because of heavy traffic and narrow roads, it took us an hour and half to drive the 22 miles to our hotel in Ubud.