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TRAVEL DIARIES: Yogyakarta Favorites

October 23, 2013

My favorite place to visit when we were living in Indonesia was Yogyakarta (pronounced as Jogjakarta). We found it less touristy than Bali and less expensive. Usually I prefer going to the beach when I am on vacation, but since I don’t get to go to the beach in Bali anyway, I’d take Yogya over it any day. It’s more of a shopping, wander and pamper vacation spot.

YOGYAKARTA HOTEL

In the 5-6 times that we visited Yogya, we stayed in different hotels, but my absolute favorite place to stay in Yogyakarta is Phoenix Hotel. It is a historical hotel with great food & ambiance.IMG_8698 IMG_8695

I highly recommend it to anyone and I liked it even better than Hyatt, but I am biased because a must for me is good food. I also enjoyed their small but gorgeous courtyard pool Click the following to see photos:

  • our lovely welcome
  • our room in Phoenix Hotel
  • Paprika Restaurant
  • the spa

OTHER HOTELS IN YOGYAKARTA

  1. We’ve stayed in Hyatt Hotel Yogyakarta, very nice clean hotel but the food is not good. My friends who have kids stay there because it is kid friendly and absolutely beautiful. Click here to see photos of our room.hyatt hotel yogyakarta pool hyatt hotel yogyakarta pool -002
  2. We’ve stayed in Villa Hanis which has good food, and a nice villa with gorgeous furniture but the grounds are unkempt. The food is good though and you get a 2 room villa for the price of one room in Hyatt so it’s a good deal if you are going in a group of 4 and are on a budget. The food was good so we liked it. 2010 09 Yogyakarta with in laws
  3. We’ve stayed in an even cheaper Hotel Batik Yogyakarta & it wasn’t clean at all. I don’t recommend it. Avoid at all costs.

YOGYAKARTA RESTAURANTS

  • Ikan Bakar Jimbaran – get everything “bakar” or grilled! YUM!Ikan Bakar Jimbaran Yogyakarta
  • Sawa Steaks – excellent steaks in the middle of rice fieldssawa steaks grill restaurant yogyakarta-004
  • Villa Hanis order the Belgian chicken and the chocolate torte

YOGYAKARTA SHOPPING

  • Buy Monggo Dark Chocolate squares at Jalan Marlioboro. I found some in Batik Adiningrat, which you can find HERE. They sell the big Monggo bars at Kemchicks for twice the price of Yogya but my favorite are the small chocolate squares which are the perfect size to serve with tea. I have a hard time finding these in Jakarta, except once in Papaya Supermarket Blok M. I highly recommend these dark chocolate squares. Image via.2-Souv_box_0
  • Buy pure silk batik in one color at Mirota Batik in Jalan Marlioboro. As I said before, I am not into prints, but in Yogyakarta, I found batik that is – believe it or not – in one colour only! YES. It is pure silk and the way it has the batik pattern is by the way the same colored thread is woven to create the fabric. It is beautiful and luxe and the texture is divine. We first went to a shop that sold 2 meters for IDR 2 Million. I loved it but it was too expensive. Good thing I didn’t get it because I got the exact same 2 meter fabric for only IDR 800,000 at the premium batik section in the room at  the very back of Mirota Batik on the ground floor. I used the fabric as a makeshift skirt when I had to attend dinner in the Sultan’s palace in a long skirt. pure silk batik yogyakarta the diplomatic wife-002
  • Jalan Marlioboro is the cheapest place to buy ready-to-wear Men’s batik shirts. TD used batik to work sometimes when he is not wearing barong and he loves finding shirts for only about IDR 60.000 – 80,000.
  • Buy used Batik Stamps from Mirota Batik Marlioboro for cheap so you can have it framed to use as home decor, like I did HERE.
  • Shop for art at Imam Gallery. Yogyakarta is an artists city. We never fail to buy art whenever we are in town. Click on this and this to see samples of art we’ve gotten.

YOGYAKARTA TO DOS

  • Sunrise tour at Borobodur TempleBorobudur Temple Yogyakarta
  • Sunset tour at Prambanan Temple2010 09 Yogyakarta with in laws
  • Watch the Ramayanan Ballet with the lit up Prambanan Temple as the backdrop. This is scheduled in the evenings on weekends. Makes sure to check with your hotel on the dates and time first before arranging for transport. Before the show, it yummy Indonesian food in the adjoining al fresco restaurant. ramayana ballet prambanan temple yogyakartaramayana ballet prambanan temple yogyakarta-001 ramayana ballet prambanan temple yogyakarta-003 ramayana ballet prambanan temple yogyakarta-004

Please note that these is a list on what was a great hit with us during several trips to Bali Between 2010 and 2012. Details like prices may not be accurate, but they are to give you an idea of how much it was then. I’ll be adding more to this list as I recall more details.

What’s on your list of favorite Yogyakarta experiences? I’d love to get some recommendations from people who have been to Yogyakarta. Drop me a line in the comments!

6 Comments · Indonesia

Comments

  1. padmaja says

    October 24, 2013 at 3:58 AM

    Lovely I love the Prambanan Temple site, When we went there it was raining so the whole ramayana dance shows was moved to an indoor arrangement. We had dinner there . I loved the Deep Fried Prawns and the Eggplant .

    Reply
    • diplomaticwife says

      October 24, 2013 at 7:31 PM

      Hi Padmaja, wow they were able to move the whole show? I am in awe! It’s such a massive production. It rained a little when we watched, but the show was stopped for a few minutes then resumed when the show stopped. You are making me miss all the food in Indonesia!!! Thanks for dropping by and commenting!

      Reply
  2. Didi Paterno-Magpali (@didipaterno) says

    October 24, 2013 at 6:41 AM

    Is that an abaca wraparound thingie (I don’t know what u call it)? It’s beautiful!

    Reply
    • diplomaticwife says

      October 24, 2013 at 7:29 PM

      Hi Didi, thank you so much! it’s is a Dita Sandico Ong Wrap, made out of Banana Fiber. I’ve been wearing them as my modern Filipiniana since TD joined the DFA and the great thing about them is I can arrange it in different ways each time I wear them. You can see other similar wraps and gowns I have here:

      My British Women’s Association Annual Fashion Show Gown
      National Day Filipiniana Gown
      My outfit while attending a Muslim Wedding

      For Filipiniana I wear them around the shoulder, but you can see in the BWA fashion show I placed it around my waist to make it look like a modern gown. The banana fibers are nice because they can stand but also be sculpted and shaped in so many ways!

      Reply
  3. Kaho says

    October 27, 2013 at 5:11 PM

    Lovely! Phoenix looks very charming, too. Like you wrote, we also stayed at Hyatt and it was great for our kids. We never had a chance to visit Prambanan. I’m very sad that we didn’t. I enjoyed seeing your photos! Thanks for sharing!

    Reply
    • diplomaticwife says

      October 27, 2013 at 6:35 PM

      Hi Kaho, it’s a pity that you didn’t get to go to Prambanan, but compared to Borobudur, it’s definitely much smaller. I wasn’t able to take very good photos when I was there because it was very gloomy weather (it rained) and it was also under renovation, so don’t worry you are not missing much. I will still choose some photos and post whatever I can. Thanks for dropping by!

      Reply

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Welcome

Hello! I’m Ayessa, trailing spouse to a diplomat, mama to DiploBaby and DiploDog and founder of Declutter MNL. I love talking about how to achieve a minimaluxe lifestyle one step at a time.

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GOOD TO KNOW GUIDE

FOLLOW ME ON INSTAGRAM @UNDIPLOMATICWIFE

HOW NEAR IS @geneveaeroport? We are very lucky th HOW NEAR IS @geneveaeroport?

We are very lucky that the Geneva Airport is very near because it is located 4 km northwest of the city centre. It takes us less than 15mins by car & is easier to get to than airports outside the city.

BUT also means that many of the Geneva residents suffer from AIRCRAFT NOISE POLLUTION. 

In some parts of Geneva, like Vernier, Meyrin, Bellevue, Versoix, etc will have the airplane pass on top of you or very near you. This is something to consider when you are MOVING TO GENEVA & looking for a home.

When we were in @bioparcgeneve recently, it felt like airplane after airplane was going overhead every few mins. The poor animals were screaming each time.

A  report by the European Environment Agency(EEA) in 2017 said that 12% or 73,500 Geneva residents have their hearing disturbed by aircraft noise. Probably the figures have risen with the natural increase population & travel?

“The EEA describes noise as a pervasive pollutant that directly affects the health and well-being of humans and wildlife. Populations exposed to high noise levels can exhibit stress reactions, sleep-stage changes, and clinical symptoms like hypertension and cardiovascular diseases. All of these can contribute to premature mortality. The World Health Organization (WHO) reckons that humans exposed to noise levels above 40 decibels at night experience adverse health effects.

Across Europe it is estimated that noise contributed to at least 900,000 additional cases of hypertension in 2011.” - @le_news_ch 

DID YOU KNOW that owners of homes affected by the noise can request for soundproofing to be paid for by GVA? 

Check if your home meets the conditions for FREE SOUNDPROOFING c/o Genève Aéroport here:

https://www.gva.ch/en/Site/Geneve-Aeroport/Questions-Reponses-FAQ/Bruit#

SAVE or SHARE this now with someone you know who might be moving to Geneva or is already suffering from aircraft #noisepollution. 

#UDWinGeneva #UDWgenevagoodtoknow #expatingeneva #diplofamily #expatlife #genevaswitzerland #expatingeneva #filipinoingeneva #pinoyingeneva #movingtogeneva #movingtoswitzerland #movingtogeneva #genevaexpats #switzerlandexpatlife #geneva #genevaswitzerland
MERCADONA HAUL Whenever we go to Spain, we love t MERCADONA HAUL

Whenever we go to Spain, we love to go to @mercadona. It might be small but has a good affordable selection. It’s my thrifty Spanish MIL’s favorite.

We were so lucky that we had a @mercadona right beside our hotel Marina Badalona. Very convenient.
Our favorite things to bring home are:

☕️ frozen porras (bigger than churros)

🐑 baby lamb chops (the only lamb I eat coz it’s not malangsa & all you need to do is fry till crispy in olive oil with S&P) it’s called Chuletas Cabrito but TD calls it lechal 

🐽 chicharon or crispy pork rinds

🥔 Homemade potato chips. The best potato chips for me are from Spain. I don’t know how it’s so much yummier! The olive oil???

🎣 canned Sardines & tuna for me and Yaya B

TIPS:

🧊 For frozen items, we usually ask the hotel before we buy if they can put it in their freezer until we fly.

✍️ I usually bring different sizes ZIPLOCK BAGS, MASKING TAPE & MARKER when we travel so we can put everything in, label with our name and room number.

📸 then I take a photo so we can just show it to the staff and they can easily find it in their freezer.

✈️ When it’s time to pack, I placed our beach towels around the frozen packages coz I know they will SWEAT & I don’t want our other things to get wet 💦 

What  grocery do you usually like to shop for when in Spain? Where do you buy them?

#udwinbarcelona #udwinbadalona #udwtraveldiaries #udwtraveltips #udwtraveltip #diplofamily #filipinotravelblogger #pinayblogger #diplowife #diplomatswife #filipinoabroad #tdwtraveldiaries #takekidseverywhere #travelblogger #travelvlogger #travelvloggerph #filipinoblogger #filipinablogger #filipinavlogger #filipinoineurope #welltraveledkids #expatwoman #pinayblogger #familytravelblog
FREE GEAR RENTAL @boxup.app + OUTDOOR GYM at ISW C FREE GEAR RENTAL @boxup.app + OUTDOOR GYM at ISW Calisthenics Park 

📍Chem. des Tuileries 140, 1293 Bellevue

After the lovely BIOPARC we headed across to this chill park with ample PARKING that had so many things for kids & anyone who wants to move & work out:

⚽️ The kids wanted to kick around a football so we borrowed a ball from @boxup.app (they also have pumps, 🏓, 🏐, 🏀, etc) just download the app & turn on your Bluetooth & follow instructions! Return after 3hrs.

👟 Outdoor gym - this was a huge hit with the kids

⚽️ football - this too!

🏀 basketball court

🏓 Ping-pong 

🏐 Beach volleyball court

🤸🏻 Monkey bars

🛝 small playground

Thanks for the wonderful afternoon guys @lidia_otilia_botezatu! 
How lucky are we to have these beautiful, clean open spaces. And the free rental gear is AMAZING! so convenient.

This is in Geneva, about 15mins drive from where we live.

SAVE THIS on your list of PARKS to visit!

⚠️ WARNING

it’s in the airplane path so there will be loud noise from that. It’s not as close as the bioparc but bring earplugs/earphones if you are sensitive.

#udwingeneva #genevaswitzerland #genevaforkids #diplobaby #diplofamily #filipinotravelblogger #pinayblogger #diplowife #diplomatswife #filipinoabroad #tdwtraveldiaries #takekidseverywhere #travelblogger #travelvlogger #travelvloggerph #filipinoblogger #filipinablogger #filipinavlogger #filipinoineurope #welltraveledkids #expatwoman #pinayblogger #familytravelblog
BIOPARC GENÈVE Yesterday was a holiday in Switze BIOPARC GENÈVE

Yesterday was a holiday in Switzerland (except for Geneva). It was raining & miserable so I wanted to take @diplobaby out for a few hours. Thankfully midafternoon it stopped raining.

We met with our friends @lidia_otilia_botezatu in @bioparcgeneve and had a lovely time in this volunteer run zoo.

TIPS💡

🆓 It’s free for families on your FIRST visit!

🦢 you walk inside animal enclosures so wear shoes that you don’t mind getting dirty/stepping on poop. We wore boots & happy we did

🅿️ there’s parking inside on wood chips, if it’s full there’s another pavement parking (free up to 4hrs) across the roundabout 

🦔 Do not feed or touch the animals no matter how cute they are

🗺️ There are 2 routes (purple & blue) and 1-1.5hrs #diplshould be enough 

❎ Park closes at 4pm

SAVE THIS NOW if your looking for a fun & not too you can do in well und2hrs. It’s nice that you can go inside unlike most zoos so it’s quite unique.

⚠️ WARNING

it’s in the airplane path so there will be loud noise from that. @diplobaby who is super noise sensitive did not mind as much as I thought he would because he was so entertained by the animals.

#udwingeneva #genevaswitzerland #genevaforkids #diplobaby #diplofamily #filipinotravelblogger #pinayblogger #diplowife #diplomatswife #filipinoabroad #tdwtraveldiaries #takekidseverywhere #travelblogger #travelvlogger #travelvloggerph #filipinoblogger #filipinablogger #filipinavlogger #filipinoineurope #welltraveledkids #expatwoman #pinayblogger #familytravelblog
MARINA BADALONA HOTEL At first we were going to MARINA BADALONA HOTEL 

At first we were going to stay in the heart of Barcelona, where we stayed 8 years ago (I didn’t even know that @diplobaby was already in my tummy at 2 weeks old) but the “hotel” is now expensive with no amenities & small rooms. So TD found a hotel in #badalona - a 20min taxi ride from Barcelona city center - that was so fabulous & slightly less expensive.

SAVE THIS NOW for future trips to Barcelona

WHY I LOVED marinabadalona
🤍 All white interiors was so beautiful & calming
🤍 Gorgeous view of the Marina 
🤍 Everything was so aesthetic, even where you tap your card to enter the room
🤍 Massive bed
🤍 Electric curtains
🤍 Lots of closet space & hangers
🤍 2 TVs
🤍 Refrigerator
🤍 White/cream Nespresso & kettle
🤍 Architecture & interior design is sooooo me!
🤍 Small rooftop pool with unbelievable views (need to do a separate post)
🤍 5min walk to the beach
🤍 Gorg esplanade
🤍 Yummy restos beside
🤍 Mercadona right beside - so convenient!

FEW RECOS FOR IMPROVEMENT:
✌️ Loved the textured wall paper, but it’s difficult to keep clean inside the bathroom
✌️ The bathroom surface area was a bit small & our stuff kept falling off the sink
✌️ Not a single chair in the family room so when we had room service we had to eat standing
✌️ No salt & pepper with room service so we called to ask & were told we would be charged for them taking it up. After TD clarified that there was no S&P with our meal, they said they would bring it up. The person brought a small bowl of of salt & pepper combined. The salt was for DiploBaby’s salmon, but he can’t eat pepper, I wanted both for my pesto. Had to run down in my slippers & the resto staff were very apologetic coz who serves a mixed S&P ever? They gave me individually packaged ones which I really appreciated.
✌️ Since the hotel has a pool & is by the beach, I wish there was a place to hang & dry swim suits. Our suits & watershoes did not dry in the tub.

All in all the value we got from staying in this hotel was so high compared to a more expensive hotel in Barcelona. No hotel stay is perfect.

Now, would I stay there again? YES PLEASE! Would you?

#udwinbarcelona #udwinbadalona #udwtraveldiaries
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