Candi Sukuh and Candi Cetho

Candi Sukuh sits at around 900 metres on the western flank of Mount Lawu, and it looks unlike anything else in Java: a squat truncated pyramid of grey stone, reached across a courtyard scattered with carved reliefs and free-standing figures. It was built in the fifteenth century, at the end of the Majapahit period, and its carvings are earthy and direct, including a well-known panel of a blacksmith at his forge and openly sexual imagery that surprises visitors expecting classical restraint. Candi Cetho lies higher up the same road, terraced into the slope as a series of gates and platforms, wrapped in cloud most afternoons. It is a working Hindu temple, with offerings, chequered cloth and incense in place.

What you actually see

• The stone pyramid - Sukuh's blunt terraced platform with its steep central stair.
• The forge relief - the panel showing a blacksmith at work, with tools and bellows.
• Cetho's terraces - the tiered courtyards climbing the slope through split gates.
• The mountain setting - tea and vegetable plots on the slopes, with cloud rolling in by early afternoon.

When to go

The dry season, May to September, gives the best chance of a clear morning. Cloud usually builds by early afternoon and can swallow both sites, so start early and take Sukuh first, Cetho second. Weekends bring Javanese day-trippers and, at Cetho, pilgrims. Sarongs are handed out at the gate and are expected at both temples.

Honest expectations

The road up is steep, narrow and hard work on a scooter in the wet, so a car with a decent engine is the sensible option. Both sites are small and can be walked in under an hour each, which some find thin reward for the drive. Sukuh's erotic carvings draw giggling groups. At Cetho, parts of the upper complex are recent additions rather than fifteenth-century work.

Nearby

The tea estate at Kemuning and the hill town of Tawangmangu are on the same road; Solo lies ninety minutes below.