The Indonesian Javanese villages in the vicinity of Borobudur Buddhist shrine make for fascinating photographs.  If you choose to tour with us next year, you’ll be able to try your hand at shooting the striking village scenes of this culture yourself.

On a bike ride back from shooting the sunrise over Borobudur’s plain we come to a village tofu (tahu in Indonesian) cottage industry.  This is true village life.  Though the owner of this little factory is wealthy, we find bare-bones facilities & skinny village workers.

Javanese workers use re-purposed paint buckets to soak shelled soybeans.  

They then put the soybeans & water into a mill that produces a milk-shake-consistency paste.

After pouring this into a plastic-lined basin, the Javanese villager plunges in his hand & thoroughly mixes the soy brew—a yin-yang pattern in the recipe.

Next he pours the mixed soy paste into wooden racks to firm up the tofu or tahu until ready to be extracted & sent to local village market.

A gedek woven bamboo gable touch this whole little tofu cottage industry with rays of morning light beaming down from above . . . 

-on an old umbrella & on the tools of the tofu or tahu making trade.

We couldn’t have made a studio set so perfect if we’d tried!  Thanks to Javanese village life & hospitality.

Wish you could craft your own photos of Javanese workers around Borobudur in great morning light?  Check out our Sept. 14-25 Java-Bali Photo Tour & be sure to sign-up for the extension tour to Jogja, Central Java, Indonesia.

See more at  www.thedigitaltrekker.com/2013/01/east-java-bali-photo-tour/