Tourists raging after finding out iconic Indonesian attraction was faked for Instagram

Tourists visiting Lempuyang Temple in Karangasem, Indonesia, have been left baffled after discovering the attraction doesn’t quite match its depiction on Instagram.

Lempunyang Temple, a Hindu attraction in Bali, has arrived at contemporary online fame for artfully crafted photos, inspiring tourists visiting the attraction to recreate pictures shared on Instagram.

https://www.instagram.com/p/BzuAi6YA1lX/

But it turns out that what you see is not, in fact, what you get. Tourists have found that images depicting the temple have been edited to imply the presence of water in front of the temple gates.

Here’s exhibit A, the staged version:

https://www.instagram.com/p/BzovOi2AH5r/

And here’s exhibit B, which, as it turns out, is how the attraction really looks:

https://www.instagram.com/p/Bzt_OCWhSCb/

It has been reported that the water effect is achieved by using a mirror beneath the lens of a camera, conveying the illusion that the temple has a body of water in front of it.

The realisation has led many disgruntled tourists to leave one- or two-star reviews on TripAdvisor, where they have lamented the “fake” landmark, as well as the queues to the attraction.

https://www.instagram.com/p/BzsORPIlZ1o/

Fortune editor Polina Marinova shared her own shock at the temple’s real appearance on Twitter.

Proof that Instagram influencers have ruined everything👇

My hopes & dreams were shattered when I found out the “water” at the Gates of Heaven is actually just a piece of glass under an iPhone 😭 pic.twitter.com/oiahI5VCIo

— Polina M. Pompliano (@polinapompliano) July 4, 2019

“Proof that Instagram influencers have ruined everything,” Marinova wrote. “My hopes and dreams were shattered when I found out that the ‘water’ at the Gates of Heaven is actually just a piece of glass under an iPhone.”

One person commented that Instagrammers didn’t inform their followers about the “long queues and hours of waiting”, while another said: “True story, visited the place. Looks nothing close to what people put on Instagram.”

But does that mean the attraction is no less beautiful naturally, without the glass? We’ll let you be the judge.

https://www.instagram.com/p/BzYTkoRjBKD/