Boring should not = getting lost.
I get lost in lots of games...take the desert level in FFCC for instance. Plenty of ways to get lost there (even with the GBA minimap) and it didn't feel like walking through one tile of nothingness.
Actually, if you added a bit more landmarks in similar areas, wouldn't that make the player even more confused and lost?
Another thing, I would seriously do something more creative with that temple. I would make it much harder to get to. Now it kind of looks like a simple pathway that leads you to it. I would hide it in a far corner that requires the players to go through some type of hidden cave or mountain to access it. Play around with the map a little more...lots more can be done to improve it.