Travel Stories - Indonesia

I jump out of bed when somebody is knocking at my door from my room at 3 o'clock Get up, I hear! I quickly pack up some stuff and meet the Swiss Shepherd (another tourist from yesterday) and another couple from Indonesia. Together we will share a jeep this morning. We hoist ourselves in the jeep and I put on my rented yellow fabric jacket again because it is indeed very cold. It is about a half hour drive when we stop on the mountain "Pananjakan". Here is a whole row of jeeps waiting. Suddenly we see a small glittering sphere looming; the sun rises and we have a beautiful panorama over the "Bromo" volcano with the rising sun behind it. It looks like a lunar landscape that is becoming increasingly visible with the increasingly brighter light. "Bromo", which is the first volcanic mouth with its 2392 meters of altitude that we see seems to me rather like a tree stump. It is certainly not the highest volcano here. From the much higher "Semeru" volcano comes a white little cloud that completes the view. The color palette is enchanting and indescribable. I should not, incidentally, think that some people have come a long way to see this - they have been driving all night from cities all over Java. Our driver points to something in the sand of the valley - that's where we go now he says while we drive off.

We have been here for an hour if the driver reminds us to step in again; we drive to "Bromo" where we stop at a number of buildings covered with reeds. You can take a ride on a horse to the crater mouth or buy a cup of coffee at one of the stalls. Ofcourse prices are much higher than in a local bar. My attention goes to the sales people behind these stalls that look like mummies; fully packed against the cold they are here to praise their merchandise. This must be a Hindu girl from the great "Hindu Tennger" group that lives here. I decide to walk to the edge of the crater myself. It is about 250 steps that you have to take and those automatically warm you up. A whole group of tourists walk half a lap over the edge and try to look into the crater. You can also enjoy the view where you see many vegetables that are grown on the other volcanic walls which ofcourse are very furtile. It is actually only a small hole where steam comes out. The inner walls seem smooth and are black in color. That it can go wrong I realise when after a few months afer my visit here this volcano erupted again; there were two dead (tourists) and two other people were injured. I walk back to the jeep where the rest is waiting for me. We drive back to "Cemoro Lawang" and I decide to go to sleep for a few more hours.