last Indonesia post - volcano day

Our last day in Indonesia we visited a volcano. It was really neat. And beautiful. But, like many days in Asia, nothing ever seems to go as planned.

We got all loaded into our rented SUV wagon and drove approximately three feet before realizing the tire was flat. Argh. We pile back out, roll the car back down into the garage, and the guys start figuring out what to do.

In the meantime, we're attracting a bit of attention and people are slowing down as they drive past (the distance between the garage and the street is about a foot and a half). So, the third or fourth person to pass by on a motorbike stops to check out the situation. Turns out he spent two years in Japan in a Toyota training school, learning how to repair cars. And guess what? Our car is a Toyota, and this man is way overqualified to change the tire. Another neighbor is running around trying to find a jack while the guys locate the spare tire. Within an hour we were back in the car, headed towards the volcano.

On the drive up (the volcano is at about 6500 ft) we passed through a pine forest - it was pretty weird, to be driving on a tropical island and smelling pine trees. I think the pines must grow well there in part because of the elevation, in part because of the way the volcano has affected the soil composition? Not sure, but it was pretty interesting to drive through a pine forest while vacationing in Indonesia.

Once we got to the top the views were pretty amazing. We could stand on the "rim" of the volcano and look down into the crater below. There was a small lake in the crater and the deepest point of the crater was smoking. Whoa.

The landscape was quite rugged, very rocky, and absolutely beautiful. It is possible to hike the entire rim, but we only made it about 2% of the way around.

Alas, our little ones are not hikers - yet! But the brief time we spent 'hiking' made Matt and I nostalgic about the "pre-kid hiking days" and eager to get our kids on the trail when they are old enough to walk farther than a mile or two.

I loved this volcano day, and though it is highly unlikely I will ever be back in Bandung Indonesia (since Krisanne and Paul are moving to another island this summer, when their language school is complete) if I ever do find myself in Bandung, Indo again, I definitely want to hike the entire rim!