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Hi everyone!!!
I finally left the remote Gili Islands in Bali.. (Gili means Island in Indonesia - so I was staying on the Island Islands.. ha) and I have now taken 2 mammoth bus journeys and am finally in the island of Java. Java is huuuuge, which was unbenownst to me! lol. I was advised to leave for the coach station at 4:00 in the morning from Bali - only to find that the coach wasn't until 9;00 anyway! :S I then preceeded to sleep onboard the stationary bus, whilst the local people stared at me through the windows. ha! Not an easy way to sleep, but I did manage it.
After waiting for several hours, I was releaved to see another 2 western girls getting on the bus! I instantly knew they were English, and these girls were soon to become my new brief travel buddies - Ellie and Jo - sisters from Lincoln. 9 hours later, on a cramped bus we arrived in Java. The Indonesians are much smaller than westerners, so their buses - like them.. are diddy!!! this means that western people rarely have anywhere for their legs to fit. I spent 2 hours on a small coach next to an English guy which really long legs.. he had nowhere to put them except in my foot rest. lol.
I had been prewarned before getting to Java that the people are not as nice and friendly as in Bali. I was told that they will happily greet you, whilst their 4 friends are busy emptying your pockets without ur knowledge. i was therefore, very happy to be travelling with Jo and Ellie. On arrival at Probbolingo bus station we were presented with a man attempting to book our next few days transport for us. Whilst he was very helpful, it was all rather stressful. Travelling in Java is complicated, prices are never fixed - everyone it seems, pays a hugely different fee.. and buses are really hit or miss. Many do not stop where they first said they would, or slap a charge on you to enter a national forrest. With all this aside, we did manage to barter down the price - and paid happily for a trip to the famous Gunung Bromo (Gunung means Mountain) and Bromo is a huuuuge dormant volcano!!
The trip was at (you guessed it).. 4:00 in the morning again. This was in order to see the sunrise from the volcano!!! So we set off, and walked up the side of this mountain in the pitch dark!! The hike to the top was well worth the sweat - as the view from the sunrise was spectacular. We were literally well above the clouds - and it was a very special moment for us all!! Bromo is well worth a visit, it is situated around many other volcanoes and mountains, it was one of the most spectacular things I have ever seen in my whole life, and I hope my pictures do it justice!!
Nothing much else to report, I am now in Jogyakarta - in a bog standard hotel room, with ants in the bathroom. lol. The showers here are all so cold, but happily - the weather is now brilliant.. no rain for a few days - so its just hot hot sunny sunshine :) :) touch wood it doesn't rain! lol.
Food: I forget to mention that whilst on Bali, we visisted a coffee plantation and sampled lots of the world famous Javan coffee and Balinese coffee. I was the only one in our tour group who decided to try the Luwuk coffee, as it is a rather expensive local delicacy!! It is made by feeding an animal , named a Luwuk coffee beans then waiting for them to poop - and grounding their poo, as well as cooking it - and several other stages of production to make Luwuk coffee. It was actually lovely, although essentially poop coffee. haha
Zaijian (chinese for Goodbye) xxxxxxxxxxx
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