Trekking in East Java: Mount Bromo

Sunrise view of Mount Bromo: Sunrise on the left and Mt. Bromo on the right

Dates of Travel: 

02-03 April 2015

Itinerary: 

02 April - Surabaya to Mt. Bromo

03 April - Climb Mt. Bromo & travel to Kawah Ijen

04 April - Climb Kawah Ijen & travel to Bali

05 April - Bali

06 April - Bali

07 April - Bali to Singapore

Rough estimate for the entire trip:

Not inclusive of food and shopping

--------------------------------------

I would also like to give a shout-out to my friend, Kenneth, for taking and providing me with wonderful shots during our trip! All those photos you see that are done professionally and waaaaay above average shots were beautifully taken by him. Please do go to his Instagram or website and check out his photos!

--------------------------------------

Taking advantage of the Good Friday/Easter Sunday long weekend, my friends and I headed to East Java for a mini hiking expedition. Considering that among us, two of the guys in our group has been to Mount Everest base camp, Mt. Rinjani, African mountains, etc. This is nothing but child's play to them. Of course you need some level of fitness or you'll be left huffing and puffing behind.

I booked the tour from Singapore and for Rp1,080,625 (Approx. S$112) per person, the entire tour includes the transfer from Surabaya Airport - Mt. Bromo - Kawah Ijen - Ferry across Java Strait - Villa in Bali. It also includes a guide to bring us up and down both volcanoes, jeep for Mt. Bromo and water for each day.

I booked with the agency, Wisata Alam Tours and had to pay a deposit of 20% to secure the tour. That is understandable, however the tour agency insisted that I had to pay the 4.5% handling fee charged by Paypal. Although it was not a lot, the agency inflated the exchange rate to quite a ridiculous amount. After clarifying, the agency relented and gave me a proper and acceptable exchange rate.

Things that were NOT included were: entrance tickets for both volcanoes, lunch & dinner during the trip, horse riding at Mt. Bromo & accommodation.

As for lodging, I booked all accommodations on my own as the price quoted by the agency was rather ridiculous. We stayed at Cafe Lava Hostel at Mt. Bromo & Arabica Homestay at Kawah Ijen.

If you're interested to hike up Mt. Bromo or Kawah Ijen, you can contact my guide, Miko, directly. He will be able to arrange something similar but at a lower cost. He is also a fabulous guide with a wealth of knowledge and even helped me massage my leg when I missed a footing and twisted my ankle.
Tel: +62 81336162411
Email: javatourholidays@gmail.com
Website: http://javatourholidays.blogspot.com

--------------------------------------

We were picked up at Surabaya airport by Miko and loaded into a mini van where we traveled about 3 hours to the base camp of Mt. Bromo. On the way up the mountain, we stopped for a photo session and next to our van was this guy who was selling really awesome mie bakso (meatball noodles)!

mie bakso

It cost us only Rp8,000. (S$0.80) and it comes with two baksos, one bakso with egg inside, a few fried tofu and fried noodles wrapped in beancurd skin.

mie wrapped in beancurd skin

It was a really hearty dish with the view and cool wind blowing. At first we bought one bowl, and then a second bowl, and we ended up with five bowls I think.

enjoying the view while eating bakso

Cafe Lava Hostel

Cafe Lava Hostel

Address: Cemorolawang Sukapura Probolinggo, East Java, Indonesia
Tel: +62 335 541020
Fax: +62 335 541147
Email: cafelavarsvn@gmail.com

Room: Economy Room - shared bathroom with hot shower
Price: Rp150,000 per room - double sharing

Despite the room being small, there was a beautiful garden outside our rooms and benches for us to chill. The weather was nice and sunny and the wind was cool! We had a shared toilet of two cubicles with intermittent hot water. At night, it was such a struggle to shower with the intermittent hot water and I had to soap my entire body and pray the hot water lasts enough to rinse all the suds away.

Silient Hill

The photo above was taken opposite Cafe Lava Hostel on an empty field when the fog rolled in. It looks like the making of a horror film. Cafe Lava Hostel is also situated at the entrance of the road leading to the sand sea and Mt. Bromo. So we would have a good view if the fog didn't come in.

Local trying to sell us beanies

Also, outside Cafe Lava will be some locals trying to sell you handmade beanies. They'll try to charge you Rp30,000 for each hat/beanie, however, if you walk further down the road into the convenience stores/shops, they're only selling the beanies at Rp10,000! We all purchased one beanie for ourselves and it was a good cover for you hair from the sand. Sadly, it only occurred to me to take our my beanie when it was already too late.

Catching the Sunrise at Mount Penanjakan

Elevation: 2,770 m
Temperature: 5-8 Degree Celsius
Things to bring: Proper shoes (running shoes will do), jackets (I layered with heatech for both top and bottom, dry-fit shirt, sweater & a windbreaker), gloves (if you're really afraid of the cold), headlamps and a camera!!

Catching the sunrise 

We woke up at 2.45am and left about 3.30am from the hostel just to catch this sunrise view on Mount Penanjakan! We actually had to take a jeep and travel under the blanket of darkness across a portion of the sand sea where the jeep will bring us 3/4 of the way up to catch the sunrise. Where the jeep can no longer go, we alighted a traveled by foot with hasten steps in the hopes of getting a good view.

Catching the sunrise!

Instead of going the usual view point, Miko brought us to another view point which is slightly lower, as there's too many tourists (like us) trying to get a glimpse of the sunrise! Although it may be lower, there's lesser people and we're thankful for that. Also, the fog rolled in and totally covered the upper view point. About 30 mins later, we could see the sun rays breaking the horizon and the riot of colours lighting up the sky. It was worth however early we woke up and however tired we were.

At the viewpoint, there were locals selling coffee, tea and even Pop Mie (cup noodles) which my hungry monkey friends quickly gobbled up.

Sunrise

We followed a track out from the view point where we could get a better glimpse of Mt. Bromo. Miko said that he has brought many tours here and each time is different. Even he is awed.

Mt. Bromo in the background!

Sunrise view of Mt. Bromo

After spending lots of time taking photos and admiring the view, we were on our way back down to the jeep to cross the sand sea.

4WD Jeep

Inside the jeep!

 We had to take the jeep down Mt. Penanjakan and cross a part of the sea sand. Of course, we stopped for photos! It was much warmer now that the sun had risen, but the sand was flying everywhere! Into my eyes, my mouth, and even my ears!

It's soooo sandy!

Piling onto the jeep!

Jumpshots!

Mt Bromo at the back!

Mount Bromo

Elevation: 2,329 m
Last eruption: January 28, 2011
Temperature: 15-20 Degree Celsius (will be quite hot when the sun shines on you)
Things to bring: Scarf/Mask, beanie/hat (if you're afraid of sand getting in your hair and ears), proper shoes (running shoes will do), sunglasses, windbreaker at least, plenty of water.

Crossing the sand sea

Riders of Bromo!

 To get to Mt. Bromo, you have to walk through the sand sea. Basically, it's just a patch of sand and you have to walk about 10 mins to the base of Mt. Bromo itself. Being lazy me, I opted for the horse to bring me across instead. Standard rates would be about Rp50,000 per way.Once the horse owners bring you to the base of the stairs, they'll ask you if you want to go back down on the horse, if yes, they'll wait for you, if not, they'll head back to the jeeps and try to get new customers.

It was a good call to take the horse because right at the base, there's this part where it's really steep with holes and valleys. I may not have made it if I traveled on foot.

very steep hill!

The horse will bring you right to the bottom of the steps where you'll have to ascend on your own. It's pretty easy considering its just a flight of stairs about 8-10 stories high. Also, there'll be human traffic so the climb although tedious and slippery (from the sand), it's actually pretty OK as there's a lot of stops along the way.

Stairs leading up to the crater

 It really is quite touristy as there's a ton of people and the locals actually built stairs to bring you UP to the crater rim.

Crater of Mt. Bromo

 The path of the crater is narrow and rocky, you really have to watch your step or you'll either roll down the hill or into the crater. Mt. Bromo is still an active volcano and you can see steam/smoke rising from the depths of the crater. The culture of the East Javanese people forbids them to speak anything ill of the volcano/natural disasters. So when you're there, please do not say something like Mt. Bromo might errupt.

Crater Rim on Mt. Bromo

At the bottom of the stairs, there are plently of tents and locals selling coffee, tea, Pop Mie, and even the really awesome (Instant Noodle) Indo Mie Goreng (Rp10,000)!! There were locals selling bouquets of flowers as offerings to the volcano Gods. We bought two for Rp40,000, but I felt that it could have been cheaper if G was there. My bargaining skills are not as fantastic as his.

throwing the flowers in and making a wish

I look really gleeful as I threw my flowers into the crater and made my wish. From here, we walked back down the stairs, climbed onto our horse for the 10 min ride to the jeep and from the parking lot, it was a 10 mins jeep ride to our hostel. We even had time to slowly pack up, shower and even went for lunch!

-------------------------------------------

Check out my other post on Kawah Ijen!

Or what we did & where we stayed in Bali!

Discovering South Korea: Jeju Part 1

Date of Travel: 20-23 May 2013

We traveled to Jeju for a 4 days 3 nights trip, after Busan. We arrived on the evening of 20th May and left for Seoul on the afternoon on 23rd May. So technically, we only had 2 full days in Jeju. I will split the post into two parts, as I'm afraid it might get too long!

Click the link if you want my planned itinerary. Or if you're interested to know my estimated costs. Remember, we did not follow the exact route planned as the trip should be open to new ideas and developments!

Air Busan

Air Busan

I don't normally do reviews or posts about airlines, but Air Busan deserves special mention. Their boarding time is 15 mins before take off (or rather before the planes taxis to take off), and gates closes 5 mins before take off. I don't know if they're just really efficient in getting everyone on board in 15 mins or Koreans are generally on time which results a timely take off. I was expecting some delays of about 15-20 mins but no! The plane actually started taxi-ing on time!

We were really tired, so we fell asleep shortly. However, we were awoken by a loud announcement and a lot of excitement among the passengers. Obviously, we could not understand anything, but after looking around, we realized the stewardess were conducting a lucky draw! The boy beside me won Starbucks vouchers.

Also, Air Busan's magazine on the plane features several attractions around South Korea. And if you present your boarding pass at the counter of those attractions, you get discounts off your entrance fees! Like we had 10% discount off our entrance tickets to Teddy Bear Museum.

Did I mention that they also allow check in luggage of up to 15kg? Actually, most of the budget/domestic airlines in Korea provide this service.

KT Kumho

KT Kumho

So, we rented a car in Jeju as it would be more convenient to get around the island. I've heard horror stories about how people were waiting for a bus for about 30-45 mins in the hot sun, so how the distance of the bus stops to the attractions were so far, they took a cab in, and when they couldn't get out to the main road, they stopped a car to beg them to give a lift out to the main road.

No, I did not want that to happen to us. Since there are 4 of us, and all four has driving license, why not rent a car!!!

Hyundai Sonata

After doing some research and reading lots of reviews, I decided to choose KT Kumho because it's affordable to rent from them! The trick is to create an online account with them, and you're able to get huge discounts as a member (same goes for certain Korean domestic airlines too). For mine, I got up to 75% discount off the original price. After adding full immunity (in case of accidents or scratches), I only paid about 151,000 Won for 4 days 3 nights! You divide it by four, and you have a budgeted transportation! 

Remember to email them in advance for confirmation and also to tell them that you need an English GPS/Navigation. According to my Korean Colleague, who helped me to call them up, it's based on first come first serve basis. Also, keep the telephone numbers of the attractions you want to do, so that you could just key in the telephone number into the navigation, and it will show you the route. Even though the navigation is in English, the addresses are still in Korea, so it may prove to be a challenge.

We rented a Hyundai Sonata. It's so damn spacious, and the boot size is so huge, you can fit 3 persons inside! Definitely enough space for all our luggage! 

Rainbow in Jeju

Rainbow in Jeju Hostel

Address: 1289-20, ido 1-dong, Jeju City, Jeju Island

제주시 이도1동 1289-20번지 (상록회관 )

Tel: +82 70-7635-0075

Website: http://www.rainbowjeju.com/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/rainbowinjeju

We stayed quite near the airport, about 10-15 mins away, which was good for us, as we didn't have to drive very far when we had to send our friends to the airport (they had an earlier flight to Seoul, than us) or to return the car. 

Even with the navigation, it was initially quite difficult to find the hostel, as the navigation could not register the telephone number the hostel provided. So we rang them up to ask them for the address. Eventually, we manage to find our way there! 

I really like this hostel. It is very cozy and homely, and every morning, you're to make your own breakfast. They will put eggs, bread and other spreads out, and if you want them, you have to cook it yourself. 

We took the 4 person dorm with en-suite and they had 2 double-decker beds for us. What I found really impressive was that they had curtains around your bed and a night reading light attached to your bed rail, so you could continue doing your things without disturbing anyone else! & they had free laundry & wifi too!

Small Little Korean Shop

Ramyeon

So, we arrived at the hostel at almost 9pm. We were all starving and craving for some good Korean... ANYTHING! We were soooo hungry, we walked around the hostel's vicinity, but all the small little shops and restaurants were closed! We walked and got more depressed, and we finally found this hole in the wall. I think the Ajuma has closed for the day, but she was just watching TV. We went in and asked if she could cook us something, anything! She agreed after we asked for just Ramyeon. It was one of the best Ramyeon I ever had, because we were so hungry!!

THE NEXT DAY...

U-do Island

We wanted to go visit some attractions around the South of Jeju, but after talking to a guy at the hostel, he really recommended going to U-do Island for the view, scenery and all the fun!

We drove to Seongsan Harbour (found it's telephone number in the tourist map and routed our way there!) and took a ferry to U-do island.

Ferry to U-do Island!

It will cost 11,000 Won for a car and 4,000 Won per person to get on the ferry. We had to reverse our car onto the ferry, and it took Sock a lot of mad skills and bravery.

U-do Island Scenery!

 The roads in U-do Island are very small and narrow, it's really quite scary when you have BUSES coming in the opposite direction. In the end, we just parked our car aside and rented an ATV for 20,000 Won for 2 hours!

ATV!

 The ATV could go quite fast! It was such a hot and sunny day, but because of the cool weather and wind, we all got a little sun burned and we didn't even realized it.

Haenyo Divers

After riding the ATV along the coastal route, we saw a group of Haenyo Divers (literally meaning 'Sea Women'. It's a dying trade and most of the divers are in their 50s and older!

Horse Riding

 After returning the ATV, we drove up to climb the hill. I forgot what the name if the hill/mountain is called, but I've heard that it provides a better view as compared to Sunrise Peak! At the foot of the hill, you're able to ride horses as well! We paid 10,000 Won for about 5-8 mins. The horses started to canter and I thought I was going to fall off the horse!

Beautiful view!

The hill/mountain was very steep and they placed rubber mats and strips to aid climbers up the hill. Without those rubber strips, I would have slipped and rolled down the hill in record time!

We left U-do Island at about 3pm and took the 3.30pm ferry back to Jeju!

Trick Art Museum

Trick Art Museum

We had 10% discount because we presented our Air Busan boarding pass. We paid about 7,000 Won for each person. There's nothing much to this place, just visually exciting with the different angles and dimensions make the painting look like it's 3D. We pretty much finished the place in about 15-20 mins.

Mangungul Lava Tube Cave

Lava Tubes

Address: 3341-3, Gimnyeong-ri, Gujwa-eup, Jeju-si, Jeju-do

제주 제주시 구좌읍 김령리 3341-3

Tel: +82-64-783-4818

Website: http://www.visitkorea.or.kr/enu/SI/SI_EN_3_1_1_1.jsp?cid=264236

Opening Hours: 9am – 6pm

Admission: W2, 000

Outside the cave, the weather and temperature is nice and warm, but once you start to descend the steps into the cave, the temperature starts to drop drastically. In the heart of the cave, the temperature was 13 Degrees Celsius! So, please remember to bring a light jacket/windbreaker along with you. There's no wind inside the cave, so it was bearable for Kenneth who refused to bring any jacket along with him! Also, you have to wear proper shoes as there's water puddles throughout the whole 1km route into the cave and it may be slippery. Cold water will sometimes drip on you too from the roof of the cave.

Many centuries (?) ago, this cave was where lava used to flow through to the surface. Throughout the cave, there are many signages and panels educating you on how the cave was formed, how the lava was so hot, the roof (made from natural rocks) started to melt and when it cooled, resulting in spikes on the roof. The only way in, is the only way out, so you walk 1km into the cave, and at the end, there's a lava rock pillar, take photos, and then make a U-turn and walk 1km back out.

Black Pork Street

Black Pork Street

The guy at the hostel recommended this street when we asked him where can we find awesome black pork Korean BBQ! As usual at a Korean BBQ, small dishes of Kimchi, Radish, and other preserved veges were given to us. If I am not wrong, we ordered the set menu for 4 persons which cost us 78,000 Won. In addition, we ordered steamed egg and seafood soup as well. Total, we paid about 100,000 Won for 4 people. 

The pork they gave us were big pieces! Do not be alarmed as you're supposed to cut it up to small pieces and use the lettuce leaves they provide to wrap it up with a bit of Kimchi or other preserved vegetables and eat the whole thing! It was so awesome and I ate a lot, it gave me a sore throat the next day.

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Check out my posts to other parts of South Korea here:

• Busan

• Jeju Part 2 

• Seoul Part 1

• Seoul Part 2