Mount semeru

The view of Mount Semeru is best enjoyed from the vista point at Gunung Penanjakan. To get here, you can hire a jeep from the village of Tosari for about Rp275.000

($30) per car. The journey takes about 1 hour
of climbing along narrow bends and sharp switchbacks.

Journey usually commences between 03.00 to 03.30 hrs, just in time to catch the sunrise view at Penanjakan at around 05.00 hrs.

For those interested to climbing Mount Semeru, the hike starts at the village of Ranupane. If you depart from Malang, you can take the local bus to Tumpang, from which you can hire a 4WD (jeep) to Ranupane across the Sea of Sands. If you are from Pasuruan or Probolinggo, you can hire a regular taxi van that passes Sukapura, Ngadisari and arrives at Cemoro Lawang, from which a rented 4WD will bring you to Jemplang on Semeru's southern rim, and eventually to Ranupane.

DESCRIPTION:
The accolade of being the highest mountain on Java Island definitely goes to Mount Semeru. At 3,676m, this stratovolcano is also known as "Gunung Mahameru" (the Great Mountain) due to its supreme attributes. In fact, Mahameru actually refers to the Hindu god of Siwa in local dialects. Siwa the Destroyer (Dewa Pemusnah) is the most powerful one, hence, it comes to no surprise that Mount Semeru is named after this forceful deity.

The most unique attribute of Mount Semeru is that it spews out a smoky cloud of steam, black ashes and stones every 20-30 minutes. If you are viewing the mountain from Penanjakan's vista point, you can almost be guaranteed of seeing the mini eruption, unless if you are really unlucky should the mountain decides to catch a breath, so-to-speak.

The first glimpse of its eruption from the vista point was greeted by oohs and aahs from the tourists who trudged the bitterly cold morning to view this great mountain. Soon enough, clicking sounds of digital cameras filled the air. Nobody wanted to miss the show.

Mount Semeru steep sides rise abruptly from the southern coastal plain on Java Island, although one could not see it from Penanjakan. Climbing the mountain isn't for everyone but it can be done. In fact, my driver told about a group of French climbers who frequent the majestic peak during the dry season of April to October.

Sea of sand

LOCATION:

Part of the sunrise tour by using the 4WD jeep (Rp275.000) hired from Bromo Cottages Hotel in Tosari shall pass through the Sea of Sands after sunrise viewing at Gunung Penanjakan.
DESCRIPTION:The Sea of Sands (Lautan Pasir) forms the floor of the massive Tengger Caldera. Its statistic is astounding - the sandy region measures close to 10 kilometres in diameter. Eruptions from the surrounding mountains spewing tonnes of volcanic rock which eventually became fine black sands as we see it today.

Officially, there are 5 volcanoes inside the caldera of black sands, although we mostly are familiar with only 2 or 3 of them. Ironically, Mount Semeru, the highest peak in the island of Java is not located within the Sea of Sands. Rather, this majestically active volcano actually rises on its own. The five volcanoes recorded in the park are: Mt Bromo (2,392m), Mt Batok (2,470m), Mt Kursi (2,581m), Mt Watangan (2,661m) and Widodaren (2,650m).
It is not an overstatement to say that being in the Sea of Sands is like being transported into a different unearthly world. The barren landscape, lacking any significant amount of vegetation, along with the volcanic craters, have created this so-called moonscape condition. The journey from Penanjakan passes through lush montane forest with steep cliffs and walls, before such ubiquitous view suddenly being transformed into an alien scenery for most of us.

Anyway, on closer inspection, the Sea of Sands does have some vegetation on it, if not much. Parts of it are blanketed by layers of grass, creating a savannah-like atmosphere that ends at the point where the rocky cliffs rise abruptly above the floor. These majestic cliffs form the part which consists of Mount Penanjakan that you probably have visited earlier to view the sunrise.

MY VERDICT:

Interesting and out-of-this-world experience to be on the Sea of Sands. Don't miss it.

BATIK PAINTING

Batik painting studios can be found throughout the city of Yogyakarta, normally combined with adjoining gift shops that sell the finished batik products such as shirts, sarongs and framed cloths.

I visited two different batik painting studios along Jalan Sido Mukti near the entrance to the Sultan's Palace in Yogyakarta.

DESCRIPTION:

Batik painting has an aesthetic quality printed all over it. This traditional method of making decorative cloths has reigned in Indonesia and Malaysia for centuries. Witnessing the process of painting a piece of cloth into an exquisite art that has won the world over is something that you should do when visiting this historical city.

Batik painting is very artistic, crafty and personalised. By that, I mean batik is mostly hand-painted and is not mass-produced in a factory far, far away (read: Nike shirts). Although, in parts of Malaysia, I do know about the need to utilise blocks of batik prints for the mass market. While there isn't anything particularly wrong with such fact, the aesthetic quality between painted and printed batik should differ greatly, in term of appearance and pricing.

In Yogyakarta, one could witness the painting process up close. Liquid hot wax will be poured into a pencil-like equipment called canting or tjanting (pronounced like "chanting"). The tjanting is then used to draw shapes and motifs on a piece of empty cloth, normally white in colour, on which the hot wax will take form into the intended hand movement. Normally, the motifs used on the drawing are derived from natural objects such as plants, leaves, birds, etc.

After a while, the wax will solidify into a subtle border, in which colourful inks will be poured in. The wax will ensure that the inks will stay within the enclosure to get the intended effect of the original drawing. After the inks dry, the piece of cloth will be dipped into boiling water to remove the wax. As a result, you will get the shapes and motifs of the original drawing transformed into the now ready-to-use batik cloth.

If wearing such delicate arts as your beach-party sarongs or formal dinner shirts is not your cup of tea, worry not. There are also framed batik paintings available through the city. These frames can easily be hung on your walls with batik drawing of your choice.

MY VERDICT:Something that you need to experience while in Yogyakarta. Just be wary of unscrupulous tourist guides who may try to solicit you to purchase at selected gift shops for personal commission.