Hello, hello! It's been more than a week since I came back from Surabaya and I'm really excited to share about my trip :D
Honestly, I had no idea what Surabaya was before this holiday. In fact, it was all pretty impromptu! It happened during exam period when Jetstar had a one-for-one return air ticket promotion and Hj researched on one of the places on offer and found the breathtaking Mt Bromo. Within a week, we booked the tickets and had about a month or so to plan... all whilst we were studying for our exams haha #yolo.
One of the scariest things about this whole trip was that we didn't know how legit the tour guides were. All the websites look pretty dubious and some charge exorbitant prices! I'm talking about $500 + per person and while reading the forums, some even paid close to $900! Kinda crazy, if you ask me. Anyway, we managed to find one with the price tag of around $260/pax with the itinerary that we wanted. But like i said, because we did everything via online (and also because it was much much cheaper than any other packages), everything seemed pretty shady to us.
Now that i think about it, this entire trip is the epitome of #yolo. From the booking of air tickets, to the booking of tour guides, to even our destination itself because it is apparently located on the same tectonic plate as the recent Sabah incident.
A lot of hesitation but it all eventually turned out fine! Everything was so surreal - from the sights to the tour guides themselves. Yup, let me assure you that the guides are two thumbs up. They had really good service, i kid you not. But I'm sure Hj being friendly to them helped as well :D The moment we landed and saw the guide, she turned on her megawatt smile, asked a lot of questions, and maintained a warm and inclusive atmosphere throughout.
So yes, lesson learnt: Always be nice to your tour guides.
If anyone is interested, the tour agency we engaged with was:
Sunrise Holiday
Jalan Majapahit 1K Malang, East Java – Indonesia
Phone : +62 341 359070
Fax : +62 341 324435
E-mail : sunrisemalang@gmail.com
Website : www.sunriseholiday.com
Our itinerary consists of:
Day 1: 9 hours ride from airport to a homestay near Mt Ijen
Day 2: Hiking up Mt Ijen (and to see blue flames) and roughly 6 hours ride to another inn near Mt Bromo
Day 3: Hiking up Mt Bromo and travelling back to the city (End of tour).
Day 4: Free and easy before flying back to +65
Day 1:
Singapore - Surabaya - Arabika Homestay (Sempol)
Saying goodbye to Singapore.
Extremely bored on the 9 hours car ride.
Lunch
Us, ready to conquer Mt Ijen at 1 am.
As mentioned, the first day was spent solely on travelling. We slept A LOT. A good thing because by the time we reached the homestay it was around 11pm and we only had 2 hours to sleep before our first hike.
Day 2:
Mt Ijen - Ancala Inn Hotel (Tosari)
So at 1 am we lugged ourselves onto the car, ate some hard boiled eggs that the homestay provided and waited in anticipation as the car drove up. The ride was pretty scary too because it was just jungle left and right and it was so pitch dark that when i turned to look out from the rear window, i could see nothing. Nothing! But as i looked up, millions and millions of stars were displayed right before my very eyes. That in itself, was already an amazing view because i've never seen so many stars in my entire life before.
So anyway, we reached and started to hike up the mountain. We saw a lot of shooting stars and the milky way as well and sang worship songs under the starry starry night.
Dawn had broke by the time we reached the top so we missed our chance to see the blue fire. Nevertheless, the beauty of Mt Ijen was well worth the hike up.
What greeted us when the sun rose.
The fumes are where all the sulpur (and blue flames) is.
Miners mining the sulphur.
Walking down these rocky edges was no joke i tell you.
We had to wear masks (weird object on Hj's head) because the fumes were bad for our lungs and also because it smelt like rotten eggs.
That shade of blue of the lake behind us though.
Trekking back down and seeing the view for the first time.
Even with a torchlight, we could barely see a few metres ahead when we trekked during the wee hours. Imagine our surprise when we first reached the top and the sun had began to rose and when we were retraced our steps back to the bottom of the mountain. We had no idea such beauty actually accompanied us in the darkness of the night.
Mt Ijen emitting smoke
We went back to the homestay to check out. Don't expect too much because the homestay only had very basic facilities (thankfully they have hot water!). However, the location makes up for it. I realised, when i came back in the morning, that Mt Ijen is the back drop of our homestay! Didn't see this the night we checked in because it was too dark.
Lunch.
Once again, our day was spent on the road travelling and sleeping. We reached Tosari, a small town near Mt Bromo, at around 6 in the evening but it was already quite dark. Walked down from our hotel and grabbed some cheap ($1!) local food at some road side stall.
Lady boss whom asked us for a photo after we finished our food.
Nasi Goreng. It had white chilli bits which burn tongues.
Mee Ayam
Day 3:
King Kong Hill - Mt Bromo - Surabaya City Centre
Woke up at 2am to take a jeep to King Kong Hill. It was about 8 - 12 degrees that morning and i was bundled up in 4 layers. We waited a few hours to watch the sunrise and then headed straight to Mt Bromo.
Makeshift stall selling tidbits to tourists who were waiting for the sun to rise
Our tour guide got his friend to set up a campfire upon knowing we were cold.
HoboQi and HoboJuen
Bad idea to take a selfie in the middle of the night. Look at our shocked faces due to the strong flash lol.
Albert, our tour guide, taught me how to tweak my camera settings to get a good photo of the starry night although the pictures really do no justice!
The moon
Milky Way
The stars are still right exactly where they are even if you do not see it.
I think what was amazing about the sun rise is that even before the sun peeks from the horizon, its light had already begun 'eating up' the stars. I know it is basic knowledge that stars are still in the sky during the day but to be able to witness its disappearance was amazing.
All trying to get a good spot.
The moon still holding its fort.
Oh yes, we bought matching beanie that says G. Bromo (G stands for Mt). It costs $2.50 each.
Mt Bromo (the shortest one) right behind me.
Took a REALLY bumpy ride down to Whispering Sand, aka the bottom of Mt Bromo. Its called Whispering Sand because you can really see the sand flying around due to mass movements by people and donkeys/horses. My spectacles got extremely dusty after this and my hair simply withered.
Oh, and its not actually sand. Its volcanic ash. Mt Bromo is active roughly every 5 years and i think it was the 4th year when we were there. #yolo.
Stepping on volcanic ash.
Our driver and his jeep.
3 guys trying to fix 1 jeep.
Masks provided by tour guide. We totally look like thugs with our beanies and masks.
This poor donkey. I say poor because...
He had to bear my weight lol.
You could opt for a walk instead of getting an animal ride.
See this mountain? I took it at near ground level but you'll be able to spot it in the bg of many of the following photos.
1. That mountain in the bg 2. That stairs up Mt Bromo 3. Our jeep was parked at the tents near the top right corner of this pic.
So to get up to the edge of the volcano, you'll need to climb up a human-infested stairway. Some people got so fed up that they started scaling the volcano itself. No joke. It was quite funny haha.
Lady behind judging us.
The crater of Mt Bromo.
Turn back and this is what you'll see.
Look at the stairs peeking from the bottom right.
Decided to do a photoshoot at the edge of the crater because... why not? #yolo.
Look the other way because at least it has a fence to prevent you from rolling down - thoughts in my head.
Drove back to the hotel, bathed, checked out and that was it for our tour. On our last day, we stayed at POP! Hotel which was such a bargain. Well it had to be cheap because it was a budget hotel. Nevertheless, i really liked it :D
Last day was mainly just shopping and eating and WiFi-ing now that we were in the city with more access to WiFi haha. Nothing much to talk about so i shall end with a funny photo and a travel vlog.
I think we were attempting to do a deodorant ad hahaha.
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