Sumatra Highlands

Yesterday, Joost convinced me of placing another story, and today I had some time and I needed to empty my camera, so here it is:

Today, I climbed about the lowest peak of Sumatra with 2000m (starting in Berastagi at 1000m), but after the last time I wrote, I climbed the huge Gunung Agung of Bali, which is about 3100m (although we did not reach the real summit since it was on the other side of the vulcano, so we came till almost 3000m, starting at 900m). To climb it, transport came at midnight. We drove two hours with a very friendly and english speaking driver. Then we had a small breakfast and I went climbing, together with my guide Klotok. It was a very hard climb (2000m in 3.5hrs in the dark with only 3hrs of sleep...), but then we saw the sunrise from the top and this was really worth it! We (me and about 20 other tourists and guides) felt like being on top of the world, because we were above the clouds. And you could see the highest vulcano peaks of Java. On our way up Klotok had to stop for a pray for our safety, which was very interesting. It was very cold at the summit, so I wrapped myselve in a matress to sit on and a rain trousers... On the top, the batteries of my camera were empty, so I have more analogue pics than digital ones... We went down in about 2.5 hrs and then had to drive back again. Then I was broken and fell asleep. At the summit of Gunung Agung at about 5.30 in the morning (still lauching..)

That night, I went out for dinner with my neighbours Vincent and Evita which was very nice. We ate a real German dinner with Bratwurst!

Mother and kid monkey in Ubud.

After another day of relaxing, visit Ubud's Monkey Forest (with free but well fed monkeys) and picking up the last nice souvenirs (very nice carved wood!), I took the plane to Jakarta and to Medan-Sumatra. Although, I wanted to, but I had two hours delay in Jakarta. That's why when I arrived, I stayed for the night in Medan, which is another poor 2 million people city, of which I had actually seen enough on Java. That night I also lost my digital camera (and found it again, thanks to the barkeepers of the cafe I had been eating!) and could not sleep because of street and hostel noice. So it was time to leave Medan for Berastagi. One funny thing about Medan: there are not many tourists coming, because I felt like being game: everybody lauched at me and shouted "hello mister!". Only the taxi- and becakdrivers are not that greedy of a ride like in the Java cities and Bali, and that's nice. Everything stinks after exhaust smoke in Medan, even the Becaks are motorised here... And Medan street kids: first they ask for a pen or a candy, then for money, but then a picture is ok as well...

To Berastagi I came by public transport: a van that was made for 14 people but we were in it with 20, so that was quite cosy on a 2hr ride... Berastagi is a country town in Karo Highlands which is famous for its fruit production. So there are at least three markets, also with dead fish laying around in 30 degrees... I'm in a very nice hostel on a hill called Sunrise View, a nice place to stay. I had a nice dinner in such a stall along the street which looked pretty ok, and there was the owner of my hostel with his friends as well, so we had a nice time.
Yesterday I drove motorbike to some ancient places (the Dutch city of Zundert appeared to be partner city of Lingga, so I was welcomed in Dutch and had to write my name in the guestbook with a Gemeente Zundert-pen). It's sad to see that the ancient houses are in bad state and that the Indonesian government has (or gives) no money to restore them. I hope Zundert can do something... The King's house in Lingga, with six families living in it (all with their own stove), but the thatched roof is in very bad condition.

And today I climbed this mountain, at the summit crater there was sulfur smoke coming out with high pressure (it really made noise like a train passing) and I had great views. After hiking down along a very narrow path with bad concrete stairs with all the jungle sounds around me, I had a great day! We drove back in a van that was filled with baskets with grass and some people, so again it was a cosy ride. On the Gunung Sikayan, there's vulcanic smoke and deep green forest with nice insects and real tropical forest sounds!

Berastagi was very relaxing! Tomorrow I will travel on to Lake Toba, where I will meet Anton (from forestry school) and his friend Kirsten and Emma whom I met in the plane to Indonesia, this will be a very nice reunion. And after that, I will spend the last four days trekking through the jungle with a guide in the Gunung Leuser National Park, to which I'm really looking forward! I think I will post my last post from NL again.

Bye! Jeroen

P.S. Sorry for the bad typing but this is an ancient keyboard of which the letters are almost vanished...