Mo' Bromo

Taking a night bus dropped me off in Probolingo in the middle of the night. Urged by the lonely planet, I insisted that the driver take me to the bus terminal in order to avoid being ripped off at one of the travel agencies. The bus terminal however, was deserted and after asking minibus drivers about the service to Cemero Lawang, the town overlooking Bromo volcano, I was told that the public bus service would not begin until 7 am, which would leave me waiting for another four hours. Knowing that this might be a possibility, I was ready to wait it out and sleep on the street or inside one of the minibuses until finally, someone who spoke English well offered a solution. Within minutes, I was perched on a motorbike, on the way to one of the travel agencies. There, an agent would call me a "private" minibus that would drive me the hour to my destination. After waiting an hour, I was grateful to nap on the dusty minibus. To my surprise, I was awoken again and again not by the rising sun, but by the multiple stops made to pick up families, workers, and old women carrying vegetable baskets. This "private" minibus I paid four times the regular fare for, was over crowded with people sitting on benches in the isle and surprise surprise, a scam. But my patience impressed me as I calmly moved and reshuffled let people in and out. I arrived exhausted and was mildly impressed by fuming Bromo and in the background, the imposing Semeru volcano, the largest Indonesia looming at 3676 meters. After a quick glance, I buried myself under multiple blankets and took a short but refreshing nap.


The town of Cemero Lawang was deserted, like a wild wild west ghost town. I was surprised to later see the masses of tourist being herded like sheep for sunrise at the volcano viewing point. With ample time on my hands, I decided to walk to the volcano in the afternoon. It only took me one hour to descend and traverse the sandy volcanic valley leading up to moon crater Bromo. Once at the top, one must be as nimble as a goat to walk around the circumference of the volcano without falling into the steaming pit. Perhaps fortunately, I was discouraged from walking around the crater by the appearance of dark clouds. I was unable to escape in time and was drenched and muddy upon return. The next day I would be in one of the many jeeps filing up to the breathtaking but overcrowded panoramic view of three volcanoes being set afire by the rising sun.