This trip was in last November 2012
Thanks to AirAsia again we got quite a bargain for round trip to Surabaya together with my family minus my eldest daughter as the timing of her uni break is not the same...tough luck dear. No worries, we try to fit you in another trip ya. At the same time this trip is to release some stress and tension of my missus as she will be having a major operation after this trip..(i'll update on this later...maybe)
here are some highlights of our trip...
Alrite then...lets start our story mori
On board AirAsia in the morning. Got help from my brother to sent us to the LCCT. Thanks bro...we will buy a magnet fridge item for you later hehehe...
excited??? sleepy???
selamat datang to Surabaya bapak bapak dan ibu ibu
As we don't fancy a tour guided holiday, we arrange our own transport, hotel, excursions etc all by ourselves and depending on the situations. So our first priority is to decide if we want to take the bus or taxi to Bromo (our first destination). Target destination is approx 2 hours by taxi or 3.5 hours by bus. After a short discussion, we opt for a chartered taxi to Bromo as we can stop where ever or anytime...Hired KAHA taxi service with quite reasonable rate
As usual the traffic is heavy and is a usual sights in all parts of Indonesia compounded by a demonstration by workers requesting for pay rise....huhu
Next - our unscheduled stop to Kampung Lumpur Lapindo. This village was submerged by unexplained mud overflow up to almost 10 storey high. Almost 12 villages were submerged and its mud is still flowing until today. The weather is terribly warm and according to our taxi driver this area receive little or no rain for the longest period.....
Need to climb up the banks to see the view plus need to pay an entrance fee by the locals. You need to negotiate with the villages to get the best rate. These entrance fees are unregulated and the ladder to the top is flimsy and unsecured made from bamboo. Everything is at your own risk bro...
View of our cab from the top
This is the sight of the submerged village..as far as the eyes can see.. so tragic
close up
Inspecting the soil...... an unqualified geologist at your service hehehe
The villages also sells videos of the place and its history but we decline as its all available in youtube....(...kedekut pun ada but whats the point of buying kan?)
We exited the place and after about 1.5hours drive we stop for lunch at this place
'Rawon' according to the taxi driver means beef in Java and Rawon Nguling is well know dishes in this part of Surabaya. Let's try some shall we...yum yum...not bad I must say but my kids don't fancy it much. (Tapi dah lapar sangat belasah jer la)
After filling our tummies, we head straight to our hotel. Well we found out that the hotel is not excatly in Bromo as we had expected. Its in the town of Probolinggo. Another 1.5 hours drive to Bromo to go.
Hotel Lava...cosy and affordable
A check from internet review from some tourist is that the place is a bit noisy and they are unable to sleep. Well what we found out was that this hotel is located nearby a mosque. And at times there will be constant Quran recitals and Azan calling for Muslims for prayers. So for those not used to it or need to have some peace and quite sleep than this place is not for you bro
After check-in, we made arrangement with the hotel staff for tomorrow's trip to Bromo. The van will pick us up at 4am...yes 4am in order for us to catch the sunrise. They inform us to prepare for some warm clothing as the weather might be cold in the morning...no worries. We came well prepared hehe......we brought along extra sweaters, gloves...
After a short dinner in a nearby stalls we head back for a short nap and will start our journey tomorrow....gud night and see you in my next edition
chow chin chow...adios amigos berambus for now
menariks bro - zul74
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