Travel stories from Indonesia

One of the "must do's" in Ubud, Bali is hike to the highest volcano - Mount Batur - for sunrise and for stunning 360 panoramic views of Ubud. It was only after I booked my tickets that the agent lady thought it would be useful for me to know that we leave for the hike at 2am! Arrrgh! But I was so excited, I couldn't sleep. Being an avid hiker, this was something I was looking forward to. 2am. I get in the minivan taking myself and other eager tourists to the base of the volcano. We got given extra sugary egg coffee before our climb along with snacks and a torch and off we went. The first half of the hike was pretty standard. Pitch black, lots of torch lights and hushed chatter. There were approximately 300 people climbing so we made a chain which looked pretty cool in the dark. As we hiked further up, the ground turned into thousands of pieces of volcanic rock and it became difficult as we trudged on up. Nearly on the verge of a heart attack, we finally reach the top and WOW! The sunrise and views were definitely worth it! After watching the sunrise and having my photo bombed 10 times, we walked around the volcano. It was a running joke that the volcano was near to erupting due to the amount of smoke seeping out from the base. Some people even cooked their eggs and roasted their bananas! But no-one seemed to be worried. The smoke was so intense, it made spirals in the sky and covered some views with a thin layer of fog. We made it back down with no problems and I added that experience to my travel achievement list. Only two weeks later, warnings came flooding in from Bali reporting of a potential eruption. 1 day later, Mount Batur erupted. I remember watching that news thanking my lucky stars that I didn't go on my volcano hiking trip 2 weeks later like I planned to...

It was 4 am. I got up from the creaky bed and dragged up Alison and Charlotte. We were ready to head to Borobudur and experienced it's famous sunrise view.

As we walked to the temple, we could hear chanting being broadcast in the compound. It sounded a bit eerie but yet strangely comforting to hear this in the darkness. It also reminded me of the similar chant we heard during our sunset visit to Pura Tanah Lot at Bali.

There was already a crowd when we reached the top. The sun was supposedly to raise from the east at the direction of Mount Merapi. After settling Alison and Charlotte on a good place beside a stupa, I decided to take a short walk round to savor the morning scene.

As most of the people were focusing to see the impending sunrise at the eastern end, the rest of the temple premise was almost empty. The seemingly endless stupas overlooked the surrounding environment. Some might not know that a mediating Buddha statue resided in each and every of the stupas.

Few of the stupas have actually been "un-covered" to reveal the Buddhas within. There was a shroud of mist settling above the forest surrounding the temple, adding to the already serene atmosphere of the temple.

There was a commotion when the golden rays started to appear behind the still smoking Mount Merapi. I could finally comprehend why the sunrise view at Borobudur was considered one of the twenty-seven places to see before you die.

The yellow rays filtered through the still active volcano and cast upon those on the top of Borobudur. If "Enlightenment" has another meaning, it might actually refer to this moment of time. The scene was stunningly beholding. Although the sun was covered by the cloudy sky, it did not mar the beautiful moment.

There was a sense of achievement when we could finally stand upon the temple and witnessed the famous sunrise. Borodudur did not fail my expectation. It shall also meet yours if you wish to visit it someday.