221. KARAWACI and CIWIDEY WEST JAVA

 

Kawah Puteh in Ciwidey, a small village outside Bandung.

Video, courtesy of Jimmy Ooi of ISE Travel...

Literally, the name means White Crater. Depending on the sky and perhaps the sulphur content, the water can be turquoise, grey, greenish blue. 

No matter the colour, it's beautiful. I came for this, having been to Bandung twice before, I had missed this crater lake. To be able to come so very close to a volcanic crater and touching its acidic water is a priceless experience. This is one caldera where I walked down towards its lake and across it.

 

All the craters I've looked at were all in Indonesia and I had to look down at them from a height. I had to climb a good number of steps to the top of the volcano in the Flores Island. With Ijen Crater in East Java, the climb to the top was sandy and stony, no steps. 

Lake Toba in Sumatra is a very large caldera and I took a ferry across. Kawah Puteh and Ijen Crater are made more spectacular by the sulphur fumes and its yellowish powder been blown around, it's surreal...and deeply spiritual...

I enjoy Indonesia for her raw primeval beauty. Active volcanos spewing smoke, thermal hot springs with equally hot steam, the occasional tremors, earth shattering earthquakes, giant tsunamis, fiery molten lava - Mother Earth is almost angry. It's like watching Creation at the beginning of Time. Best of all, they have 'dinosaurs' on the Komodo islands...

What looks like a beach tinged with yellowish sulphur is mud - step onto that you may sink into it like quicksand!

After 3 years of Covid controls, we were the first tour group to land in Bandung. We were a small group, the locals were actually happy to have us and welcomed us warmly. In such large countries, local tourism have somewhat flourished but just on a small scale. The foreign visitors are the ones who contribute significantly to their economy and the survival of businesses and jobs...

The places we stopped at had entry charges which wasn't a small sum particularly Kawah Puteh...

At most stops we were the only foreign group and had the place to ourselves. 

Lembang floating market...

They take trouble to do up the buns

Petrified wood each a work of art by Mother over aeons

Glamping resort by a man-made lake Situ Patenggang, with a boat restaurant - it's a cool and misty area...locals were having lunch, that's a good sign. Most restos had a fair share of local diners.

Toilet humour...

These are fire extinguishers - the artwork add a touch of whimsy

Farmer's daughter. At this small strawberry farm, the young owner was happy with our purchases of fruits and juice. I'm glad we played our part at most places as they are chiefly smallholders and entrepreneurs, market stalls...

Oh deer - I'm out of carrots!