Road Trip: Mt. Merapi Volcano and Losari Coffee Plantation
Every day we would load up in the van and the driver would take us out of Jogja. Indonesia is very densely populated and modern . . . along the main highways. Leave the highway a few miles and you go back a hundred years to Old Javanese Culture.
Mt. Merapi dominates the countryside around Jogja
We drove to a public viewing area about half way up Mt. Merapi.
The day we went to a coffee plantation the sky was a bit threatening. It cleared up, then rained in the afternoon.
Our driver suggested a traditional Indonesian buffet in a small town on the way to the plantation. The selection was huge, tasty . . . but greasy.
Mt. Merapi, the volcano that towers over Jogja erupted only a year ago (11/2010). All the rivers we crossed were full of volcanic debris and the remnants of pyroclastic flows. This small riverside village was nearly buried.
We came across this woman who said that she was digging out her home after it was inundated with ash and volcanic debris.
Not more than 100 meters away from the woman digging out her home was another woman selling DVDs of the Mt. Merapi eruption!
We arrived at the beautiful Indonesian-style Losari Coffee Plantation just before it rained.
Indonesian style is very colorful and seems to have a strong Chinese influence. Coffee plantation.
The plantation was still decorated for Christmas . . .
. . . with some very creative ideas about what passes for a Christmas tree.
Reflections of a bygone era.
We had cups of coffee grown at the very plantation and delicious cakes before taking a walking tour of the coffee growing areas.
It had started to rain by the tine we began the plantation tour. The rain enhanced the sense of remoteness and the topicality of the beautiful surroundings.
We first toured the beautiful Old Dutch Colonial-style planter's home (1925).
Our walk took us through lush bamboo jungle punctuated by an occasional outbuilding. These are coffee bushes in the foreground.
Wood smoke wafted through the hot, humid, rainy afternoon.
The plantation settlers laid out a remarkable garden and roads all around the coffee patches.
The ponds were breathtakingly beautiful in the smoky rain.
The founders planted a large variety of fruiting trees to supply their own needs. It's good to see they enjoyed the Durian as much as I do.
But this is what it is all about: coffee beans . . . what we crave from every street corner in the world! Java!
The modern plantation is also a guest house, restaurant, and spa (of course). They run a small coffee processing facility to supply their own needs. If you are wondering, yes, their coffee (robustus) was delicious.
Loading honey into bottles.
We walked back by way of misty vistas of the Central Javanese hill country.
We ended our tour at the plantation office, bought some of their home produced coffee and a few knick-knacks, and drove back to Jogja in the dark in the rain.
After Jakarta we flew to Yogyakarta (variously pronounced JogJakarta or simply JogJa) in Central Java and based ourselves in the wonderful Phoenix Hotel. In Jogja we hired a van and driver and took day trips to the many fascinating and beautiful sights in Jogja and Central Java, the "center of Javanese culture," as all the guidebooks correctly stated. This is a scene from the very beautiful Losari Coffee Plantation (now known as MesaStila) we visited, during an afternoon rain.
The countryside around Jogja is verdant tropical agricultural and surprisingly densely populated.
The rice paddy is worked with skill for maximum yield.
The city of Yogyakarta has many markets. We woke early one morning and walked through the local side streets, many of which were morning markets. The light was perfect and the subject was superbly photogenic . . . I took hundreds of photos . . . What to do with them all? I will post some here, and the rest in a photo gallery elsewhere on this site. GO HERE.
People were friendly i the market. We asked people if we could photograph them - only a few refused. I guess that is to be expected when your market is around the corner from a hotel full of foreigners.
By the look of what's on sale in the market, I'm guessing the local cuisine is hot and spicy.
In addition to the peppers, fruits, vegetables and meat of all kinds were on sale.
The market is also a place to be with family and friends.
Dr. Jeff Harper