Indonesia
Waiting for Sunrise at Mount Bromo
No need to climb up. We can reach the peak on horseback and walk the stairs. This can only be found at Bromo Tengger Semeru National Park, East Java, Superkids. The famous Mount Bromo presents us a bit opening to watch the (still active!) burst in closer range.
The best Bromo’s view is the sunrise. Don’t get it wrong. It doesn’t mean that we are going to enjoy the sunrise from its peak. In fact we must be at the Mount Penanjakan, about 20 minutes drive away. That is the best position to watch the beauty of Bromo’s peak that is still covered by fog with the ray piercing through. From the same location, we get to watch Mount Batok and Semeru that lie next to Bromo. What a view!
To be at the perfect time at the perfect place to enjoy the sunrise view of these three volcanoes, we must depart from Tengger area around 03.00 in the morning. Despite of the dark and the cold wind that penetrates our body, the Penanjakan area is far from quiet. Would you like to take a break and enjoy some fries or corn barbeque? It’s there. Or perhaps some warm drink to help cast the breeze away? It’s there too. Or maybe a hot meatball for the tummy? There’s a lot of them. The price is ranged from Rp 2000 to Rp 10.000s. And don’t bother to rush back if you miss your gloves and scarf, because you can see people selling them almost everywhere.
Having watched the Bromo sunrise from Penanjakan, the next destination is the Bromo itself. We will go through the sea of sands, known as Segara Wedi by the locals. There lies Pura Luhur Poten, the main pura where people of Tengger do their religious rituals, including Yadnya Kasada.
About 1 km from the foothill, we must abandon the vehicle. There are only two options from here; on foot or horseback ride (Rp 100 thousand per trip). It’s a challenging route, steep climbing pathway and is guaranteed to send you to panting mode. Finish? Not yet. The next challenge is climbing up about 250 stairs. It’s a crowded path because many people are too tired to press on stop by to take a rest. From the 2392 m above sea level altitude, we are presented with the few of smoky caldera with diameter of 800 meters in the center of this volcano. You can feel the hazy smell of sulfur here. Panorama of the sea sand and the green of woods surrounding Bromo is also fascinating.
Now what? Going down the hill, don’t forget to drop by to the savanna, known as Teletubbies Hill. It’s located north of Bromo, only 10 minutes away. The name Teletubbies Hill comes from the shape of this green shady area, just like the place where Laa-Laa, Po, Dipsy and Tinky Winky always play.
Interested of spending holiday at Bromo, Superkids? From Surabaya you can take a car or public transportation around three hours through Pasuruan-Wonokitri-Bromo. Either spending the night in a hotel or rent house from some locals, the price is just affordable. A house with three rooms is open for Rp 300.000 including any facilitate it has, like kitchen set, dining, TV up to mineral water. Make sure you get a guest house with water heater, Superkids. This way you don’t have to bother boiling water for bath. But if you don’t want to stay in Bromo, you can spend the night in one of neighbor town cities like Malang, Tretes and Pasuruan. It takes 1.5 hours to Bromo and usually starts at 01.00 in the pitch black of the night.
Regular vehicles are forbid to enter the sea of sand and go to the peak of Penanjakan. The route is too steep. A short trip of Penanjakan-Bromo-Savanna ascending road, on to Madakaripura waterfall, locals provide jeep Hardtop for Rp 650.000 with experienced driver.
Come on, gear up for a journey to Bromo. Don’t forget your coat, will ya!
HAFIDA INDRAWATI
PHOTOS: ANUCHIT KAMSONGMUEANG/GETTY IMAGES
