I told you I'd be back today, didn't I?
Anyways, without further ado, on with the unfriendliness of Mt Krakatao. Quoting from the book
Krakatao by Simon Winchester, here goes,
"In August 1883, one of the most cataclysmic events of modern history took place: the volcanic eruption of Mt Krakatoa. It resulted in the deaths of 36,000 people and sent shock-waves around the world. But what at the time was a mysterious, almost supernatural phenomenon has become, under the precepts of the contemporary science of plate tectonics, explicable if no less tragic.""Eyewitness accounts by survivors and the limited scientific measurements of the time indicate, if not confirm, that the event is still the most violent explosion ever recorded and experienced by modern man. Six cubic miles of rock had been blasted out of existence, had been turned into pumice and ash and uncountable billions of particles of dust. Ash rained from the sky for three days.""Yet words and numbers can barely hint at the scale of the calamity, which resulted in tsunamis that washed whole villages into the ocean and forever changed the very topography of the area. The effects were so extreme that they were heard and felt over ten per cent of the earth's surface."If you're about to say
"whoa", not yet. The epic tale continues. In 1927, a massive earthquake took place as a 250 metre volcano emerged from under the sea, a few hundred metres from the original Krakatao! Today, it is known as
"Anak Krakatao" or "Baby Krakatao" and is one of the 3 most dangerous and active volcanoes in the world. In fact, that's the one you visit when you get to the area.
Today, when you visit Krakatao, the sight that greets you is the "mother" which is now just another dormant mountain, the "baby" which is all rock and ash, two small islands which were parts of the original mountain and a few pieces of rock strewn here and there in the middle of the sea. Do you now know why you don't feel welcome when you go to pay your respects to this mysterious artefact of nature?
Anyways, overawed by a version of this story from our guide, we pulled ashore in an hour's time. The place was deserted. No tourists except us. Nevertheless, we spoke to the rangers about climbing up to the crater and God answered our prayers. They said it was safe today as there had been no unusual movements on the seismograph installed near the crater. However, since the area is a protected national reserve and open only for researchers, we needed a letter of permission from the Ministry of Tourism. But this is Indonesia, friends. This is Asia. Every letter can be fabricated, right? Our guide had one. He had many, in fact. Photocopies of a letter used by a tourist group a year ago. All we needed to do was bribe the rangers.
Were we willing to do that? The ten of us discussed it. Some suggested we should try and make them understand we are tourists and refuse to pay. If they were scared we would return as disappointed foreigners, they would let us climb. The other suggested that considering the distance we'd travelled, they knew we were the ones desperate to climb and would not be willing to let go of the money. Moreover, they could report us for stepping onto a protected site without prior permission. We gave in. I don't know if we should have (I personally voted we pay because I was dying to get to the top after having got that close) but we did. A small amount but a bribe nevertheless.
We encountered a snake on the lower slopes, stopped for water-photograph-bathroom breaks due to the overhead sun shining with all its might and the "double length" we had to climb. Double? Simply because the mountain is all ash and loose rock so every step you take, you slip halfway down. Some of us couldn't make it all the way to the top due to fatigue, lack of breath and vertigo because the higher you go, the angle of elevation gets steeper!
But what a memorable moment and view it is when you get to the top! It's beautiful. It's surreal. When you're on a mountain or close to one, usually your comfort factor is the land around. But what do you do when all around you is the sea, all the way to the horizon in every direction you look?! And you know you're standing atop the crater that spills nothing but havoc when it does. That feeling gives you goosebumps as well as a sense of conquest and pride. When you look down, even the calmest of people could get vertigo because you see blue!
The climb down was worse, at least for me and a few other inexperienced climbers because you slip through the rock and ash. But that's the only way to do it. Bury your shoes into the gravel to ensure you don't fall off and gradually let your feet slide. Don't even dare look away from the mountain - the sea will psyche you out.
When we got back to sea level, all of us were starving, not just for food but for words. We were numbed or speechless, bedazzled by one of nature's most inexplicable yet luring marvels. We went swimming and snorkelling at one of the islands thereafter and in no time, were on the way back to Carita. Nature only got generous.
The sea was at its calmest and we were greeted by two dolphins on the way! Wow, what a delightful experience it was to see these friendly creatures in the wild. One of them swam right under our boat and our guide/captain said, "It's a sign of good luck. They are wishing you 'Selamat jalan' or happy journey".On that note, Selamat Jalan for now, wherever you are going. Will see you in a week's time. And that one is going to be quite an important one. Trust me on that. I can't tell you what it's going to talk about but you'll miss out on a key juncture in Jakarta Tales if you ignore that one. Btw, if you like what you saw above and in the volume below and want more, kindly go to
http://www.flickr.com/photos/jakartatales
