Feeling the need to take a break from the hustle, bustle and heat of the big city, we headed north to Kaliurang, perched precariously on the slopes of the volitile volcano, Gunung Merapi. During the weekends, this small mountain town turns into a mini version of Yogyakarta, however we were there during the week and had the village and surrounding parks practically to ourselves. Kaliurang has a climate much like upstate New York during the summer, which comes as a relief from the tropical climate of the plains of Java. A hard walk up a nearby peak provided great views of the immense Mt. Merapi. Fortunatley for us, we arrived during an unusually clear afternoon, allowing us to view the volcano in its majestic entirety. Due to the current activity of the volcano, we were unable to climb to its smouldering crater. While sitting on the patio of our bungalow, we watched the clouds slowly roll in and enshroud not only Mt. Merapi but also the entire village. Extremely tall trees only 100 metres away totally disappeared as the afternoon clouds arrived giving an eerie feeling to the entire area.
