Valentines Day is supposed to be a day that is full of romance. So this year while we were traveling to Indonesia, I thought i would do something romantic. Usually, Valentines Day means a supper and something made to show our year (no flowers because she doesn't like the unoriginality). This year, we were traveling to Indonesia, so I thought that I would make this something unforgettable. We were leaving Blitar and got a hotel in Malang the night before, so we were very close to Mt. Bromo known for its breath-taking, spectacular sunrises. The only catch is that we must get up at 1 am to make the drive. Our excitement and expectation the night before was unbelievable, so much so that we did not want to go to bed.

So with only a couple hours of sleep, we got up, packed and got into our cab ready to see the spectacular sunrise over Mount Bromo. In the darkness, the only buzz was from street workers and farmers setting up and getting ready for work, but the roads were empty but curvy. I was nearby sick by the time we arrived and it had started to rain. When we got out of the car, there were people everywhere trying to rent us raincoats and heavy coats (I am glad I didn't wear shorts, even though this was Indonesia). We waited with hundreds of other foreigners looking at the foggy and rainy sky, hoping to see a break in the sky and the miraculous sunrise. I had the camera ready and waiting and time was going so slowly in the tiredness of the early morning. I waited and took pictures of trees and my wife and waited; the sky grew brighter and the clouds started to separate, and what did we see but more clouds and fog. It was a bust!! We woke up early and got to see the miraculous Mt. Bromo fog blanketing the valley and covering the mountain. Maybe the rest of the day would go better...

So we traveled onto the second part of Valentines Day trip. We traveled by van to the foot of Mt. Bromo to travel up to the crater on horseback. I knew how much my wife loves horseback riding, so there was no way this could fail. When we made it down to the bottom of the valley, the fog started to open up and we could see the mountains around. This day was going to pan out okay after all. We arrived and we found our horses and headed out on the black sands of the volcano following a stream of other riders to the center of the foggy area. The horses are usually led by their masters, but mine was quite tired so let me go running off--it kept feeling like the saddle was going to come flying off over the bumps while my we climbed the hill. Patty came up slowly led by her horse leading elderly man of the mountain as he appeared. I thought she would be discouraged but she was excited as we dismounted and headed towards the stairs to the top. That's when it happened...

The fog started to come towards us and the realization hit me...this is an active volcano and the steam comes with one of the most powerful scents known to man (well, it compares well to durian)...sulfur. After the cloud engulfed us, Patty was nearly falling down the path we just traveled up and feeling like she was ready to throw up. I was bound and determined to see the crater, so I "encouraged" her to come up the stairs. Halfway up, phase number two of the sulfur fog that burns your nose hairs off sent Patty into another coughing storm. As I encouraged more, I took another step and she did not. I continued and she did not. She did not want to go any more. I was not going to stop now, so I continued up to the mouth of the sulfur spewing abyss. It was horrid to stand the smell, but it all became worthwhile when everything cleared up and you could see the whole crater. An amazing sight, but Patty missed it. I walked down to meet her doubled over on the stairs waiting. Part two of the romantic day had been pretty much a failure. She kept thinking her tiny horse was going to die, so the horseback ride was not quite as exciting. We got back into the van and headed out for yet another part of romance central.

The next part was the drive through the rest of the park, where we got a chance to visit with some of the farmers in the villages, stop at a market to buy some rambuton and another fruit called salay, which looked and felt like snake skin and tasted very sweet. We then continued traveling through the rainforest, which did what it does best rain. Our destination was a stay at a coffee plantation near the rainforest. What we did not know was that it would take endless hours through roads that should not be called roads trying to miss all of the other traffic around the corners. We finally arrived totally tired and ready to sleep, but wanted to enjoy the last attempt at a romantic day.

When we finally arrived it was just before getting dark, so we thought we would go explore the village area. The children instantly ran towards us yelling for pens. We brought out one thinking they wanted us to write something but they took it and asked for more. Not quite like the children who crowd around us looking for pictures or to call us laowai and laugh. We walked towards the bamboo buildings following several people with towels and buckets. Only when we got down the hill did we find out the reason...all of them were taking baths in the steam as men walked out naked. So we diverted our path towards the goats. That path ended up being filled with smoke, so our walk ended prematurely as there was no comfort in walking any other direction, especially towards the naked people again. We headed back to our room, ate food and went to bed. Not quite the Valentines day of romance I expected, but maybe the next day and our trip to Bali would be better. It is supposed to be the honeymoon place.