Duta Garden Hotel Yogyakarta

... the TV on. Especially if your masseuse has a case of the snorts like mine did!<br><br>We also found a Batik Art course which we wanted to sign up for but unfortunately the courses were all full. So, we are having to put that on the back-burner until we return to Indonesia at the end of our trip.<br><br>From here, we had another overnight train back to Jakarta to catch our Borneo flight.<br> <br>

... road and the people were noticably poorer. Still they're all really happy and love waving and shouting hello mister as you drive by. The place we stayed was much better and even had a thermal pool!<br>Up early again to go to the Ijen plateau where there is a beautiful turqoise lake and sulfur mine. I ended up going right down into the crater to watch the guys collecting the sulfur and my god it stank of wrotten eggs. At one point I got a face full which makes your eyes sting like mad ...

... and build little cookie cutter houses for their employees, usually with a company store where you could buy all the things you needed, thus giving all your money back to the company in a roundabout sort of way. The people here were very friendly and the children followed me about in a small pack. Some ******* had taught them to say "photo, photo mister" in an unending chorus which was annoying after awhile but what can you do. It was near sunset by the ...

February 22-25, 2009: Yogyakarta, Java, Indonesia Charms and Pitfalls of a Large Javanese City I arrived on my overnight bus in Yogyakarta on Feb 22 and made my way by motorbike taxi to my guesthouse, the Jaya Losmen, on Gang II in Sosrowijayan. This was one of the worst guesthouses I have stayed in, but it cost $4 per night and was right in the heart of the center of town. Gangs are narrow alleyways and immediately I ...

... inside the larger ones for fear of bits, or the whole thing, falling on top of you. Its still an impressive sight. We finished the day off by playing football with some kids in the shadow of the temples. Although we didn't achieve spiritual enlightenment, we did realise that the days of playing football for a few hours straight are firmly behind us, puffing and wheezing our way back home with one or two pulled muscles. Enough Templing, on to the great Bromo volcano...

... and they giggle some more... Hmmm... wonder if my fly has been undone all afternoon?! It's funny though and I get a kick out of it probably just as much as they do so it's all good. "American" fast food treat of the day - a Fanta McFloat... interesting but not sure if they need to extend it to North America! We're off at 8pm to Denpasar and then on to Kuta Beach. A new airline for me...Mandala - very excited!! Such a geek. :-) Till Bali :-) Shaunta