Indonesian tide

My Scholarship entry - Ijen Circus

Indonesia | Tuesday, November 18, 2014 | 5 photos

I'm a pessimist. I wasn't going to apply for this until my friend forced me, perhaps laziness or perhaps it's the incapacity of seeing a hopeful outcome? I'm learning though.
A month ago I went on a trip to Indonesia, saw the disrupted beauty of Bali, caught octopuses with a small community in Lombok and experienced the mighty volcanic island of Java. One place in particular really left me speechless - Mt Ijen. The circus in a volcano, hundreds of tourists including myself clicking away at miners carrying 90kg of sulphur rock up the steep crater and 3km down again perhaps 3 times a day, 6 days a week for a slightly above minimum wage. The rock is collected in a thick suffocating cloud of sulphuric gas eating away at hard working lungs. Like the tide beneath them, they're relentless. Surrounded by the natural volcanic beauty, the contrast left me with mixed emotions.
This place amazed me, but what really made me speechless was the look on the miner's faces. They were smiling and laughing. Was this the tourist's influence? Or was it hope and resilience fighting through, knowing their family was going to eat well that night? I'm learning, learning from the miners - Optimism.