After spending a week in Tuk Tuk on the island of Samosir it was time
to move on. Despite the fact that I never got to fly here I really did
enjoy my time.
The 1st bus I was on left from Tomok 5kms away
and I was getting a lift there but I didn’t realise that it would be on
the back of a scooter. With my fat arse perched on the back seat, my 20
kilo bag was hanging out over the end. On my right shoulder was my day
bag loaded down with laptop and cameras. Making me nicely balanced…not!
Needless to say the front wheel was very light and the young chap doing
the steering looked relived when we finally stopped.
20 minutes
later the minibus left and we headed to Pangururan, the capital city of
the island, on the other coast. Once there I changed minibuses and it
headed off to Berastagi. I, along with 2 other adults and 2 small kids,
was on the rear bench seat that was built for three. After 30 minutes
or so my arse finally found a position of tolerance on the thinly
padded seat that nestled between the two metal bars that kept the seat
up. As the bus climbed up the side of the ridge every bump or jolt
produced short painful spasms at the base of my ribcage on the right
hand side. By the time we reached the main road my tailbone was numb,
my right leg that rested half folded up on the wheel arch was starting
to ache. Two hours later the numbness and aching was starting to turn
into outright pain. Thankfully at that precise moment we stopped for a
break….thank F**K for that!
Smoking a fag and trying to walk off
my discomfort I heard another shout of “hello mister”. Once again I had
to pose for a picture with a young lady; she held on tightly to my
waist and rested her head on my shoulder…this never happened to me in
England you know! Back on the road and I now had the bench seat to
myself. So I was able to get comfy and enjoy the scenery, an hour later
I was in Berastagi.
My 1st impression of Berastagi was that it
was a “shithole of a town”. Never one to go on 1st impressions I had
another look and changed my mind. It was a “f**king shithole of a
town!” The reason I came here was to get up close and personal with a
volcano or two and I should be able to do that tomorrow and then bugger
off anywhere else.
The next day
I woke up early
(06:30...I know!!!!) and had to lounge around in the hotel till the
people that worked in the travel agents downstairs came in and opened
up. Yep, all the doors leading to the outside were locked! I was going
to pass some of the time by having a shower, even if it was a cold one
(I haven’ had a hot shower since Banting). Sadly the shower didn’t work
so I went “Victorian” and poured bucket after bucket of cold water over
my head. It was strangely enjoyable! Once the hotel was open I rented a
scooter (100,000 rupiahs this time “because the roads go up and down”
was the reason given when I asked why it was so much but I am lazy…)
and headed to the nearby café for a coffee or two.
There are two volcanoes nearby, both of which are active. I went to the furthest one first.
Passing
through villages and cabbage fields (cabbages are Berastagi’s claim to
fame. So much so that they have a large sculpture of a cabbage at the
end of the main drag in town) the volcano appeared through a large gap
in the trees. It looked how all volcanoes should, impressively shaped
with clouds of steam rising from the crater at the top. You can walk up
and down it in 10 ten hours, allegedly! I meandered along various roads
passing monkeys in the trees, coming to a halt whenever I saw the
volcano from a differing angle. After a while I looked down and saw the
fuel gauge. I had already used up ¾ of a tank. Well lots of time
screaming uphill in 2nd gear does tend to use up the petrol a tad. I
then decided to head back to Berastagi; I reached the petrol station in
the nick of time!
Now with a full tank of gas I headed out of
town on the Medan road. Several kilometres later (when DID I stop using
miles?) a left turn and a signpost caught my eye and I thought, why
not. So I turned left and headed up a small valley towards the hot
springs and the second volcano. Four MILES later I passed the hot
springs and kept on climbing. To my right loomed the volcano, its
serrated edge cut into the blue sky whilst sulphur laden steam belched
from a white gash on its green side as if it came from the nostrils of
a sleeping dragon. I arrived at a “T” junction and turned right uphill.
I saw a gringo couple walking the small road, sweaty from the steep
incline. The look on the guys face as I rode by smiling was a keeper.
The road was tarmaced all the way and flicking between 1st and 2nd gear
I arrived at the “car park”. From there it was a very easy 20 minute
walk (and I am a slow walker) up a series of steps and pathways to the
crater.
WOW!
As the path left the scrub behind the
desolation of the place took hold. In the distance across a rock strewn
barren landscape steam erupted from sulphur covered holes, the smell of
which was caught on the wind. As I climbed higher I reached the small
crater. Only one side remained intact, the stones coloured in places a
yellowish green, whilst at the bottom of the shallow crater water had
collected covering half of the sandy bottom. The other half was covered
in peoples names made from small rocks and pebbles. People sometimes
really do have too much time on their hands!
Walking further
uphill I reached the edge and looked out over the countryside. From
here I could see another four volcanoes off in the distance. The steam
belched forth from the nostril of the dragon close by and I caught the
taste of the primeval in my mouth. The walk back down to the car park
was refreshing as the wind had picked up. I spent several minutes
watching the clouds develop on the peak of the volcano across the
valley.
Berastagi is no longer considered a “f**king shit hole
of a town”. It has been upgraded to a “complete dump of a place”.
However once you leave the city limits its beautiful…
Tomorrow I’ll be off to a place that doesn’t have roads and I may even get to see my long lost brother!
