Day 7: Malang, tea, and a volcano

Published: 16.07.2025

Today we could almost sleep in - we didn’t start until 8 AM.
Our first stop was at Alun Alun Tuku Balikutan Square. In the middle of this square, there is a lotus fountain. At the edge stand the parliament building (behind large carob trees) and the town hall of Malang.

Next, we continued to the bird and flower market. However, at the bird market, there were not only birds, but also plenty of aquarium fish, as well as cats, and even baby monkeys and an iguana. Unfortunately, most of these animals were kept in cages that were far too small.

Alun Alun Malang Square with a mosque and a church side by side serves today as a small recreational park. We parked Indonesian-style - feeling right in the middle of the intersection, but at least with a traffic attendant.

On the way, we stopped at the bridge overlooking the colorful houses of Kampung Warna Warni Jodipan. Here we practiced crossing a street Indonesian-style - arm outstretched and fearless running - hoping that the cars and especially the motorbikes would stop.

Then we continued to Lawang to a tea plantation. This was situated at 1000m altitude. After a tasting at the tea house, we received a brief tour of the plantation and the factory. Depending on the season, between 10 tons and 30 tons of tea are harvested per day. The picking is done by hand. The tea plants were planted by the Dutch in 1916. They are still the same plants that are pruned every 4 years. Only the young bud tips are harvested - the younger, the better. The processing takes place the following day after a drying process of 8-12 hours.

On the way, we stopped briefly at a cemetery. There grew plenty of large frangipani and also poinsettia. Among the trees, we also discovered a huge spider in its web. The enthusiasm, especially of our youngest, was very limited.

The next stop was at the Singosari Temple. This is a Hindu-Buddhist temple from the 13th century.

After lunch, we then drove out of the city to the Bromo Tengger Semeru National Park. We are spending the night at the Lava View Lodge at an altitude of 2300m, right on the crater rim of the large caldera. After our arrival, we took a short walk along the crater rim to catch a glimpse of the Bromo volcano and its neighbor Batok in the last daylight. In the background, we could see the Semeru volcano spewing a large ash cloud.