Mojo, oh Mojo

After our short trip to the Gili Islands, we were drawn back to Canggu to our Mojo Family. We love this place and especially the Mojo Surfcamp. A few days of chilling, new surf attempts, and Happy Hour every day sums up our week there. Last Sunday, I headed to Java to Mojo's Red Island Surfcamp. In the morning, we had a surf lesson in Seminyak (about 20 minutes by car from Canggu) and then we were off. In total, we were a group of 8 people. Anders, Ayla, Mathilda, Isa from Sweden, Tiziana from Germany, Patrick from Norway, and Tim our guide from Holland. A great group, we had a lot of fun and probably made friendships for life. We're already planning when we'll visit each other's homes. By the way, my Swedish is excellent now. We filled the seven-hour journey plus one hour on the ferry with good music and conversations. Sleeping was virtually impossible as the road conditions were disastrous and we were heavily shaken. In the Java Surfcamp, Brody, the Camp Manager from Canada, welcomed us with beer and delicious food. In total, we spent four days there. Surfing two or three times every day, yoga, massages, pool parties, and probably the most beautiful sunsets in all of Indonesia. The camp is located directly on a (still) tourist-free beach - Pulau Merah, a dreamlike place with perfect waves for surf beginners. Our surf instructors Hero and Edo were simply great. Every evening, we analyzed the photos of our surf lessons and received feedback. We're getting there :)

At the end of our trip, we had an unforgettable experience. The hike to Mount Ijen. Mount Ijen is one of the 38 volcanoes on Java. But it's not only the unique blue fire that makes Mount Ijen so special. Equally impressive is the intense sulfur mining on site, the crater lake, and the crater itself. The blue fire can only be seen at night, which is why we made the climb overnight. It is sometimes mistakenly referred to as blue lava. However, it is the gases and sulfur itself that ignite in the air. (Side fact: The last eruptions of Mount Ijen with toxic gas emissions were in 1993, 1994, 1997, and 1999. In 1976, 49 out of a total of 50 gas workers suffocated there)

We were picked up at 11 pm and taken about two hours to the starting point of the hike. In the light of flashlights and thousands of stars, it took us about one and a half hours to the summit and another 45 minutes to the crater, where we actually saw the blue fire. It's almost impossible to capture it in a photo, but I still uploaded one for you. Just imagine it 100 times more beautiful. Since Mount Ijen produces sulfur, we had to wear gas masks. About 150 mine workers carry 100 kilograms of sulfur from the crater mines to the valley three to four times a day to produce medicine and cosmetics from it. Absolutely incredible! The mine workers receive 100,000 Indonesian Rupiah, which is equivalent to 6.50€, for 100 kilograms. Apparently, that's a good income for Java standards, but it's a joke considering the hard work the miners do. The residents of Banyuwangi, where most of the sulfur workers live, do not choose this profession. If the father mines sulfur, it's clear since childhood that the son will also do this job. The oldest sulfur worker who still goes up the volcano daily is over 70 years old.

Of course, we didn't miss the sunrise at the summit and took about 500 photos before we started the journey back. Then our driver was waiting for us at the parking lot and took us back to Canggu for another 5 hours. We couldn't sleep for a minute and fell into bed immediately after our arrival in Canggu.

Until Felix and Moritz finally arrive, I will spend my time surfing, enjoying the last days at Mojo, and having a great time. Johanna made a short trip to Borneo and finally came back to Canggu yesterday, so the two girls are reunited again.

See you soon,

Lisl