Climbing, Riding and Spice Islands

We had a 3:15 am wakeup call this morning and it's 8:47 pm now, so I will make this short. I will have to post the pictures from our Bromo overlook later. We saw the sunrise over the big crater this morning, along with hundreds of others arriving by jeep, horse and on foot. Unlike what we've experienced so far in Java, Bromo is quite cool and it was very cold at the start - at least, until we started climbing the steep trails and 250+ steps to the top. Fortunately there was hot coffee at the top. After our descent, we climbed into the jeep again and started across the crater floor toward the trail leading up to the crater rim. More steep trails and stairs, and very little room at the top to stand or sit, but what a spectacular view. The weather was cool and crystal clear, not a cloud in the sky. There's a Hindu temple on the crater floor that is quite beautiful (photos to follow). After a well-deserved breakfast, we left at 9:30 am for our next destination five hours away, a beautiful east Java resort next to a coffee and spice plantation. We leave tomorrow for the ferry to Bali and the second leg of our first tour. Will sleep well tonight.