Caterpillars Can Be Nasty

Aching Limbs

Following the mountain trek we've had two days of aching muscles any steps up or down have been agony. James being fitter than the rest of us was fine!

The day after the trek they said we could go for another walk, but it would involve going up and down the last hill of the previous day which was horrific. This included climbing backwards down steep parts holding on to a loose rope at the side. When Karen quickly declined none of us disagreed. W did enjoy a game at tea guessing which tourists looked happy and clean so had the walk still to come. Having said that our guides did say our walk was the toughest they did with tourists, how they looked at us 4 and decided we were suitable for that I have no idea but despite aches and spots we are still glad we did it

River Taxi and Poisonous Caterpillars

To get back to our hotel was a river taxi, basically 2 sets of 4 big rubber tubes. We sat in middle tubes and the guides at the front and back of each. This was great fun especially when the water was moving quickly. As we went down the river we noticed James sitting sideways and thought, he has to be different! When we got to the bottom we realised he had been attacked by a caterpillar.

It was actually pretty horrific for him as had made him come out in hives and was really itchy. He was sat sideways to keep out of the water in his tube as this is where the caterpillar now was together with its poisoned bristles and the water was helping them spread all over James. The guides were fantastic as soon as we got to the hotel they took charge. They also rubbed turmeric all over James which calmed the itching. Although that meant James' colour is now reminiscent of Donald Trump.

James - that was a horrendous experience. They place a mat in the rubber ring to protect your backside from rocks that jump up. In my case it created a pool of stagnant water for the caterpillar's fur and toxins to spread in and go all over my body.

It was the final 10 minutes of the journey I was awful during. Mum and dad got out first as ahead of us and they had a pleasant journey. I think I caused a lot of panic walking up in visible agony and showing my body covered in hives before being rushed back to the hotel by the guides.

After a shower I went outside to them where they proceeded to scrub my body with a mix of turmeric and salt. It was quite a sight for people walking past to see me in my boxers being scrubbed down by three guides.

Fair play to the guides, there's customer service and there's rubbing turmeric into a tourist's bum cheek.

Getting to Berestagi

The next day James was feeling much better although now yellow as the turmeric had faded. We headed to Berstagi with stops to view a volcano and a ghost village. This was the remains of a village after the last time the volcano erupted. It was a poignant place as the guide showed as round, they talked about school friends who had died due to the eruption. This volcano is still spouting smoke, the UK Gov travel advice and Indonesian government advise against all travel within 5km of the crater. We thought we looked quite close so asked the guides how far we were from the crater. "2.5 kilometres" was the response. Fortunately we didn't have to dodge flaming debris and managed to make it safely through. The guides insisted this was fine and also confirmed tomorrow's hike is up a different and less lively volcano.