Bukit Lawang -> Berestagi

Travelling a Berestagi today so had booked the shared taxi/tourist bus which is basically a people carrier where they fit as many tourists as they can who are going in the same direction. You can get public buses way cheaper but these take ages and won’t be very comfortable! Left at about 8.20 and arrived in Berestagi about 12.30. Checked into my homestay and Mery was lovely and gave me a very comprehensive introduction to the area and a map with everything marked!

I visited one of her recommendations for lunch - a bbq pork place which was great and very cheap. Interesting that they have pork here because as a Muslim country they don’t tend to serve it. However there is a couple of reasons- the ethnic Batak people came from this region, and whilst there are Muslims here there are also a lot of Christians. After lunch I decided to walk up to the small hill just out of town - took about 45 minutes and the views were quite nice. The reason people visit Berestagi is for its mild climate (it’s at 1300 and is much much cooler than Medan) and views of volacanos, which are pretty spectacular. Unfortunately the two main volcanos (sibabyak and sinabung) had quite a bit of cloud but it was still a nice walk and views.

On the way back I stopped at the fruit market which Berestagi is also known for - it’s climate means it is a perfect area to grow fruit and the fruit market was huge!

Came back and chatted with an Austrian couple (got some tips on volcano climbing for tomorrow) and then had dinner round the corner and an early night as I was very tired!Læs mere