Now I know for a fact that my pain tolerance is drastically lower when I’m tired and sleepy. I wore my five-fingers to hike up the mountain that was covered almost the whole way up with sharp igneous gravel. Of course when it’s dark, only the moon to guide your way (and some disturbing “torches” held by others in my group), it is exceedingly hard to see which stone is sharper than the other, so there was not only once that I cringed as I stepped on a rock that dug into my foot. Normally it wouldn’t be so painful, but all I wanted to do was be in bed. The only thing that motivated me was the lookout during the ascent and the promise of the beautiful sunrise at the top. Flashlights only helped a little bit to forewarn of twists and turns. The higher we went, the more lights were visible from the nearby towns, and above, the speckled night sky interwoven by the path of the milky way. Thankfully, my cousin Endi had a mini tripod, which I got to use and made a great photo using longer exposure of this beautiful sight. As it got slightly brighter, the taller volcano became more distinct from the dawn sky, and along with it, a breathtaking wispy cloud that looked more like the stroke of an artists brush suspended in midair slightly below the peak of the giant. The last part of the climb was the most steep, but also most rewarding. Here, my shoes actually improved my traction, for the earth was more loose, and i was able to use my toes to dig into the cool soft earth to push myself upwards. Finially reaching the top, I took several shots – hoping to form into a panorama when I get back home. Although it was the same view, the changing light made it a new photo every 10 minutes or so, and once the sun finally came up, everyone at the top – and eventually there grew to be quite a crowd – started cheering, and happily clinging glasses of tea, coffee, and hot chocolate that the locals sold to us for about $2-3. Most people were sorely underdressed, for at the top there was a little wind as well as the inevitable cooler temperatures due to the elevation of 1710m. The volcano we had just climed reminded me a bit of Mt. St. Helens, not only because of the constant gasses leaking out here and there, but also from the half-blown away shape of the mountain, with the deepest crater (besides maybe Crater Lake, OR) I’ve ever set my naked eyes on. My group of 6 took a couple group shots, had some drinks, and then started the descent – we had to get back by about 10am to be able to change, take a shower, then hop on a boat out to the Gili Islands. This group of three petit islands were just off the coast of Lombok, the neighboring indonesian island east of Bali.