Frozen in Mt Prau; A Turning Point Story

The background of the story began when I had coffee with my two new friends; Amar and Dip. Amar is a candidate of a very cool job: digital crime analyst, Dip, on the other hand, is a not less cool, a geologist. 

They are in fact different, but in some cases they are the same; they are obviously younger than I am, they are both funny, and they are both ridiculous. However, the story the I am about to tell is not about the coffee thing, it's about something else. 

We were having coffee talking something that mattered and talking shit as well; we talked until morning. From those two buddies, I got a brand new horizon of thinking. Although they are technically younger, they have some sorts of thought that are Incredible. There was at least a point that I really remember; Amar said that I had to write because I said actually I liked writing. He suggested, furthermore, that I wrote in English emphasizing about my travelling experience.

Well, Thank to them, finally I have courage to write although it turns out I wrote rubbish since I wrote anything in my mind.

Enough with pointless introduction, It won’t go anywhere anyway. I myself sometimes felt fucking confused what to write here frankly.

It was not so easy to write travelling experience as a piece of cake. I myself demanded something different from my writing which sometimes it sent me to a dead end. In that point, I felt utterly frustrated. I thought that I was suck. Then, I just knew, I didn’t travel enough. I said that it was my passion but I spent too much on my bed. I said that I loved but I didn’t struggle enough. What a holy crap!

I dare enough to say that I love travelling since it always thrills me when I pass a new place either on the bus or on motorcycle. There is always something very refreshing there. Indeed, the experience is not always a “happy” happy but I still love it. I don’t stop hiking mountain although I ever got lost.

Well, finally I got idea what to write after listening a whole album of Alicia keys, My Piano and I. Like what I stated previously I had ever got lost. It was actually a bit funny, although it was not funny “ ha ha”. It was silly because I got lost on a not-so high mountain, Mt. Prau, which is located in Dieng. You may laugh.

At that time, Mt Prau was newly opened for hiker. I went with the only hiking partner and we both hadn’t been there before. We were very confident though. We just hiked Mt. Semeru in the previous month which is much higher than Mt. Prau. Since it was new, there were not many hikers there and we didn’t get a map as guidance. However, the base camp keeper directed us before we reached the first post. The thing that my friend and I kept in mind was that there would be a small landmark in a form of a meter-high tower. I and my friend remembered what he said; we had to turn left after arriving at that spot.

With that basic knowledge, we hiked. The base camp keeper kindly accompanied us passing through the residence of Dieng because he knew it was our first time.  After He re-explained and he said “see you”, we were on our own.

It was 19.00, it was dark, and it was cold. It was still alright until I realized that we actually had walked too long and we didn’t find any fucking sign to turn fucking left. Then we decided to turn left on a potato farm path. 

It, however, led us to a very confusing path since there were too many “cross-section” paths. Finally, it was 21.00 and we hadn’t found a sign of the first post. The path was like a mad maze. Every turn that we took led us to the other cross- section paths, over and over again.

We were just like walking around and around. My friend started being anxious because it was getting darker and darker. Man, finally my friend and I were terribly hopeless.

After trying so hard to find the real path, then finally we found a small hut. We were so happy because we were frozen and we thought that we could sleep in the hut. We already gave up for the peak since it was 23.00 already.

Unfortunately, the hut was locked. It was kind of what  the hell, literally.

There was no point of being dramatic; so, we decided to stay there in front of the hut, turned the stove on, boiled the water, made two coffees, and Indomie. It was a point that illuminated me when to stop. I was not completely giving up. I was just waiting for morning to come before continuing the journey. However, it was still very ironic because we got lost in Mt Prau. It of course led us to burst into laugh realizing how arrogant we were.

When the morning came, I found myself very grateful. It was the first time I really realize how priceless to be alive. I was not being exaggerated at that time to feel so. The idea of being overwhelmed seeing the morning came was because at 03.00 I felt frozen due to sleeping on the ground without sleeping bag.

I was thinking that death was very closed to me which was very unlikely. It would be very sadly hilarious imagining there would be news about that an amateur hiker dying in Mt. Prau, not in Everest, due to hypothermia. It would be a headline perhaps, and the rest of the world would keep mocking me instead of mourning. I would be famous for being stupid.

I didn’t wanna die in that stupid condition though. I struggled to keep my body warmer. I suddenly realized and I didn’t know why there were so many pictures of the things I hadn’t done nor finished.  It was cliche but I promised to myself that I would be a good boy if I still had a chance, finished my untouched thesis, got a good job, and made my parents happy.

You can imagine how stupid I was for being unprepared. I truly realized for being a little reckless arrogant unprepared inexperienced bastard. It became a turning point that I shouldn’t have underestimated anything, especially dealing with nature; there was no bad thing for being a prepared person. If I’m not mistaken, there is a saying stated “prepare for the worst”.

It was not cute experience of my travelling story, but I don’t give up travelling. For this reason, I think that it’s my passion. It gives me a lot of things that I can’t have by staying on my bed.

When I’m writing this silliness, Sade’s song, Kiss of Life, came across to my mind. Back then, I still felt very grateful that life still embraced me.

Well, forgive my bad words and see you.