Indonesia is located in what is called the pacific rim of fire,which is one of the most active volcanic areas of the world.Indonesian country alone has 150 volcanoes.They erupt at frequent intervals and the lives of the people are always in the verge of uncertainty in these volcanic regions.
On our second day in Banyuwangi,Indonesia we woke up early in the morning.It was very chill outside.We clothed ourselves with complete winter clothing's,monkey caps,rain coats and with a stick in hand we started the climb to see the Kawah Ijen crater.We could see the smoke coming on top of a mountain and our guide told us that the climb is going to be very steep and you need all your energy to beat the nature.
As we climbed we could see men carrying big yellow stones on their shoulders coming from the opposite side.They were the sulphur miners of Ijen.These men collect the sulphur deposits from the bottom lake of the crater and come and sell to the local factory.Ijen crater is the largest natural sulphur deposit lake in the world.
When we reached the top of crater we could see so many men moving to the bottom of the lake .As I am an Engineer I know that sulphur is very dangerous and corrosive in nature.I could see miners carrying hefty loads and climbing the steep rocky paths.
Heavy fumes were coming out of the lake.These miners were using only wet clothes to cover the nose and busy in breaking the Sulphur rocks.I did not go down as I knew that you need safety masks to escape from the fumes.
These miners walk down the 3.5 km long journey to the crater and back on a daily basis and what they earn is a meagre amount of One Euro .They were pledging their lives to this arduous task and work tirelessly through out the year undaunted by weather conditions to reach the volcano base.
My heart felt very sad for these men who risk the gases and work to take care of their family members.Kudos to Sulphur Miners of Ijen Crater
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