09-26-2007, 03:11 PM
Bringing us back on topic, almost. When in Bali, you should be aware of the volcanic hazards of Mts. Agung and Batur. Both have violently erupted in fairly recent history.
The third or fourth time Bear and I were there, we climbed a cone inside the caldera of Batur and cooked some eggs on a vent. Agung erupted with great loss of life during a major ceremonial cycle at the temples of Besakih in the early 60's, I think. One of our Balinese friends said the mountain was rumbling before the ceremonies but they had them anyway on the advice of a high ranking religious official who was killed in the explosion. He said something like 10,000 people were killed.
Makes Kilauea look tame by comparison.
Cheers,
Jerry
The third or fourth time Bear and I were there, we climbed a cone inside the caldera of Batur and cooked some eggs on a vent. Agung erupted with great loss of life during a major ceremonial cycle at the temples of Besakih in the early 60's, I think. One of our Balinese friends said the mountain was rumbling before the ceremonies but they had them anyway on the advice of a high ranking religious official who was killed in the explosion. He said something like 10,000 people were killed.
Makes Kilauea look tame by comparison.
Cheers,
Jerry