Gunung Api Purba: At Jogja's Ancient Volcano
Having only 2-5 hours of sleep for almost a week, I spend travel time taking naps if I can. For the 2nd day of the ASEAN exchange visit, I was told that travel time would be shorter compared to the day before. Still, I was able to take few minutes of shut eye. I woke up to sudden jolts by the bus because of the zigzaggy, uphill road we're taking and the ever energetic Pacific people reacting to it. I opened my eyes and was mesmerized by the view of trees! This is completely the opposite of the views during our trip to Purworejo where the fields are barren, evident of the ongoing drought they are experiencing in this part of Indonesia.
Slow Food Yogyakarta prepared a sumptuous lunch (not in photos) and these #coconut-based desserts. I forgot what they're called but these are sweetened bananas, fried rice cakes, and fermented cassava with grated coconut. We loved the sticky rice!
After all the learning sessions, we went to see this water reservoir which provides water for the farms during the dry season. It was only a small water reservoir and during our visit, it is also dry. Drought in this part of Indonesia could take a really long time.
The place is also the site of Gunung Api Purba, an ancient volcano which has been inactive for 60 million years. The village boasts its geology, forestry, agriculture, and traditions. The beautiful scenery also attracts tourists from all over the world.
Raw cacao beans tasting. And just before leaving, we were indulged with a quick entertainment by a local who climbed a coconut tree to get coco fruits. I have always been amazed with people who can easily go up the tall and slippery coconut trees.
And just when I thought, we're finally going back to the hotel, there was another stop.
Warm and sweet welcome from Griya Cokelat Nglanggeran, our last stop for the two-day ASEAN learning exchange on coconut value chain.
My colleague and I loved their chocolate goodies. I liked the chocolate chips, which is actually banana chips with powdered chocolate while my colleague liked the "dodol". Both lezat! But by this time, we've already ran out of rupiahs, and we refused to exchange the USD we had haha (tipid moves!). Their chocolate drink though, was too sweet and watered down for my taste. I prefer dark, bitter chocolates. Nevertheless, the people at the shop were very warm and welcoming towards us.
The making of Indonesian confection called "dodol" at Griya Cokelat Nglanggeran. Dodol is a mixture of ground sticky rice, coconut milk, chocolate, nuts, and most probably sugar and is stirred like this for two hours to become toffee-like. This is very much similar to the Philippine delicacy called "kalamay".
After the sweet snacks, we closed the day's activity in there while viewing a video edited by the production team, before heading back to Inna Garuda.
