Wandering Fractal

Sunset over the Baikal. View from Listvyanka. My first stop on my trans-siberian journey was around the lake Baikal. I first went to Ulan-Ude and hiked the east shore of the lake. Then I went to Irkutsk and hiked the west side of the lake. The Baikal is impressive. It's so huge that when you look at the longest side you can't see the end. My first impression when seeing it, was that it looked like an ocean. It's a beautiful place with nice hikes. The east side is more flat and sandy whereas the west side is more steep and has a Mediterranean vibe. If you are there don't miss the Omul. It's a fish found only in the Baikal and it's delicious. You can eat it smoked, baked or fried, but my favorite dish was the Omul Sugudai. Raw fish with onions and lemon (it's similar to ceviche). The water of the Baikal is so pure you can drink it without filtering. Snowy mountains on the east side of the lake. Autumn colors were starting to pai...

Miner reaching the rim of the crater with baskets full of sulfur. The Ijen volcano is famous for being the last place where the sulfur is mined manually inside a volcano. Workers climb the Ijen and then go down the crater to collect chunks of solidified sulfur then have to carry back up to 90 Kg on their shoulders. They do this while being enveloped by toxic fumes. No need to say that it's a dangerous and painful work, but the pay is worth the risk for them. Our guide explained that the Indonesian government is now helping the miners learn English in order to become guides, a less dangerous and better payed job. Along with the miners, the Ijen sees tourists attracted by its turquoise lac and blue flames. The hike to the rim of the crater is an easy 1-2 hours walk. If you want to go down the crater you will need a gas mask, a head torchlight and a guide. Other guides will try to stop you if you try to go down without a local guide. While the first part is easy the path do...

Kyushu is the southernmost of the four main islands of Japan. We went down to Kagoshima. A city around a bay with an active volcano at its center. From there, we took a ferry to the island of Yakushima. We spent a few days hiking and soaking in natural hot springs. The best onsen of those three weeks was, without a doubt, the Hirauchi undersea hot spring. It's a group of pools that are under the sea during high tide. At low tide the pools fills up with spring water bursting from the rocks. If you're shy don't go there, cause it's unisex and you can't wear a swimsuit, just like the bath used to be in good old times. Dolphin from the Kagoshima aquarium. Three times a day they let them play in a closed part of the sea around the aquarium. Thus we could see them for free. Trail close to the summit of the Miyanoura dake. It's the highest peak of Yakushima and the whole Kyushu region (1936m). Yakushima is famous for it's forest covered in moss....