Today we drove with Apikri towards Mt. Merapi, a volcano just north of Jogja that last erupted in 2010. The eruption wiped out numerous families, some of whom were Apikri artisans. One of the artisan groups, Bejo Wood Workshop, lost their workshop when ash from the volcano was so heavy that the roof collapsed. Villages helped to rebuild the workshop through a grant from our Artisan Development Fund. Bejo also built a new water tank at that time which was intended to serve 51 families in the neighborhood. Today it serves 200 families and makes their lives much easier.
Bejo's workshop is now managed by his nephew, Eko. Bejo has become a politician and is sub-chairman of the town of Kaliurang where the workshop is located. The workshop employs 10 people who make a variety of wooden painted items.
Since we were in the area, we hopped into 4 jeeps and drove up to the lava flow area on Mt. Merapi. Driving on the lava gravel roads in an open-air jeep was great fun. We saw where the main lava flow roared down the mountain at over 100 mph and mowed down whole villages full of houses. In some places, steam and smoke are still escaping through cracks in the lava flow - it's still hot down there.
We at e lunch on the way to Borobudur at an open-air restaurant and then visited the temple. Borobudur was built by Buddhist rulers of Indonesia around AD 800, over 1,200 years ago. It's built from 2 million stone blocks and is considered to be the largest stone temple in the world. Over 500 stone Buddhas are placed in various places on the temple. Many of them are missing heads that were stolen by thieves. About 70 of these Buddhas are inside a lattice-work stupa that looks like a stone bell. After our tour of Borobudur we drove back to Jogja and went out to eat at a local restaurant.
Tomorrow we conclude our visit with Apikri by visiting some more artisans and finishing up with a big dinner hosted by Apikri.
Two of our jeeps heading toward Mt. Merapi for our lava tour. Alicia, Emily and Bruce are in the front jeep.
Mt. Merapi was mostly covered by clouds today. 
Our jeeps met at the top of the lava flow from 2010.
Amir of Apikri sitting next to one of the steaming and smoking cracks in the lava flow. It smelled slightly of sulphur.
Young woman artisan making a wood box frame at the Bejo workshop in Kaliurang.
Artisans work together in teams to make painted wooden products.
The countryside is lush and green. Rice fields are everywhere. In this picture you can see coconut palms, banana trees and rice fields.
Borobudur is an impressive sight as you approach from below.
Each stone alcove holds a stone Buddha. There are over 500 on the temple at Borobudur.
Our tour group with our friends from Apikri on top of Borobudur.
View of the countryside and mountains from Borobudur.
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