In his latest blog, we catch up with Darren 8,000 feet above sea level as he writes from Indonesia.

Since penning his latest activies, Darren has had the unfortune of losing his luggage and his waiting on his belongings being posted to the resort of Yogyakarta.

Darren should reach Australia within two weeks.

Darren's Blog

We may be on the equator but this week I am writing my blog wrapped in blankets with my woolly hat on. It's cold, very cold. It's because we are 8,000 feet above sea level overlooking one of Indonesia's most active volcanoes. This week we have moved from Sumatra to crowded Java, visited one of the wonders of the world and my chances of getting my bag back have ebbed away.

Week eleven began with a landmark moment as we finally crossed the equator. Marked by a simple sign on the road it was a stark reminder of how far we had travelled and how we were nearing the end. But we still had much of Indonesia to see, so we travelled from Lahat to Bandur Lampung before catching another ferry taking us to the main island of Java.

Java may be four times smaller geographically than Sumatra but it has four times the population making it feel very overcrowded. After a stopover in Bandung we made our way to the costal resort of Pangandaran. This town is popular with the locals and it was easy to see why! It has character, with fantastic beaches, good surf and delicious food. While it was nice to relax by the pool in our hotel it was just as interesting to watch the fishermen as they literally dragged in their catches from the sea.

It was at this point that my limited clothes supply had been stretched and I was relying on others for help. I was assured that my bag had been posted to our next stop of Yogyakarta. However when we arrived on Thursday it had not yet reached the hotel and I began to fear it was the end of the line for my clothes!

Yogyakarta itself is much like Kathmandu, very international with some good restaurants and a laid back attitude. It has a vibrant nightlife and even though Indonesia is the world's largest Muslim country it appears to adopt a very liberal interpretation of the Koran. Overall Indonesia was a pleasant surprise, the people are incredibly friendly and the society on the surface appears at ease and open. It is most certainly worth a visit.

While in Yogyakarta we also visited what is regarded as one of the wonders of the world - Borobudur. It is a ninth-century Mahayana Buddhist monument comprising six square platforms and is decorated with 504 Buddha statues. Today it is a place of pilgrimage for Buddhists from across the world. The sheer sense of history and architectural brilliance was amazing.

Finally week eleven saw the fragile façade of friendliness breakdown as tensions erupted amongst the group. Everything from food shortages to seats on the bus became an issue as everyone joined in ranting rages that could be found on Channel 4 this summer. With the cocktail of characters conflict was always inevitable and it has made the trip much more interesting as trouble inside the bus has often proved as entertaining as the sights outside.

Next week is the penultimate one as we finally travel to Oz and I hopefully get my bag back …fingers crossed!