On September 25 (Sunday), the Solo Expats Association (SEA) invited the Gunungan Children's Refuge for a day out to Gajah Mungkur in the town of Wonogiri. Situated just an hour away from the Solo City, Gajah Mungkur has a gigantic lake and is known for its picturesque scenery. In addition to being a popular sight-seeing destination, the lake also supplies drinking water to Wonogiri and irrigates rice fields in the surrounding region. But to the children, the real attraction in Gajah Mungkur had to be the newly opened water-themed amusement park by the name of Waterboom. As the first group of international visitors to Waterboom, we were greeted with a special performance of traditional dance.

At Waterboom, the children thoroughly enjoyed themselves trying the many different kinds of water games and recreational facilities. Before getting too tired, they went picnicking in the woods by the lakeside. Some then hanged around the lakeside to appreciate the breathtaking view and take photos, while some walked around a nearby market which sells local delicacies such as fried shrimps and fried fish, as well as much-wanted iced drinks. Everybody had a great time!


On behalf of Gunungan Children's Refuge, we would like to sincerely thank the Solo Expats Association (SEA), particularly Anne Wallace, Michael Micklem and other individual members, for their generous support to make this trip happen. Special thanks also go to the entire staff - this outing to Gajah Mungkur would not have been a success without all of the hard work.