Moni is a small village on the lower slopes of a volcano, and it exists largely because of what lies above it. About thirteen kilometres up a winding road is Kelimutu, a peak of around 1,640 metres whose summit holds three crater lakes in different colours, one of them often turquoise, another green and the third dark red or brown. The colours change over the years, depending on gases and minerals, and no one has fully explained why. Local belief holds that the souls of the dead go to the lakes, the young to one, the old to another and those who lived evil lives to the third.
Visitors usually leave Moni in the dark, around four in the morning, to reach the top for sunrise. The road is narrow and steep, and mist often fills the crater, so it can feel like a gamble. When the cloud lifts and the light strikes the water, the colours glow in a way that seems unreal, and the effect is worth the cold. By mid-morning the mist usually comes back. The climb from the car park to the viewpoint takes a few minutes on a paved path, and the air at that height is thin and chilly.
The village itself is simple, with a few guesthouses, small restaurants and shops, and weavers who sell ikat cloth, woven from dyed threads in traditional patterns, in the nearby market. Women in nearby villages still dye and weave by hand. Rice, vegetables and strong coffee are the staples of a Moni breakfast. The nights are cold, and many travellers are surprised by the need for a blanket in the tropics.
Moni lies on the Trans-Flores Highway, a winding road that links the island's towns, between Ruteng in the west and Maumere in the east. The nearest large town is Ende, about twenty-three kilometres to the south, where fuel and supplies are plentiful, and where Indonesia's first president, Sukarno, spent four years in exile in the 1930s, developing ideas that would shape the republic. Moni itself has little fuel, so fill the tank in Ende first. The dry season, from roughly May to October, offers the best chance of a clear dawn, though the volcano makes its own weather. Allow extra time for the winding road, and take warm clothes for the early start.