Heiya! After one semester filled with college assignments, papers, exams, and projects, finally the time has come for semester break! Woo hoo :D One month with exactly nothing to do…. Anyway on this posting and several postings later I’m gonna write about the trip I did last June-August to Bali, Lombok, Sumbawa, Komodo, and Flores. But let’s just skip the Bali part shall we? It was the usual trip to Tanah Lot, Kuta, Ubud, Bedugul, Dreamland, Monkey Forest, etc.
Gili Terawangan
Anyway, we started the trip in Gili Terawangan, pretty much I didn’t do anything on my third time there *nyombong*. I just lay down under the sunny sunglight, blue sky, on the beach with crystal blue water, wind blowing gently, The Zahir on my lap (my favourite one of Coelho’s) and….. some bules with their bikinis and their perut yang tumpah ruah. Other times I just walked along the shoreline with my friends . Well as far as I can see, the island has developed with more hostels/motels/cottages, bars, and restaurants. More tourists ofcourse. My first time there I guess it was around 8 or 9 years ago and it was still like a pure private island. My second time there was 4 years ago, with more hotels and restaurants, bars, even mini cinema cafe. And now it has grown pretty developed. But apart from all the expensive restaurants, it’s not that hard to find cheap food here. They still have a spot for food stalls. And what I like from these islands is that motorbikes and cars are still not allowed on the road. You’ll find lots of bicycles for rent, or ‘delman’ along the pavements. That’s why the air is still fresh and unpolluted! :D But for you guys who are looking for a serene, tranquil place with less crowd then I wont recommend this island for you. At night you’ll hear the boom-boom-bass from the nearest bar and the crowd never sleeps until dawn. But last time I went there it was on late July during Ramadhan and all the noise stopped at 12. But during other months, this island is like tropical entertainment paradise, perfect for those who are seeking for a spot to meet up and hang around with other fellow travelers.
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| Kaki gue bergelimpangan dibawah sinar matahari |
The road from Senggigi to Kuta was actually one the best trail I've ever seen in Indonesia, the vista was just amazing going ups and downs the hill on the steep side of the cliff overlooking the blue ocean! Gue jamin naik angkot ga bakal berasa kaya naik angkot kalo pemandangannya kaya begini.
Bumbang Beach
After spending three days 2 nights in Gili Terawangan, I met up with my friend’s family and his brother booked a room through Agoda in Bumbangku Beach Hotel, without knowing exactly where it was…… All we knew was that it’s located somewhere in Lombok’s Kuta Region. FYI, Lombok’s Kuta and its Tanjung Aan are my favourite beaches in Lombok! Anyway, we didn’t have any idea where this hotel was located but there were some signs pointing the direction to the hotel. We followed the direction and the road was severely jammed. I bet it used to be a proper road, but it has became an OFF-ROAD. Jumping ups and downs, left and right on the steep, circuitous and unsurfaced road without any proper sign of the hotel, we doubted if it was really the right way to reach the hotel…. But we continued driving though, cause the energy was well paid off with amazing sceneries overlooking the vast blue Indian ocean, hilly landscape with lush green valleys. Finally we saw something looking like cottages and yeay! It was the Bumbangku Beach Cottages! The owner of the hotel greeted us:
Welcome to visit beautiful Bumbang beach which is quiet, unspoiled and far from the developed world
We told the owner about the road we had, and she told us that they actually had a boat-shuttle service where they would pick the guests in Grupuk Beach and take them by boat for 75rb. Ha. If only we knew this earlier. But! Anyway it was such an adrenalin rush and I recommend you to go by land for you thrill seekers! :D.
Far from developed world, Indeed it was. We were welcomed with unspoiled pale sand with clear turquoise water and a long long shoreline to run on. We spent the day by exploring the bay on a boat. The bay was surrounded by huge yellowish hills which made a contrast view to the blue water, the bay was also famous and one of the best surfing points in Lombok and they even had this unique ‘Ocean Bar’, a floating bar exactly located in the middle of the sea where surfers came to rest and relax! We also saw the spawning processes of lobsters, crabs, and seaweed. Where then they would cook the lobster fishes etc for the guests, freshly taken from the sea! :D Not to forget, the sunset was TRE-MEN-DOUS!
Kebon Duren
The next day, my friend’s family went back to Jakarta and then we went to the bus station to buy the ticket straight to Labuan Bajo, Flores (Later we knew that this was such a mistake). Waiting for the departure of the bus, our driver took us to his house and his Kebon Duren. If only I had kebon duren…. I’ll die between thouse sweet-sour-soft durians…. Forget fasting, it’s durian party! We ate em all sampe muak (mumpung gratis!) Somehow lombok’s durian is pretty different than other durians I have eaten *ceritanya pengamat duren* It’s very sweet with more “nyesshhhh” taste like alcohol when you bite it. Nyummmmmmm :p
Well those were our first stories during our long trip to Flores. After having enough of durians and mangosteen, the driver took us back to the bus station. He even offered us some other durians for us to kept for the long journey, but no. Satu bis bakal mabok kalo bekel gue dan Aby adalah duren.
Thus, we left Lombok on the 26 hours long haul bus ride to Labuan Bajo, Flores.
Stay cool!
Tami
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