The Province of Lombok, just east of Bali, was our home base for much of a month. From our “mainland home away from home” at Ibludan Hotel we hire a great driver/guide Ridwan, to show us a bit more beyond the coastal areas.
Rice is eaten with almost every meal in Lombok. Housing developments are increasingly eating up the fertile land, however, requiring the need to augment rice supplies through imports.
Local business owner moves his rice husking machine from farm to farm:
Heading west into the interior of island, the usual suspects look for handouts:
We head to Warisan Alam Geopark – a National Heritage Park of Rinjani (UNESCO Global Geopark) on the base of Mount Rinjani which, incidentally, last erupted in 2017.
As with all designated trekking parks, we switch to our local guide and head down the trail to the Waterfalls.
Our main guide had anticipated our return on scooter but we made it back on foot…just in time as rain arrived. ‘Tis the rainy season after all!
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Greatly anticipated is a visit to a local weaving village further east – Pringgasala.
A truly long-standing traditional weaving village, Songket Tradist Gallery acts as the distribution hub for the work carried out at the homes of the women.
This is not a touristy spot – our hotel host had advised this was the place to go for sarong fabrics rather than the coastal options set up for tourists.
All aspects of the process take place here: natural dying, spinning, spooling, weaving, and sewing two panels together seamlessly to make a complete sarong.
Each woman has her loom on the patio outside her home and fits in weaving along with her regular household duties.
One sarong (two pieces) takes three months to produce.
The cooperative manager has taken us to several homes – we now head back to the shop.
A long drive through many villages back to the Sengiggi on the west coast.
And finally, I can’t finish off with Lombok, or Indonesia for that matter, without celebrating the people and their wonderful food.
Traditional, fusion, or in urban centers, any type of international cuisine makes for great fueling of the body while soaking up the beauty of the country and kindness of its people.
Recommended driver:
Ridwin: What’s App (62) 818-0527-0938
Kerry Travels 