Some friends and I took the chance and decided to "see" some the country we have chosen to live in and packed up our shorts, tshirts and frilly underthings and set off last week on a bit of a tour.
Got the ferry from Padang Bai to Lombok which takes about 4 hours to get there - those that get sea-sick take note the fast boats are a rollercoaster ride but the slow boat is a gentle cruise. Cost point IDR 120k and pack nothing as there's lots of goodies offered before launch and the Nasi Campur aint that bad.
Got to Lombok and took a left headed for Sengigi, which is the jumping off point for trips to the Gilis and found the governments attempts to create the "New Bali" can be seen with every second hotel/resort either for sale or derelict - or both (more about this later). Spent the first night in Sengigi - stay down town as the out of town places are ghostly and quite lonely. There is some great draft Bintang to be had there. Muslim islands generally suck for beer supply - it's kinda like doing a crack deal each time you order and fecking expensive - one place charged us 70k/beer :icon_e_surprised: - always ask first to avoid apoplexy, usually it's between 35 and 40 similar to Bali.
Best thing that can be said for Lombok is that the roads around the north are brilliant for motorbiking - wide, well kept and largely empty. Whether this is part of the govs plan to attract more tourists I don't know or care it's just fantastic for biking. Long stretches of empty, good highway curving through some spectacular (but really, really dry now) scenery.
Got to the other side of Lombok and took the ferry to Sumbawa which is only booked at a half hour but can (and did) turn into 2 hours of waiting to dock. Sumbawa would make the US dustbowl look tropical. It's the pinup child for deforestation and dry, dry, dry. Calling it a ****hole might be erring on the side of generosity. It is poor and dirty and grim but has some spectacular women. Willing and lovely with great tits. The roads on the main drags (Sumbawa Bera to Bima and then down to Lakey) are the equal of Lombok and even fewer people on them. If you use Google maps believe what they say DO NOT go off on your own you will get eaten and raped, in that order. There are some evil roads going to evil places with some skinny, hungry people living (if you can call it that) there.
For biking it's damned good and that was the main point of the trip. Food's good too - ate all local grub on both islands, street food all the way and the only time we had any trouble was on the last night we decided to "treat" ourselves to some classy western grub - always a mistake in my experience. Isn't there something in the Bible about ****ting through the eye of a needle?
On the road back from Sumbawa we got back to Lombok (seemed like heavenly lushness in comparison to Sumbawa - but the girls are plug ugly - thank goodness for the Jilbab it covers a multitude of sins (If the girls wear a Jilbab is that funny hat the boys wear a Jackbab?) and headed south to Sasak country. You couldn't hope to find a more surely, thankless and unfriendly bunch of Indonesians and Kuta is a complete **** hole so next time you read "Lombok Kuta is the next Bali", of for that matter any other Indonesian destination, you can tell em to go piss up a rope. I've been to 6 of the admittedly huge number of Indonesian island in the last 3 months and they were all ghastly, poor, dry and miserable places with the shining exception of Bali.
Upon reaching Lombok/Sumbawa/East Java/Sulawesi I was utterly shocked by the huge number of shiny, new, no expenses spared Mosques being built everywhere but have yet to see one new school or hospital. Have taken to advising beggars to ask their Imam for money as he appears to be minted. Oh I'm not talking one or two, in the first hours drive through Lombok we counted 20 before we gave up counting... 20 in construction shiny, new Mosques. I figure if this keeps up they will have one for each family. Maybe their belief protects them from illness and accident?
Well if it's some comparison to Bali you are after or just a great ride on a motorbike (ok, scooter, but a very manly scooter) then I recommend pack a bag and head off with a mate or 2 for some island hopping, it's great fun and worth the time.
Perfect roads across North Lombok (south suxs and they drive worse than the Balinese!) beaches everywhere and dry, dry, dry...
Got the ferry from Padang Bai to Lombok which takes about 4 hours to get there - those that get sea-sick take note the fast boats are a rollercoaster ride but the slow boat is a gentle cruise. Cost point IDR 120k and pack nothing as there's lots of goodies offered before launch and the Nasi Campur aint that bad.
Got to Lombok and took a left headed for Sengigi, which is the jumping off point for trips to the Gilis and found the governments attempts to create the "New Bali" can be seen with every second hotel/resort either for sale or derelict - or both (more about this later). Spent the first night in Sengigi - stay down town as the out of town places are ghostly and quite lonely. There is some great draft Bintang to be had there. Muslim islands generally suck for beer supply - it's kinda like doing a crack deal each time you order and fecking expensive - one place charged us 70k/beer :icon_e_surprised: - always ask first to avoid apoplexy, usually it's between 35 and 40 similar to Bali.
Best thing that can be said for Lombok is that the roads around the north are brilliant for motorbiking - wide, well kept and largely empty. Whether this is part of the govs plan to attract more tourists I don't know or care it's just fantastic for biking. Long stretches of empty, good highway curving through some spectacular (but really, really dry now) scenery.
Got to the other side of Lombok and took the ferry to Sumbawa which is only booked at a half hour but can (and did) turn into 2 hours of waiting to dock. Sumbawa would make the US dustbowl look tropical. It's the pinup child for deforestation and dry, dry, dry. Calling it a ****hole might be erring on the side of generosity. It is poor and dirty and grim but has some spectacular women. Willing and lovely with great tits. The roads on the main drags (Sumbawa Bera to Bima and then down to Lakey) are the equal of Lombok and even fewer people on them. If you use Google maps believe what they say DO NOT go off on your own you will get eaten and raped, in that order. There are some evil roads going to evil places with some skinny, hungry people living (if you can call it that) there.
For biking it's damned good and that was the main point of the trip. Food's good too - ate all local grub on both islands, street food all the way and the only time we had any trouble was on the last night we decided to "treat" ourselves to some classy western grub - always a mistake in my experience. Isn't there something in the Bible about ****ting through the eye of a needle?
On the road back from Sumbawa we got back to Lombok (seemed like heavenly lushness in comparison to Sumbawa - but the girls are plug ugly - thank goodness for the Jilbab it covers a multitude of sins (If the girls wear a Jilbab is that funny hat the boys wear a Jackbab?) and headed south to Sasak country. You couldn't hope to find a more surely, thankless and unfriendly bunch of Indonesians and Kuta is a complete **** hole so next time you read "Lombok Kuta is the next Bali", of for that matter any other Indonesian destination, you can tell em to go piss up a rope. I've been to 6 of the admittedly huge number of Indonesian island in the last 3 months and they were all ghastly, poor, dry and miserable places with the shining exception of Bali.
Upon reaching Lombok/Sumbawa/East Java/Sulawesi I was utterly shocked by the huge number of shiny, new, no expenses spared Mosques being built everywhere but have yet to see one new school or hospital. Have taken to advising beggars to ask their Imam for money as he appears to be minted. Oh I'm not talking one or two, in the first hours drive through Lombok we counted 20 before we gave up counting... 20 in construction shiny, new Mosques. I figure if this keeps up they will have one for each family. Maybe their belief protects them from illness and accident?
Well if it's some comparison to Bali you are after or just a great ride on a motorbike (ok, scooter, but a very manly scooter) then I recommend pack a bag and head off with a mate or 2 for some island hopping, it's great fun and worth the time.
Perfect roads across North Lombok (south suxs and they drive worse than the Balinese!) beaches everywhere and dry, dry, dry...
