Senggigi Beach and Gili Trawangan.

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It's been a busy time at the school I teach at in Java, so blog posting means I've just had a trip! I started at Senggigi Beach, which is a strip of Lombok's coast about 2 hours from Mataram international airport (3 hours for us, as I wanted a breakfast stop too) and cost me about 240,000rp to travel to by private car from the airport. Senggigi Beach is a nice start to Lombok; pretty scenery, friendly people, and good amenities. I stayed at a hotel (I forget the name) for one night for 300,000rp and booked a very cheap public boat to Gili Trawangan for the next morning for 75,000rp. After exploring the beach itself, I was met with the main disillusionment I always face when visiting a beach in Indonesia; litter. It's not a clean country, but you'd think they'd make more of an effort with the beaches. If you walk in the sea at Senggigi Beach, you are dodging plastic cups, food packets, plastic straws, and other flotsam. The same goes for walking on the sand, unfortunately. There's really nothing else to say about the place other than a catchphrase my friends from home often use; "It's nice from far, but far from nice" (Normally, "it's" is replaced by "she's" to give you an idea of the inference!) which gives you an idea of the kind of coastline that Senggigi really could be, if the locals and tourists combined to keep it clean. On to Gili Trawangan!



The boat to Gili Trawangan is a public boat that takes an hour to get there, and the views while travelling are of the 3 Gili islands, and of Lombok looming behind you, getting further away as you travel. I arrived at 11am, and met a lively young man who helped me find a cheap homestay, called Baleku Homestay, which costs 120,000rp a night. Baleku's positives; comfy bed, a wall-mounted fan, rustic shower and toilet, double bed, free WiFi, free breakfast, free tea and coffee, and very friendly staff. Frankly, writing a negatives list is nearly pointless, as the only downside is that the homestay is about 20 minutes walk from the beach, which isn't arduous unless you're hungover... But if you're staying on Gili Trawangan and you're not hungover for half of our stay, at least, then I'd be surprised! I left my belongings in my large bedroom, and went exploring. I booked a snorkeling trip for the next morning, bought food at one of the many restaurants littering the beach, and then got my sunbathe on. My first night was comprised of a shower, drinking banana wine with the local staff at the homestay, and then a raucous night out in Sama Sama Reggae Bar, which is possibly the best bar I've ever been in. It's got a good atmosphere, amazing live band, and plenty of space for dancing, which I did plenty of!



Snorkeling the next day was the perfect way to recover from a hangover, and the trip was booked for a 10am start, lunch stop at 3pm, and arriving back at the harbor at 4pm. The trip cost 100,000rp, which is next to nothing for a pretty unforgettable experience. We had 3 stops of roughly 45mins each, plus a couple of periods on the boat between stops. The coral is a beautiful, the fish are varied, colourful, and plentiful. On every stop we saw something new; turtles, eels, a pair of swordfish, a clown fish (Nemo!!), and dozens of others. It's a strange experience, especially as this was my first time swimming in the sea without clinging to the side of a boat hyperventilating (I'm not a fan of deep water). On the first try, I was met with (what I was later told are) the usual difficulties of snorkeling, namely water getting into your air tube, and getting in and out of the boat without taking off your flippers. For the first difficulty, you simply tread water and readjust your tube to let the water out, and then carry on as before. For the second, you have to take off your flippers before climbing up the ladder onto the boat. I struggled with this due to being nervous about swimming in the sea without the flippers on (I'd assured myself that this was impossible, despite watching numerous other party members do exactly that just before negotiating the climb onto the boat). On the last of the 3 trips, I'd mastered the breathing, treading water, and flipper removal needed to make it a relatively stress-free experience. The breathing is also something you don't think about; I was breathing way too quickly on my first two swims, and only noticed when I got back onto the boat and was still out of breath, in contrast to everyone else, who were relaxed, and could have happily done another hour in the water.



We completed the trip with a lunch stop on Gili Air after the third swim, and then arrived back at Gili Trawangan at 4:30pm, a little behind schedule. Further nights out ensued, and highlights include meeting some awesome people at the homestay; two German girls, a Canadian lad, and an Indonesian lass. We also got temporary tattoos from a very talented Indonesian artist who was drinking at the homestay, and he merely took a beer as payment. The fact that I spoke Indonesian didn't make this trip easier, but it certainly made it more enjoyable, as the staff loved interacting with me in their native tongue. Their English is excellent though, and they enjoy practicing.



I spent the rest of my time at Gili Trawangan being a tourist; sunbathing, drinking, eating, meeting people, and doing little else. I can't wait to go back, as I've met some people there that I'd love to keep in touch with, the cleanest beaches/sea in Indonesia is there, and because after 7 months of living in Java and only going clubbing once, I'd almost forgotten what a good night out felt like! The wonderful island has left it's mark, and I'm missing it already; I suffered dreadful post-holiday blues yesterday, and had forgotten what it's like being stared at by the locals, and having "mister!" shouted at you by passing motorcyclists. If you're in Indonesia, and you don't visit this place, you will miss out on a brilliant experience!

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Comments

[Kerry]

My tourist destinations of Gili Islands
Interesting posts. Gili Island is one of our tourist destinations, this year. and we had planned long ago. we get a lot of references to the Gili islands for accommodation of http://marinasrikandi.com/services/ Very interesting, and we can not wait to visit the island of Gili. nice post. Thanks for share.

[Tom Webster]

I plan to go back in the near future, and I can't wait! You'll love it! Don't bother spending the night at Senggigi Beach though, it's not worth it, when you could have a better night on one of the Gili islands!