Lombok- finally!

We had to pivot when we found out that our best traveling buddies wouldn’t be coming to Indonesia to spend the holidays with us this year because of Covid restrictions here…

So we finally took our spring break 2020 vacation here! In March of 2020 we were supposed to go to the Indonesian island of Lombok, but instead that very same week were ordered to depart Jakarta.

So we brought in the New Year in Lombok! We hiked to two water falls at the base of the Mt. Rinjani volcano, swam, snorkeled, surfed and scuba dived. We played with baby turtles at two sea turtle hatcheries, visited the motor vehicle free Gili Islands off the coast of Lombok, where we got around by boat & horse carriages. We watched local women keep their heritage alive while hand-weaving vibrant fabrics. We took in the amazing sunsets, rice fields, roaming water buffalo and lots of monkeys!

The best part of delaying this trip was that almost 2 years later, we had 6 other families who were there too. Friends do make traveling better.

My family members look so much like tourists here- Brian with his cross body man bag, and Macy with her white socks and sandals-

We stayed at the Sheraton on Senggigi beach, and the sunsets were beuatiful-

We've recently realized that there is a huge offering of Mocktails here in Indonesia, since the Muslim culture do not drink alcohol. Tate will always choose a coke or milkshake when allowed, but Macy is venturing out-

Hotel beach-

Flip the chair to the hotel pool- 

One day we drove 2 hours to hike 2 hours to see 2 waterfalls in the foothills of Mt. Rinjani. In middle school here, each student is put into a "volcano group" and the groups are named after different Indonesian volcanos. Macy is in the Mt. Rinjani group, so it was cool to go hike there. (Tate was in the Mt. Merapi group while in 8th grade here and we went to Mt. Merapi as a family shortly in December 2019) 

This guy was our pre-hike lunch (while we waited for the rain to pass) entertainment-

Off we go-

The guide asked us if we wanted to take the adventurous route back through this tunnel-

UM NO!

Monkey's close enough to reach over and touch- 

While we did not go at all close to Mt. Rinjani, it is an active volcano that last erupted in 2016. The volcano sits in the lake, which has formed in the center of the crater from when it first erupted in the 1200's. This is the model-

That's one of the waterfalls we hiked to, off behind Tate's shoulder-

I really loved the 2 hour drive to & from the hike. In 2017 the island of Lombok had a devastating earthquake, and then covid hit a few years later. It was wonderful to see how resilient the locals are and how they have rebuilt the island. And it's always fascinating to see what can go on a motorbike-

Or in the back of a truck, without rope-

There were several embassy & JIS families staying at the Sheraton as well. Poor Macy had to see her science teacher without his shirt on. Ha! One family we are especially friendly with was there with us, the Edelbrock's. "Sundowners" with Jamie & Eric at a fabulous Italian restaurant which was just a short walk down the beach- 

Kid table-

We enjoyed this restaurant so much we all kept going back. Talking with the owner, who was from Italy, was such a gift. As was the taste of his delicious homemade pasta that we watched being made!

McCullough's & Edelbrock's-

Macy, Aubree & Macy- 

Yup, each of us has a Macy! 

Another one of my Jakarta friends, Swedish Jenny, was also in Lombok, and staying just around the corner from us. So we were able to meet up a few times. McCullough's & Odar's-

The next day we spent at their hotel and our kids all went out surfing together

But first, a quick refresher lesson-

Brian got out there too-

The kids wasted away the afternoon playing a new card game together-

Elise, John, Tate, Macy-

Me & Jenny-

One day we took a day trip over to Gili Meno for Dad & Me scuba diving day with the Edelbrock's & Lombardo's-

After the dad's & kids left, Netty, Jamie and I all walked around Gili Meno (with Jamie's 2 non-sdiver daughters) to see what there was to see. And there was nothing. The island felt like we were on the show Lost. Gorgeous, but the sun was super strong and everything was shut down. Damn you Omicron.

So I had an idea. To charter another boat (from a local fisherman) to take us to the bigger island of Gili Terang, which we could see but could not swim over to. That island was supposedly where we could find restaurants and shops open. Thankfully Netty is Indonesian and could do all the bartering with the random fisherman we found, and off we go-

First up- a carriage ride around the island. Because there are no cars or taxis on this island- 

We found a beachfront restaurant for drinks while we waited for our divers. We also found Mr. Allerton and family- Macy's drama teacher who we all adore. And the spicy oil man found Jamie-

The divers found us, and we found a place for lunch. The kids tried to be as mature as they could about the signage on the walls- 

After a very unsettling boat ride back to Lombok, we noticed how picture perfect Mt. Agung on Bali was off in the distance and got out to explore and see how close we could get for a great picture- 

Our hotel was raising baby turtles for an upcoming release- 

Taylor, Macy, Aubree & Macy, off in search of some souvenir shopping- 

The hotel planned a big bash for New Years Eve, then it rained. Still fun, but not nearly as exciting. Another embassy friend, Eva, and her family arrived just in time for dinner. Jamie befriended an American woman at the pool, named Joan. 80 years old, a widow and living in Indonesia without her family, we instantly asked her to join us at our table for the NYE festivities- 

On New Years Day, we ventured down south to see the Richardsons. They were staying on a gorgeous beach, with perfect surf waves- 

Alice and I-

Georgia and Macy with their price possession surf boards- 

McCullough's and Richardson's (minus Zach)-

We stopped off in a village that weaves textile, called Ikat, by hand. I never cared much for the fabric, until I saw them weaving it by hand. 

It was so fascinating. And they were happy to dress us up in traditional garb for a photo-

Lombok did not disappoint. It was what I thought Bali would be like. Way less touristy and commercial than Bali- no 4 lane roads or billboards. It was a great week away with a good mix of nature, culture and friends.