After Medewi we spent another week in Canggu, which was only half voluntarily, since we had to extend our tourist visas- not an easy ride for fun lovin' "bule" (white people) like us! On Tuesday, April 18th we drove to Padang Bai, where we intended to hop on the ferry to Lombok. Not having an international drivers license, we knew we might run into problems...and we did! "Just do it", Philipp said, and Karo folded up the 100.000 (about 8 Euros) and tucked it under her Minnesota license. "You don't take this license?", she said nervously and he smiled, "Ok, no problem. I only want help you." Yeah, riiight...
What we had heard about Lombok was fulfilled: a more remote island than Bali, white beaches with no soul on them other than some goats and the guy collecting parking money :), very rural, vast beautiful countrysides, crystal blue water- sitting on a surfboard you could see the colorful fishies!- and REALLY spicy food. Lombok is known for it's chillies! We found a nice hotel on the edge of the village Kuta, where surf tourism brought enough development to satisfy the needs of a "bule". We were a bit unlucky with the swell, unfortunately. Our surfguide Rif, a fisherman from Gerupuk village, still tried to bring us to the best available surf- but no escape from the wavehungry crowds paddling for each ripple in the water! We enjoyed the time with Rif nonetheless, sipping Kopi Lombok and trying the spicy coconut sambal for breakfast with his family (from 16 month-old to great grandmother), hearing the stories about his life working in the mines of Sumbawa, fishing on the rough Lombok coast, and finding his wife by successfully "kidnapping" her from her family. Turned out to be an expensive dowry for him! He definitely gave us a good idea about what life is like in Lombok- simple, but content for him in the middle of his big family and living the quiet life by the ocean.
When the surf wasn't good around Gerupuk, we went exploring South Lombok for it's abundant surfspots. Snorkeling turned out to be a fun option for flat days! But we did run into trouble: the so-called "roads" had potholes as big as our scooter, one of them sending us tumbling back down a hill and putting a big hole into Philipp's surfboard! We were uninjured, luckily. Other beach accesses could not have been accomplished without the help of a rice farmer, who helped us yank our scooter out of the knee-deep mud!
Philipp then had to try out a different board, a bigger shortboard, that was easier to paddle and gave him the bit he needed to win the battles for the wave against the locals :).
Eating tasty Soto Ayam (chicken soup with rice noodles)
every day, going to the local market and giving those banana leaf packages a shot (see photo), succeeding in the struggle for finding the right kind of banana- the green ones!- made Lombok quite the tasty experience!
On our last day, bigger swell finally arrived the coast of Lombok. Rif and his father took us with the fisherboat to Ekas, a secluded surfspot: and we surfed 'til we could surf no more! The waves were over head and glassy, just perfect!
Next entry about Yogyakarta! Until soon,
Philipp and Karoline
On the ferry to Lombok.
Stuck in the mud...
Coconut sambal and lontong wrapped in banana leaf - yummy!
The Soto Ayam crew.
At Gerupuk Outside of Rif's boat.
Market in Kuta, Lombok.
Wawan, always smiling and never letting us go home hungrily. Soto ayam, lontong, and young coconut!
