The Wonderful People of Lombok
- Caroline Cunningham
- Sep 23, 2019
- 6 min read
Lombok is an island in Indonesia situated right next to the well-known Bali. This diverse island is known for its pristine beaches, surfing waves, coral world beneath its waters, lush rice fields, and towering volcano: Mount Rinjani. But Lombok is more than just its paradises; it is home to some of the most generous, kind, respectful, lively, resilent, and wonderful people.
In total, I spent 2 weeks in Lombok and during that time (besides two days spent in a hostel) I stayed in homestays. By doing so, not only was I supporting local people, but I also had the chance to get a taste of everyday life in Lombok and meet families who always did more than enough to take care of me.
My first homestay was in Tetebatu. Tetebatu is a small village in Lombok known for its rice fields. I specifically went here because I was interested in knowing more about local Indonesian life; I was not disappointed in the slightest. When I arrived at my homestay the owner, who goes by Chris, was incredibly gracious saying during my stay I was considered apart of the family. As is the custom in Indonesia, even Chris’ extended family lived on the premises, and so I was fortunate enough to meet all the adults and play with their children. One of the aunts had even recently had a beautiful baby boy, who I was able to briefly hold, absolutely melting my heart.
The owner Chris was very open with me and was especially eager to share his story of the homestay, which you could tell he was very proud of. According to him, when tourism first came to Lombok, people were very skeptical of Westerners coming to visit - that was something that was reserved for Bali. However, he said he was determined to show the community that although tourists/Westerners can be different, they are good people (ehhh..I would say sometimes 😂). And so he opened one of the first homestays, and traveled to Matarm (the capital of Lombok) to get permission to do so. Some of his elder family cut him off when he did this, but now over the years, others have followed his business idea. Now there are many homestays in Tetebatu and the whole community is very welcoming of visitors!
I was lucky enough to experience this warm welcome. On the back of a motorbike, I rode across the countryside, stopping to meet people of various backgrounds and careers. I witnessed how bamboo is woven into anything from bags to lamps, how women sit for hours at a time to weave clothing for weddings, how all the pottery sold in Bali is molded by a meticulous woman’s hands, how food is prepared for celebration, and most intriguing to me, the local market. With each person I met, their unique personalities shown, but the hospitality and friendliness was always consistent. Everyone offered me coffee and wanted to share a simple conversation. Once I even stopped to take a picture of a rice field, and the farmers beckoned me over, immediately boiling water and offering me pineapple and cookies. After spending quite some time with them, I tried to leave money for the goodies but they, horrified by the prospect, refused. Instead, they settled for a group photo, something I was happy to take with my new friends.
I also met a kindred spirit while in Tetebatu, someone I connected with on Couchsurfing.com. When browsing through locals in the area, I stumbled on the profile of a girl named Nisa Afifah. Her profile stood out to me because she works at an NGO that does ABA therapy with children with autism. This really excited me because I was an ABA therapist back at home and I also love to get involved wherever I can. So we planned to meet and discuss our individual experiences working with developmental disorders and mental health, and even for me to come and help out at the autism school. Unfortunately, I was unable to attend the school (next visit!), but we were able to meet. Our two country’s differ in culture and system, so Afifah’s stories working in mental health were so interesting to me, but also many times surprisingly relatable. Many of the same challenges were there, and for the most part the NGO had adopted all the right approaches to helping children learn. Overall, I was impressed and also inspired by Afifah and her passion to help others - I am convinced there needs to be more people in the world like her!
After leaving Tetebatu, I had no trouble continuing to find friendly, kind hearted people through the rest of my journey in Lombok. When visiting the Gili Air island I found people that are always the first to say hello and refer to you always as "sister" or "brother." In Senaru, I stayed with a family that took care of me and drove me on a motorbike for free to a hospital where they translated the doctor's words to me and made sure I was okay. And in Kuta, as I explored by motorbike on my own, there was always someone there to point me in the right direction. Everywhere I went, I found a gracious person wanting to do good by me.
It may seem like I am drilling the hospitality point into the ground, and perhaps I am. But I believe far too often people come to Indonesia and only go to Bali where the whole island and its people are made to accommodate and cater to tourists . However, to me genuine Indonesia has so much more to offer, and so do its people. Lombok is an example of that. Just because there's not a villa every meter doesn't mean you can't find beautiful places to stay where your money goes towards a local person, just because the island isn't full of tourists doesn't mean it isn't safe, just because the island is majority Muslim doesn't mean they are not accepting of other religions and people (and will even give you earplugs if the mosque prayers bother you), just because you're a solo female traveler doesn't mean the men will not respect you even when alone with them (driver, guide, etc.), and just because people are not in your face eager to make a dollar doesn't mean it isn't simply in their nature to help you. By visiting Lombok you'll experience authentic Indonesian culture and the most generous, kind people that humanity has to offer.
The 2018 Earthquake
If traveling to Indonesia, now more than ever I encourage you to visit Lombok to support its people. Just last year in 2018, they experienced a series of earthquakes that were so destructive it left over 500 people dead and over 1,000 injured. Buildings collapsed and people were forced to sleep outside for weeks, fearing their home would crash down on them while they rested. Some even fled to higher ground in the mountains, camping there for weeks in fear of a tsunami. Today, you'll find construction on every corner as they try to regain what they lost. But Lombok is full of resilient people. Although many local places dear to the people (such as mosques and homes) remain under construction, they have been quick to rebuild their hotels and homestays in the hopes that guests will still be comfortable and the economy will continue to flow. In places where tourism is higher, you may never guess an earthquake ever happened. But many of the people still feel the consequences, so if in Indonesia, I urge you to visit and support them.
Places I Mentioned:
Tetebatu Homestay: Kembang Kuning Cottages
Loyok - the village where bamboo baskets are made
Yat Art Shop Loyok Village
Masbagik Timur - the village where pottery is made
Pringgasela - the weaver's village
Rinjani Art Shop - a shop where you can see the process of weaving and shop
Ila Homestay - Homestay in Senaru
* For the people who's names I did not mention it was because I failed to learn the spelling and write down there names, and unfortunately now I have forgotten. This is my mistake and I'm trying to always make a point to learn the names of people I am so fond of.
* Before taking every picture, I first requested, out of respect - a country's local people are humans not zoo animals. When someone declined, I respected their wishes. But most people didn't mind and were eager to see the final product!
Full guides for where to go in Lombok coming soon!
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