However - before I jump into the details of the accident (which was pretty minor, we were lucky) I want to talk a bit about the beautiful island of Lombok. Lombok is a short boat ride away from the Gili islands, which are stunning but just as geared up for tourism as Bali is. This isn't necessarily a bad thing, but if you're looking for somewhere a little quieter, a little less touristy, and with a totally different vibe, then take the time to head to Lombok. The majority of the island is untouched. The north is home to Mount Rinjani, Indonesia's second biggest volcano, where you can take a 3 day hike to the top ending up right above the clouds. We started off in Kuta, a little surf town in the south of the island which is developing fast with bars, cafes and restaurants popping up all over the place. I get a sense that this is how Bali was years ago before tourism was booming. The locals are really friendly and genuinely just want to have a chat with you, ask you where you're from and which football team you support.
One thing about Kuta that made me a little wary was that in the evening there are TONS of kids selling bracelets. This isn't unusual in South East Asia but out of all the countries I've visited I've never seen it on such a massive scale in such a small town. Most of them are quite young but they are really street-wise and their sales tactics are pretty impressive, asking you to play games with them like 'Capitals' (giving the capital cities for a vast array of countries, even really obscure ones like the capital of Ethiopia?! They know the answer!) or rock, paper, scissors and their deal is if you lose you have to buy. I have no idea why there are so many children working in Kuta and it makes me think that there's something bigger going on behind the scenes. Most people advise not to buy from them as it's supporting child labour, but I did buy a bracelet off a little girl who was so sweet and intelligent and said she was working to pay her school fees.
We ventured up north for the day from Kuta to Rinjani National Park to see some waterfalls and this is where Lombok's beauty really unfolded. The further up north we drove, the greener it got with lush rice paddies all around and tiny villages with families eating together out front or getting ready to go to the mosque in traditional dress. The majority of the population on Lombok are Muslim and you can hear the call to prayer up for 5 times a day from various mosques around the island. The people up here also don't see many tourists and the kids love it, all leaning out of cars and running by the scooter waving and shouting HELLO and smiling at you. We also met a local who took us to some waterfalls and showed us around, and made us local Indonesian dishes with the spiciest curry EVER but one of the tastiest I've ever eaten!
We had the scooter accident on the drive back to Kuta. It was dark, we were on a bad road and we skidded on a bump. Like most accidents it was sudden and unexpected. We were lucky and came out relatively unharmed but the sense of panic and worry that set within me as soon as we hit the floor was hard to ignore. The locals were absolutely amazing to us. We stopped at a main road to inspect our injuries and people were stopping to see if we were okay, lead us into a doctors to get cleaned up and let us know the best way to get back to Kuta. The kindness of the people was really overwhelming and I cannot put into words how grateful I am. I wish I could go back and find them all to thank them all over again. I was in such a deep panic that I've never experienced before, being in the dark in a place that we didn't know and a little shaken from the accident. Their caring and kindness made such a massive difference and I will never forget it.
I'm so glad we went to Lombok despite having a scooter accident over there, and I really recommend going over if you want to see a little more of Indonesia and have a different experience. Bali is gorgeous and there is so much to see and do but Lombok showed me how different each island is in Indonesia and I would love to come back in the future to explore more of this amazing country.
No comments
Post a Comment