My friend and I continued to Lombok after two great weeks on Java, where we started in Yogyakarta, visited the beautiful island of Karimunjawa, and experienced the magnificent Mount Bromo. Fortunately, it was easy for us to move around since we were both traveling with backpacks. I had only packed the bare essentials in my 30-liter backpack, so along the way, we needed to do some laundry, but it was easy with my friend’s clever travel clothesline. When we arrived in Lombok, we started with a few days of pure relaxation in the southern town of Kuta.
Also read Packing list for Indonesia, Mount Bromo in daylight and Yogyakarta.
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When we stayed at the cozy and lively hostel during our last days on Karimunjawa, we met a girl who had traveled a lot on Lombok. She recommended that we visit Tetebatu, a small village located on the southern slope of Mount Rinjani, which is Lombok’s highest and most famous volcano. The village is surrounded by rice fields, bamboo forests, and dense rainforest, and she told us about hikes through the rice fields where you can experience traditional rice farming.
We really wanted to visit this place, and we found a small local guesthouse in Tetebatu owned by two brothers. The place we found was so charming, and they made the best local food—Gado-gado, Olah-olah, and fried rice and noodles with vegetables. For breakfast, they served banana pancakes and fresh fruit.
The two brothers were really kind and helpful and arranged several trips for us. We visited a place where they wove the most beautiful bags and baskets from bamboo. We were served tea and banana chips while they demonstrated the weaving technique, which they made look effortlessly easy. My friend and I were completely in love with the beautiful, colorful bags and purses, and I think we spent almost an hour deciding which ones to buy and bring home.
We also went on a hike through the rice fields, which was a fantastic experience. One of the brothers was our guide, and he led us through several of the many rice fields, where we greeted the local hardworking women. We walked along the different levels of the rice terraces, and he explained the entire rice process to us. At the end, we passed by a spot where we were again served tea and chips—very cozy.
Here’s a picture of us with our lovely hosts 🙂 If you go to Lombok, we highly recommend staying here.
