Cowbright: August 2012

Lombok, the Island

Lombok is only one of Indonesia's 1,700 islands. It was the location of the Fulbright Pre-Departure Conference which we attended during our last week in Indonesia. In fact, we headed straight to the airport to fly home as soon as the conference ended!

While staying on Sengiggi Beach where the conference was held, we walked to nearby restaurants to eat. One day as we were walking down the street in front of the hotel, we saw a man peddling a bicycle which was equipped with children's horses that moved as he peddled and played music. The children ran out to ride, paid their money, hopped up on the horses and rode with delight! It was fun watching these kids - they couldn't have been happier than if they had been at Disney World!

happy happy!!

man-powered "carnival" ride

Ronnie's presentations at the conference were very well received. We said our final goodbyes to the other Fulbright scholars and headed to the airport with enough extra time to see a tiny bit of the island on the way. At one point, the driver pulled over so that I could snap a few photos at a bird singing contest on the side of the road. Bird singing contests are serious business in Indonesia and fortunately for me, this one was already well under way. My presence only seemed noticed by one young boy.

owners coax their birds to sing louder

"Hey Mista!"

While I was snapping my photos, a group of children playing ball in the parking lot became very excited when they spotted the bule who was sitting in the car. Ronnie was able to say some things to them in Bahasa Indonesia and they were more than a little excited to try to talk to him ("Mista!")

goodbye, bules!!

We waved goodbye to the children and headed to Denpasar for our long flight home. We had 3 layovers with legs from Lombok to Bali, Bali to Tokyo, Tokyo to Seattle, then Seattle to Houston. Approximately 40 hours after lift off in Lombok, we were walking into our HOME SWEET HOME!!

Our time in Indonesia was definitely an adventure. We met some wonderful people during our stay there and Ronnie's work had a significant impact. Though neither of us regret going, I'll admit that, for me especially, it was not easy being so far from family and friends. The time and distance between us served as a reminder to never take anything we have for granted!

Thanks to all our friends for reading this blog and encouraging us during our time away. God bless you and God bless the USA!!!

Beach in Lombok

The day we arrived in Lombok, Ronnie and I walked down to the beach. He wanted to swim in the Bali Sea and I wanted to...you'll never guess...take photos!

colorful boats on Sengiggi Beach

We had been warned that the beach vendors would be very worrisome and make our time on the beach less than relaxing. It didn't take long to see how that works and you basically just need to learn to make eye contact and give a friendly but FIRM "no, thanks" and just keep walking. Naturally they are not going to accept the first "no" but after 4-5 times, they will finally take the "hint." One can purchase handmade jewelry, hand woven scarves and serapes, pearls or even a mani/pedi right there on the beach!

Here are some of my favorite photos from the day.

boats are available to take you to other islands

sunset on Sengiggi Beach

catamarans wait on Sengiggi Beach, Lombok

fishermen work to repair a boat

Ronnie going for a swim in the Bali Sea

Local Markets in Lombok

veggies for sale

Our last week in Indonesia was spent on the Island of Lombok. I'm posting some of my favorite photos from the local markets, which were (as always) a very sensory experience. The sights and smells are something that are almost overwhelming to a Westerner, but this is the way the average Indonesia eats. Many do not have refrigeration, so they purchase food and eat the perishables within a day or two. Eggs do not have to be refrigerated and most cannot afford to buy milk all that often. It's easy to buy produce every day or two and no doubt some of them grow their own.

busy Lombok market

Everywhere we visited in Indonesia was trash strewn and dirty. Lombok was no different. Wild dogs wander the markets and eat garbage that is lying in the streets. Flies cover raw meat as it is laid out on tables to be sold. Most of the market workers are women. I suppose their husbands are working in the fields while the women try to sell their produce in the markets. You will see a lot of raw fish, chicken and even beef in the open air markets, along with tofu, rice and vegetables. I would imagine these women are very tired by the end of the day.