Karang Taraje, Awesome Beach in West Java

Moss

Rocks and Sand

Moss covered the coral

Rocky beach

We can see the beauty of underwater’s biota

Just see the underwater!

Searching for Crabs

Great combination

When the river meets the sea

Yudhi, Irfan, and Kanya

Mala

Great for snorkling

Estuary

Yudhi and Mala

Manuk Island [background]

Sand and vegetation

The beach is all yours

Rocky side

Sandy side

Team

Hermit Crab

 

Became Foreigner and Happy-homeless-man @ Gili Trawangan!

The boat for inter-island transportation

Gili Trawangan, Lombok, the first impression i got about this island is “Wow, am i in Indonesia?”. Almost all of the people here isn’t Indonesian. I think numbers of foreign visitors here are more than domestic visitors plus local citizen. That’s why when i arrived here, i felt like “i am the foreigner”.

Gili Trawangan is the largest island compared to other two Gili Islands (Gili Meno & Gili Air). Based on information in here, Gili Islands were uninhabited about 30 years ago but then adventurous backpackers discovered and developed it into a hippy party paradise destination. By regular boat from northwest main island of Lombok, it takes about 30 minutes to reach Gili Trawangan. Actually, it took me 35 minutes to reach there. hahaa..

No Cars! No Motorbikes! No worries!

That’s the jargon of Gili Islands. The available island transportation in Gili Islands are Andong (carriage), horse, or bicycle. But walking is so fun in here, so we don’t need any motorized transportation in this island.

We arrived here at noon, and then we walked toward sunset direction. While walking to the sunset view spot, we realized that we didn’t have enough water to drink. There is no natural source of clean water in Trawangan, and there’s no doubt that we have to buy it. Well of course it cost more to buy in here then in the main island, but still we’re walking and think about it later, hehe… and then i saw an empty cottage and looks like abandoned by its owner. I saw a bottle of mineral water on the desk and then i straightly went there to examine it. The water in the bottle is not full so i assumed it’s not clean anymore, just a worse case that it’s not a mineral water .

I was so thirsty, i can’t help but try to taste those mineral water. After i tasted it, and it taste like water, i took a gulp. Not just those bottle of water, i also examined the whole cottage and then i ended up with a big box of machine. There’s a padlock in it, but it’s not locked and so the machine’s off. I opened it with a little force, and then i knew that those box is a cooling machine. And guess what’s inside those box? The box is full of beers, cans of coke, and bottles of mineral water. Well i don’t drink alcohol so i just took mineral water and coke, but my friends was so happy at that time because of those beers. haaa… “Beers! Cheers! Free!”, I don’t know whose own those box, but i feel guilty about finding it. And then we waited for sunset in a hut.

After watching Gili’s beautiful sunset, we’re wandering around to find a place for setting up camp. When we asked the island security about camp site, it was still far away from where we were. So, we asked a permission to spend the night in the hut beside their office. And permission’s granted! Yeah.

I woke up that morning just a moment before the sun’s rising. I was just glad at that time, because the spot we spent the night was just perfect for sunrise view. Then, it’s time to take a picture!

Gili's sunrise! Wake up guys!

We spent all those day to take a walk, watching turtles hatchery, and snorkling. The water is clear and the sand is so powdery white. We were skin diving and viewing the underwater life. The colorful fish and coral reefs were so amazing! After skin diving, I made a miniature of Mt Rinjani with those white sand, instead of castle, .

Here’s the picture i got:

Sunrise 01

Gili’s sunrise! Wake up guys!

Waiting for sunset view

Sun is setting

Sunset 01

Boats, inter-island transportation

The boat for inter-island transportation

Great place for snorkling

Gili Trawangan white sand

Turtle hatchery board

Turtle hatchery

Welcome to Gili Trawangan

Sunrise 03

Sunrise 04

Sunrise 05

Sunrise 06

Sunrise 07

Sunrise 08

Midnight at Gili Trawangan

Midnight Beach view

White reef

Sunset 02

Sunset 03

Sunset 04

Walk comfortably at Gili

Paintings: Hybrid – human vs fish

Andong (carriage)

Mt Rinjani, seen from Gili

Waiting for boat departure

Seating for sunset view

 

Geger Beach, Show You the Real Relaxing Beach

 

Geger Beach

Geger beach, Bali, is located in southern edge of Nusa Dua. It is located next to the Bali Golf and Country Club, about 5 minutes or so. The entrance track to this beach is quite narrow, that’s why this beach is rarely get many visitors. But, don’t get it wrong! Some people said that this beach is “The Hidden Paradise”.

Why is it called “The Hidden Paradise”? The strategic location of this beach makes it a great place for surfing and also safe for swimming. The sea near the shore is shallow and flat, it is also has a quiet wave, when it is combined with white sand and clear water, it creates the perfect atmosphere for swimming. And what about the surfers? Don’t be worried, the other side of this sea also offers a place with a great waves, you only have to swim further to approach these waves. Beside swimming and surfing, we can also parasailing in this beach, some agents in this area also offers parasailing service. We also can do nothing in here, just laying around on the sand or chair, sun bathing, or just make a sand castle. The point is, this beach is very relaxing, hahaa…

There’s also a seaweed plantation in Geger Beach. The clear and clean water makes the seaweed flourished. When you’re skin diving in the swimming area, you’ll find out the neat rows of seaweed plantation. You’ll also find out some people on the raft carrying a long stick fro around the surface. Don’t be afraid, they are harvesting the seaweed. The long stick is used to move the raft. Some people dive to harvest the seaweed and then put it on the raft, when the other one is driving the raft toward the harvester. They back to the shore when the raft is full of seaweed.

When we’re picnicking on the beach, we will get live entertainment from some musician. They’ll play for tips and ready to entertain us while we’re enjoying the food and drink.

Here! check some pictures of Geger Beach below:

Quiet and relaxing beach

Geger Beach

Live musician, Play for tip

Running on the water

Burried in the sand

Mala, Gustaf, Manda, and me (inside the sand) :D

Geger Beach Sunset

A place to put offerings

Don’t forget to visit Indonesia because there are so many great places still unrevealed,