Pesona Air Terjun Benang Kelambu di Lombok Tengah

Pulau Lombok di Nusa Tenggara Barat memiliki memiliki beberapa wisata alam air terjun yang sangat eksotis dan memiliki pemandangan alam yang indah dan mempesona. Hampir di setiap sudut pulau terdapat spot menarik yang layak untuk dikunjungi, mulai dari Gunung Rinjani, Pantai Senggigi, Taman Narmada, dan beberapa air terjun yang bersumber dari Danau Segara Anak.

Salah satu dari beberapa wisata alam air terjun yang sangat menarik untuk anda kunjungi adalah Air Terjun Benang Kelambu. Disebut dengan Air Terjun Benang Kelambu karena airnya menyerupai kelambu sangat tipis dan lembut, sehingga gemericik air yang dihasilkan tidak terlalu bising. Air Terjun ini merupakan tetangga dari Air Terjun Benang Stokel.

Gili Trawangan A Hidden Paradise

Crystal clear water, white, sandy beaches, people sunbathing at beaches and cottages along the coast set a different atmosphere at the exotic cluster of three tiny resort islands nestled between the famed islands of Bali and Lombok.


The best and most developed of the three isles is Gili Trawangan. Its stunning beaches, the bustling nightlife, breathtaking landscape and friendly islanders make this place truly admirable. 


Day after day, more and more tourists tired of Bali’s crowded beaches and jammed streets spare a one-hour trip by speed boat to Trawangan, the largest of the three islets. The other two, Gili Meno and Gili Air, are quieter and more private.

Tips: Menikmati Liburan di Lombok (Bagian II)

4. Jangan Sia-siakan Waktu dan Berhentilah di Tempat Tak Terduga 

Saat Anda mengunjungi Pulau Lombok, sebenarnya banyak tempat yang bisa Anda eksplor selain tempat-tempat wisata resmi yang sering dikunjungi turis. Oleh karena itu, mulailah hari Anda mengeksplor pulau ini sedari pagi misalnya mulai jam 7 pagi. Pada jam itu, di sepanjang jalan di wilayah Sukarara maupun Batu Jayi, Lombok Barat, para petani suku Sasak masih tampak beraktivitas menanam padi di tengah embun pagi yang mulai terangkat. Sinar matahari yang mulai menyingsing juga semakin menambah kecantikan pemandangan hamparan hijau lahan pertanian itu.

Jika Anda merupakan pecinta fotografi, jangan sia-siakan kesempatan untuk mengabadikan momen ini. Berhentilah sejenak dan mulailah mengabadikan aktivitas para petani wanita yang tengah menanam padi, petani laki-laki yang tengah membajak sawah, dan akvitas para tengkulak yang tengah membeli gabah dari petani. Mulailah bersosialisasi dengan penduduk setempat, menyapa dan memperkenalkan diri. Lambat laun, mereka pun akan mulai bercerita tentang aktivitas dan kehidupannya sebagai Petani Sasak. Jika Anda beruntung dan mereka merasa nyaman, bisa jadi ajakan santap bareng sarapan pagi di pinggir sawah akan meluncur dari para petani ini.

Tips: Menikmati Liburan di Lombok (Bagian I)

Pariwisata Pulau Lombok, Nusa Tenggara Barat (NTB) kini kian menyaingi tetangga sebelahnya, Bali. Lombok bisa dibilang merupakan salah satu destinasi wisata yang paling komplit karena memiliki banyak potensi alam yang menakjubkan mulai dari Gunung Rinjani hingga pantai-pantai eksotis yang masih "perawan" seperti Pantai Kuta, Tanjung Aan, hingga pulau-pulau kecil (gili) yang tak kalah menawan.

Untuk berlibur di Pulau Lombok, ada tujuh cara yang bisa dilakukan agar liburan Anda tak terlupakan. Cara ini bisa dilakukan bagi para pelancong yang terbiasa menjadi backpacker maupun yang bukan.

1. Siapkan Itinerary dengan Matang 

Spontanitas memang terkadang membuat liburan semakin seru. Namun, apabila Anda hanya memiliki waktu terbatas untuk berlibur, alangkah baiknya Anda menyiapkan rencana perjalanan (itinerary) dengan matang. Coba carilah informasi sebanyak mungkin dari dunia maya mulai dari tempat menginap, alat transportasi, hingga jarak dan waktu tempuh ke tempat-tempat yang akan Anda tuju. Dengan demikian, waktu Anda tidak akan terbuang dengan diskusi-diskusi seputar tempat yang akan ditujukan. Apalagi, jika Anda berlibur berkelompok, rencana perjalanan yang matang dan telah disepakati sebelumnya akan menghindari konflik yang bisa mengganggu liburan.

Kuliner: Nasi Puyung Khas Lombok, Pedasnya Mantap!

Berbicara makanan khas Lombok, Nusa Tenggara Barat (NTB), lidah kita mungkin akan langsung mengenang lezatnya ayam bakar Taliwang. Ayam yang termahsyur dan menjadi salah satu ikon kuliner khas Lombok itu bahkan sudah banyak ditemui di kota-kota lain seperti Jakarta dan Bandung.

Namun, selain ayam Taliwang, Lombok juga memiliki satu menu masakan yang tak kalah menggodanya yakni Nasi Puyung. Dan bisa jadi Nasi Puyung ini hanya bisa Anda jumpai di Pulau Lombok. Jadi, jika Anda berkesempatan berada di Lombok, jangan lewatkan santapan segar dan bikin keblinger ini.

Nama Nasi Puyung diambil dari nama daerah asalnya yakni Kampung Puyung, Lombok Tengah, NTB. Pelopor pembuat Nasi Puyung ini merupakan seorang penjual nasi yaitu Papuk Isum yang berasal dari kampung Puyung. Dia sudah berjualan Nasi Puyung sejak tahun 1980-an dan kini usahanya kian membesar dan sudah ditangani oleh anak dan cucunya. Karena kelezatannya, Nasi Puyung kian menjamur hingga ke pusat kota seperti di Mataram, Lombok Barat.

Di Mataram, nama kedai yang asli berasal dari Kampung Puyung adalah Nasi Balap Puyung Inaq Esun. Kedai sederhana ini terletak di depan Hotel Grand Legi, Jalan Sriwijaya, Mataram dan buka setiap hari mulai pukul 09.00-21.00.

Menurut salah satu penjaga kedai itu, untuk menjaga keaslian rasa, Nasi Puyung langsung diambil setiap pagi dari Kampung Puyung, Lombok Tengah. Nasi Puyung di kedai ini asli dikelola oleh generasi ketiganya dari Kampung Puyung. Setiap pagi, lauk pauknya diambil dari Puyung. Kecuali nasi, yang dibuat sendiri di kedai.

Penampilan Nasi Puyung tidak terlalu istimewa dengan nasi putih yang diletakkan di atas daun pisang. Tetapi, kenikmatan Nasi Puyung ini justru terletak pada lauk pauknya yang terdiri dari sambal, kedelai goreng, suwiran, dan daging ayam cincang serta kelapa parut. Sebagaimana masakan Lombok lainnya yang terkenal pedas, Nasi Puyung ini mungkin ada di peringkat tertinggi soal kepedasannya.

Uniknya, saat pertama menyantap daging ayam cincang yang sudah dilumuri sambal, rasanya renyah tidak terlalu pedas. Mulut pun seakan tak bisa berhenti mengunyah. Satu demi satu ayam cincang itu masuk ke dalam perut. Namun setelah beberapa menit kemudian bisa jadi perut mulai terasa panas.

Biasanya, dua gelas teh tawar hangat pun sukses menemani santapan Nasi Puyung yang harganya hanya Rp 8.000 ini. Dan rasa pedas itulah yang hingga kini dipertahankan sejak tahun 1980-an. Kuncinya ada pada cabai kering khas Lombok. Rasa pedas kelas wahid!

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sumber: travel.kompas.com

Discovering an Indigenous Architecture (3)

At the weaving village of Sukarara or Penujak, where the distinctive Lombok pottery is strawfired in the backyards of houses, the same basic architecture can be seen, albeit in a less traditional setting than the villages. But this is probably the perfect compromise, where the villagers are discovering a trade that can help them better their standard of living while preserving their cultural values.

The hotels in Lombok may be uncertain about what “style” the want to adopt, but they are often well sited to take advantage of the natural landscape, often resulting is sweeping views from the hotel verandahs and balconies. The Puri Bunga Cottages while rather non-descript in its architecture, hugs the hill-side to give every individual cottage a breathtaking view of the Senggigi bay and the Lombok sunset.

From the beach front resorts such as the Intan Laguna and the Sheraton, one can see, on a clear morning, the peak of Gunung Agung on Bali as well as a chance to watch local fishermen returning with their daily catch.

Slightly further down at Tanjong Aan, the view gets better. The natural landscape here is near-perfect for development of resorts, and it should not be very long before Tanjung Aan becomes a clone of Bali’s Nusa Dua.

One can only hope that the distinctive architecture of the Sasak villages would not be banished into oblivion.

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image source: SilkWinds 72

Discovering an Indigenous Architecture (2)

Even more fascinating is the richness of the skill displayed in these apparently simple architectural elements made by people whose primitive lifestyle does not demand of them any form of sophistication. Here is a demonstration of the power of aesthetics in its simple, original form.

Items such as woven rattan mats, bamboo floors and thatched roofs so often found in hotels have their humble beginnings in these rural villages, where the handicraft skills are traditionally a means of survival.

The most prominent feature in the Lomboknese architecture is the curved thatched rice-barn called a “lumbung”. Contructed simply in wood framing, bamboo and rattan floors and walls, this “symbol” of Lombok has been thoroughly exploited as an element of “pastiche” in the design of new resort hotels, although the scale at which the “lumbung” is recreated is completely out of synch with the original form.

Some houses still have their floors built up of dried buffalo dung. The appeal of the Sasak architecture is not attributed to any single feature but the perfect combination of everything manmade and the natural surroundings which in unison paint a landscape that is unpretentiously rich.

The distinctive bell-shaped roof covered in rice thatch from a previous season and the use of the “lumbung” for storage of rice illustrate the harmony of recycling. It is also a rather beautiful and almost sacred depiction of the South-east Asian relationship between man and rice.

There are, indeed signs of “modernization” taking place. Driving along the very narrow, hardly accessible roads and trying to avoid horse-drawn carts (the chief means of public transport, cidomo), one can observe the numerous handicraft and souvenir shops alongside paddy fields or concentrated at village centres. A unique form of interactive theatre is constantly taking place, where visitors from all over the world haggle over the prices of hand-made artifacts while the local people gather to witness this phenomenon of tourist invasion.

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image sources: SilkWinds Magazine
techno code: H4FSG7XWBG8Q

Discovering an Indigenous Architecture (1)

Until recently, Lombok has merely been a “spill-over destination” for tourists from Bali. However, if one looked beneath the preudo-Balinese surface which Lombok has adopted, there is an indigenous culture waiting to be discovered.

The heart of Lombok is the Sasak culture. The Sasaks, who are the indigenous people of Lombok, are Muslims. But there are no domes and arches which are often associated with Islamic architecture because such display of grandeur does not exist in Lombok.

Apart from being more primitive, they live a completely different lifestyle from their Hindu neighbours in Bali. In the few remaining Sasak villages, one can observe the traditional lifestyle and daily goings-on in their genuine setting, quite unlike the “cultural shows” often frequented by tourists.

Stripped down to bare necessities, the architecture in the Sasak villages accurately reflrects the lifestyle of these people. There is no intricate wood-carving, elaborate terra cotta sculptures or lush landscaping. What you see is just the purity of an indigenous architecture that has germinated from the seeds of nature, undisturbed by any form of decoration.

In other words, one cannot expect to find beautifully adorned edifices like the temples of Bali. Instead, there are very basic houses that are representative of the Sasak lifestyle. Ironically, it is this pure form of architecture that ends up as decorative features in the modern hotels which attempt to introduce some Lombok style into their built forms.

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Image Source: SilkWinds Magazine

Lombok, Sudah Berubah Banyakkah Sekarang?

Ada dua hal yang membuat aku tiba-tiba ingin menulis tentang Lombok. Pertama, saat melakukan kunjungan rutin ke blog teman-teman - satu hal yang aku lakukan sebelum pulang kerja - aku menemukan beberapa blog yang dibuat oleh teman-teman dari Lombok. Kedua, sesampainya di rumah, di salah satu stasiun televisi swasta ada tayangan tentang Merarik, yang (kebetulan) merupakan salah satu budaya Lombok tentang “pencurian” gadis pujuaan oleh seorang pemuda untuk dinikahi.

Yup.., aku pernah tinggal di Lombok, kira-kira 15 tahun silam. Tentu, Lombok yang saat itu menurutku masih sangat asri dan apa adanya. Bahkan, dalam dunia pariwisata muncul pameo : Di Bali orang tidak bisa melihat Lombok, tetapi di Lombok orang bisa melihat Bali dan Lombok sekaligus. Memang benar, (wisata) Lombok seperti Bali saat baru dikenal dunia karena wisatanya. Masih “perawan” dan belum tersentuh hangar bingar dunia modern seperti di Bali (tapi, aku nggak tau Lombok saat ini sudah kayak apa?).

Di Lombok, aku pernah melihat dan merasakan daerah tandus sekaligus minus di wilayah selatan (Kecamatan Keruak dan sekitarnya). Disana aku menjumpai daerah yang sangat sulit mencari air, sehingga harus jalan kiloan meter hanya untuk mendapat air bersih. Bahkan, aku pernah tertawa lepas, saat mendengar pertanyaan Bapak Bupati Lombok Timur kepada warganya (dalam sebuah acara temu wicara), “Kalau bapak-bapak mandinya seminggu sekali, terus gimana kalau habis berkumpul dengan istrinya?”

Kenangan yang indah tentu ada. Karena tinggal dekat dengan Ampenan (dahulu pelabuhan penyeberangan, sebelum dipindah ke Lembar), aku sering sore-sore main di sepanjang pantai Ampenan. Wuiiih…, segar banget anginnya, apalagi kalo sambil main layang-layang atau sepakbola. Kalo terasa lapar, tinggal melanjutkan jalan-jalan ke pasar tradisional Kebon Roek (katanya sih, sekarang sudah menjadi pasar besar, pindahan dari Ampenan). Di pasar ini, dulu paling seneng beli jajanan pasar, seperti lupis, tiwul, gethuk, dan jajanan khas Jawa lainnya (aneh ya, di Lombok tapi yang dicari makanan tradisional khas Jawa, hehehe…).

Yang lain? Tentu saja obyek wisata seperti taman Suranadi, Narmada dan Mayura, pantai Senggigi (dulu tuh.., belum banyak hotel berdiri, dan nelayan bebas melaut di seputar pantai ini. Tapi sekarang katanya udah penuh dikelilingi hotel….), pantai Kuta di Lombok Tengah (pasir putihnya.., lembutnya ndak pernah ada di pantai manapun lho). Pokoknya, Lombok tidak pernah terlupakan, meski aku tak lama menikmatinya. Sekarang Lombok gimana ya?

Taman Narmada (West Nusa Tenggara)

Taman Narmada, 11 kilometers east of Mataram, was built in 1727 by King Anak Agung Gede Ngurah Karang Asem as both a pleasure garden and place to worship Shiva. Its big pool is said to represent Segara Anakan, the crater lake on the volcano Rinjani where they used to make offerings by throwing valuables into the water.

As he became too old to make the pilgrimage up the 3,726 meter high mountain, he had Narmada made to represent the mountains and the lake. Near the pond is a place of worship and a spring whose water is believed to give dedicated pilgrims eternal youth.

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Taman Narmada (West Nusa Tenggara)

Taman Narmada, 11 kilometers east of Mataram, was built in 1727 by King Anak Agung Gede Ngurah Karang Asem as both a pleasure garden and place to worship Shiva. Its big pool is said to represent Segara Anakan, the crater lake on the volcano Rinjani where they used to make offerings by throwing valuables into the water.

As he became too old to make the pilgrimage up the 3,726 meter high mountain, he had Narmada made to represent the mountains and the lake. Near the pond is a place of worship and a spring whose water is believed to give dedicated pilgrims eternal youth.

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Rambitan Village (West Nusa Tenggara)

Sengkol, Pujut and Rambitan. Time seems to have frozen in these three villages in southern Lombok on the road from the capital to Kuta Beach.

All the houses and barns are built in the age-old traditional style, and life continues daily here as it has for centuries.

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Mataram and Cakranegara (Lombok)

Mataram and Cakranegara. Mataram is the capital of the province, which has in the past decades joined with Ampenan, the port, and Cakranegara to become the province’s biggest urban complex. At the beginning of the 18th century, Mataram was the residence of the crown prince of Karang Asem, a kingdom in southern Bali. The ruler had his seat in Cakranegara.

Lombok’s biggest Balinese temple is the Pura Meru in Cakranegara; it was built in 1720 by Anak Agung Made Karang. Dedicated to the Hindu trinity of Shiva, Brahma and Vishnu, it has three courtyards.

Three pagoda-like places of worship stand in a line from north to south in the innermost courtyard. The one on the north is dedicated to Vishnu and has a roof with nine tiers. The central one is dedicated to Shiva with 11 tiers on its roof, and the southernmost one is for Brahma with a roof of seven tiers. Nearby is Taman Mayura.

Once part of the royal palace, it has an artificial lake set in the middle of a park. A raised path leads from the side of the pond to a pavilion built in the middle of the lake. In former days justice was meted out and religious rituals were performed in this open-sided pavilion.

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Pura Lingsar (West Nusa Tenggara)

Pura Lingsar. This may be the only Hindu shrine in the world were both Hindus and Moslems come to worship. About 7 kilometers west of Narmada, it was built 1714 and rebuilt in 1878 to symbolize harmony and unity between the Hindu Balinese and Moslem Sasak population of the area, especially those who adhere to Lombok’s unique Wektu Telu school of Islam.

The Balinese temple is built on higher ground, behind the Moslem section of the compound. In the lower yard is a spring near which pilgrims stage a mock battle between Hindus and Moslems, hurling rice cakes at each other.

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Kuta Beach (West Nusa Tenggara)

Also known as Putri Nyale Beach, Kuta on the south coast of central Lombok is one of the most scenic and unspoiled beaches in this part of Indonesia. From Kuta to Tanjung Aan five km away, it is an unbroken stretch of clean white sand on the Indian Ocean.

It is safe for bathing and swimming. Further to the west are the surfers and wind surfers beaches. Each year, on the 19th day of the tenth month of the Sasak lunar calendar on February or March when the Nyale fish come to the sea's surface, Kuta Beach is the site of great festivities.

Fishermen sail out to sea while young men and women gather along the beach to join in the merrymaking, tease each other and perhaps meet to build a more lasting relationship.

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Batu Bolong Beach (West Nusa Tenggara)

Located 9 km from downtown Mataram, this beach has a huge rock with a hole in it. A Hindu temple lies on top facing the Lombok Strait and beyond is the contour of majestic Mount Agung of Bali.

After sunbathing, relaxing and frolicking on this beautiful beach-front, try to stay till the end of the day to watch one of the most stunning sunsets you have ever seen when the sun slowly begins to disappear behind Mount Agung with incredibly flaming colors.

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Taman Narmada (West Nusa Tenggara)

Taman Narmada, 11 kilometers east of Mataram, was built in 1727 by King Anak Agung Gede Ngurah Karang Asem as both a pleasure garden and place to worship Shiva. Its big pool is said to represent Segara Anakan, the crater lake on the volcano Rinjani where they used to make offerings by throwing valuables into the water.

As he became too old to make the pilgrimage up the 3,726 meter high mountain, he had Narmada made to represent the mountains and the lake. Near the pond is a place of worship and a spring whose water is believed to give dedicated pilgrims eternal youth.
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Taman Mayura (West Nusa Tenggara)

The Mayura Park is all that remains of the Karang Asam kingdom of Bali, who’s King A.A. Ngurah, structure called Balai Kambang, which once functioned as a legal court of Justice and a hall for important meetings.

Curiously, its architecture shows both Hindu and Islamic influences, adorned with stone statues in the form of a Moslem hajji.
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