La Petite Traveler: Loving Lombok

by Katharine Bohlmann

Turquoise water, 100-year-old turtles, purple starfish, monkeys, palm trees, coconuts, lush green mountains, bamboo plants, and the smell of lemongrass. This is how I would describe the island of Lombok, one of the most exotic places I have ever been.

Lombok is one of the many islands located in Indonesia, just east of Bali, but not nearly as well known.

On a recent trip to Bali, my Mom and I decided to visit this island, named after the red chili peppers, the main crop grown here. When we arrived in Lombok, I knew that we were in a very remote location. My Mom told me that Lombok was what Bali was like twenty-five years ago.

We got into our car, and the driver told us it would take a good hour to cross up over the mountain before we would reach our hotel. What he didn't tell me was that we were going to drive through the monkey forest!!! You can only imagine my face when we got to the top of the mountain and our car was surrounded by squirrel monkeys. We saw mother monkeys with their new babies sitting on the side of the road, larger monkeys swinging from the vines and lots of monkeys sitting in the middle of the road. What a hoot!

We finally arrived at the Oberoi Hotel, one of the few hotels on Lombok and the only luxury property on the island. Upon entering, I saw the huge infinity pool and I knew I was going to like this place. We were taken to our suite, a small villa on the beach. It was surrounded by a stone wall and had a big wooden door which lead to the courtyard, complete with a private pool. Our room was spacious and filled with purple orchids. Our butler arrived, offered us mango tea and a plate of tropical fruit, and presented us a menu of activities. I opted for the snorkeling excursion.

I put on my suit and sun block and we walked down to the dive center where we met our guide and were fitted for our equipment. We boarded a small boat and headed out into the bluest water I have ever seen. My favorite stop was when I saw a purple starfish and touched a 100-year-old sea turtle. We spent a good part of the day in the water, and I saw lots of beautiful fish and all types of coral. When we got back to the hotel, I was ready for a swim in the infinity pool. At sunset, I was ready to clean up for dinner. Our butler surprised me and had drawn my bath and covered the top of the water with fresh frangipani and bougainvillea. It was like a mini spa treatment!

As I was getting dressed for dinner, I could hear the locals doing their call to prayer. Lombok is actually a Muslim island, so this is part of their daily ritual. We wandered over to dinner and had a great meal, which included rice and some very hot spices. Remember, this is the chili pepper island, so the food is very spicy. The coconut ice cream was a refreshing ending to a long day and all the spices.

The next morning, we awoke to the sounds of the locals chanting and we watched the sun rise from our terrace as our Butler delivered room service. I was beginning to like the idea of having a Butler. My Mom thought it would be great if he would come home with us. His English was not very good, but his smile was amazing. He always seemed to know what to do and when to do it.

We spent a few days enjoying this island and our wonderful hotel. When we departed, the General Manager handed me a bag of nuts and bananas to give to the monkeys on our way back to the airport. As we approached the top of the Squirrel Monkey Forest, we pulled over, and as I started to get out of the car, monkeys ran up to me and one of them snatched my entire bag of peanuts from my hand and proceeded to eat them in front of me. I was able to give the bananas to some of the others, but what a scene it caused! I was laughing the entire way back to the airport.

Lombok is a very special place and I really enjoyed seeing this island. As our plane touched down back in Bali, I knew that places like Lombok are very rare and surely a treasure. I'll never forget the purple starfish, the wild monkeys, the 100-year-old turtle and the coconut ice cream.

For Reservations, call 800-562-3764 or email reservations@eih-indian.com. For general info, please visit: www.oberoilombok.com

Katharine Bohlmann is currently in the fifth grade. She lives in the Pacific Palisades with her Dad and also lives in Santa Monica with her Mom and two adorable dogs. In her free time she likes to watch Gilmore Girls, shop, and write.