Lombok

Whenever I travel anywhere, my dad always asks three questions upon my return. “What was your highlight, lowlight, and one thing you learned?” For years I’ve been following this, asking my mates the exact same questions whenever they go away, and preparing my answers at the airport on my way home. It’s a better way to learn about someone’s adventures rather than just asking, “How was everything?” and being stumped, unsure where to start.

Highlight: Every time I surfed. Sometimes back at home (okay, most of the time back at home), I get anxious surfing, nervous that I’ll crack my skull on a rock or drift out in a rip. But being in a group with instructors, even though there was so many other people around, I always felt safe and happy. I wiped out countless times, but every time I did I popped back up to the surface with a big smile on my face and a loud laugh.
Lowlight: On the plane home, as soon as the seatbelt light came on I got intense back pain shooting up my spine. I’ve had this pain before and normally pop some panadol and have a stretch and a twist on the floor, but since the seatbelt light was on and we were yet to take off, I had to stay put. I was wriggling and squirming in my seat to find a comfortable spot but nothing was working, so I had to sit in crazy pain. (Like, when I say it was bad, I was literally crying and about to vomit in my lap.) Finally when we were in the sky, I got straight out of my seat and told the flight attendants who made space for me in a row and brought me a heat pack. Angels.
Something that I learned: I learned the word “boya” - whenever the waves were small or there was a lull between sets, the surf instructors would yell “boya!” at the water. They said this is how you would call a dog, so when you say it to the ocean it makes it angry and the waves bigger.

That’s the mini recap that follows dad’s formula, but if you want the longer story, strap yourself in now…

Alex and I knew, we just knew, that our first night in Indonesia would be a rough one. We were scheduled to land in Denpasar at around 1:30am, and the only ferry that we could catch to Lombok was at 9am… at a port 2 hours away. We had two options: land, go out partying all night in Bali, and go straight to the ferry or land, get a hotel for four hours of sleep, and then drive to the ferry. Either way, we were going to be stitched up! But, because we are responsible adults, we opted for the second option.

The fast boat ran smoothly and we managed to get to Kuta in the south of Lombok in time for lunch. We pretty much raced to a restaurant for a fat quesadilla and margarita (traditional Indonesian food, you know?) before we checked in to the surf house and started preparing for the next few days. The surf house that we booked had heaps of activities planned, as well as a surf every morning and everyone in the house was so friendly and kind.

Tangjung Aan beach

The next few days were pretty much dedicated to surfing. We’d get up nice and early for breakfast, and then the instructors would whisk us away to a little surf spot. We’d often practice pop-ups and talk about how the waves were breaking before getting in the boat and sailing out to the break. After the surf, we’d drink a coconut, eat some nasi gorang, and befriend the local stray cats. At first, the surfing seemed a bit hectic - there was quite a few surf schools in the one spot, so you’d have to be really mindful of other beginners accidentally snaking a wave, or not knowing how to steer the board to avoid a collision. But after a short time there was a clear rhythm to it and I loved every second! Mostly, I surfed at Tanjung Aan, but one day we went to Ekas where Mount Rinjani could be seen in the background while we were in the water - it was incredible!

There was one time when I got a wave, almost stood up and then promptly fell off. In the back of my mind I remembered the instructors telling us how to cover our heads and protect our necks if we fell into a wave with other surfers, so I did this while in the washing machine. And suddenly, as I was about to get to the surface, someone’s board hit me right in what would have been the crown of my head! So glad I remembered to shield myself in that moment, because all I walked away with was a bruise on my arm. Every time we were in the water I took heaps of breaks in the channel, just floating beside my board because my spine, after having my chest up for such a long time, was causing me a little grief. After every surf when we were back at the house, our instructors would give debrief us about some things we could focus on the next day, and any changes to our boards. They were so helpful and it was after one of these debriefs that I realised I’ve been surfing like a righty when I should be surfing like a lefty! No wonder I was finding it so tricky (any excuse, right?).

One day, we even took the skateboards out to practice surf skate. Since the movement and footwork can be so similar, the instructors reminded us that skating can be a great way to practice form and turning when you’re not in the water. Somehow, I found skating way scarier than surfing (probably something to do with the fact that if you fall while skating, it’ll seriously hurt) and I reallllly slowly rolled around, being pushed by one of the instructors at around 2km/h. Eventually I was keen to go on my own but I was still rubbish – I found it really hard to keep momentum! Alex, on the other hand, absolutely nailed it and was super comfortable on the skateboard.

There were a couple of special nights at the surf house, one being when at the family dinner I surprised Alex with a birthday cake. The lights went off and everyone started singing, and as she describes it, Alex thought “Oh, whose birthday is it?” and when she saw me walking with a cake thought, “oh no….. it’s for me…” The guys at the surf house were asking me the best way to embarrass her and I knew she’d hate all the attention and singing, so seeing the sheer distain on her face, I knew I’d hit the mark. The other special night was when almost 30 of us booked a table at a Mexican restaurant for their buy a marg and get a free taco deal. Everyone was so chatty, moving seats so they could talk to everyone down the table, playing games and singing ABBA. One of the girls, a lawyer from the UK, even brought her work laptop to the dinner so she could finish off a few documents – it was completely ridiculous seeing her working silently, sipping a drink and buying a vape while we all sang and danced around her. This was a really wholesome night and a close second highlight for me.

After the surf house, Alex and I had a bnb booked for a couple of nights so we could explore parts of Lombok that we didn’t get to see earlier. We rented a scooter and I was a passenger princess while Alex took the brunt of it and navigated the crazy roads. We rode out to Selong beach and had a swim, and then off to a bat cave (where, yes, a bat did in fact shit on my shoulder). We also stopped in at a traditional village which gave me major culture shock as the guide described to us that people in the village don’t marry anyone from “outside”, and they must marry their cousins.

Eventually we left Lombok and I’m sad to say that we didn’t do nearly as much as I wished we did! We simply didn’t have enough time. Hiking up Rinjani (though gruelling) would have been an amazing experience, and visiting towns on the east, and seeing the coffee plantation at the base of the volcano would have been so cool. I guess it’ll all just have to go on the “next time” list. We caught the fast boat back to Bali and this time it was less smooth - in fact, I noticed some workers redistributing weight at one stage… I chose to close my eyes and quietly ignore what that could mean… Anyway, we made it safe and sound and drove to Seminyak where we had just one night before our flight home.

I was starving, so I found a little restaurant nearby which turned out to be amazing. Not only did Alex finally find the lemon Bintang that she’d been searching for all week, but the waiter was obsessed with the Beatles, and he kept picking up his guitar to sing along with them on the TV. Ah, and the food was delicious. Since our flight was in the evening the next day, we had hours to chill out and get some massages (well needed after all that surfing) and do some shopping since Alex was desperate for a pair of crocs.

Once our plane landed, my phone pinged with a message from someone at a school in Katherine, asking if I could start work a week earlier than originally planned. And hey, since this is my year of reframing (and since I’m a bit slim on funds) I said hell yes, so that’s where I am as I write this. I spent just one night in Darwin with Alex before I hopped back in Deloraine and drove down here - it’s funny as well because when I opened the van door, it smelled like home - not musty and gross like a room that hasn’t been aired out, but like the thick timber that the cupboards are made from.

Sunset in Darwin on my last night with Alex.