Friday, March 21, 2025

Today was our last morning in Kuta, Lombok. Andi arranged for Johnny, the original driver who picked us up at the cruise port, to transport us to another town on the island. We’ll spend the next few nights at a beach resort in the village of Senggigi.

I still wasn’t feeling well this morning, so Andi got the kids up & moving and fed them breakfast. Eventually, I peeled myself out of bed at 8:30am and started packing our things. I felt like I’d been on an all-night bender — my head was pounding and I had zero energy.

Our new accommodations in Senggigi wouldn’t be ready until 2:00pm, so Johnny offered to take us to a traditional weaving village. The Sukarara tourism village showcases women who are proficient in making traditional Lombok crafts. Honestly, this wasn’t top of Andi and I’s to-do list when visiting Lombok, but what else were we going to do between check-out and check-in times? It was raining this morning, so we couldn’t do much of anything outdoors.

Sukarara is located in the Jonggat District of Central Lombok Regency. We had an up-close view of native women weaving sarongs. They told us that it takes one month to make a sarong on the loom and that traditionally, all Lombok women are supposed to learn how to make a sarong before they are eligible to be married. In fact, girls are proudly taught the craft at a very young age; the technique passed down through generations.

The weavers asked Tory if she wanted to try her hand at making a sarong. I was proud of Tory for stepping right up, even though I know she doesn’t like to be put on the spot in these situations. The women tightened the loom around Tory’s waist, and then told her to slam the wooden bar three times to stitch the fabric row. “Harder! Harder!” they instructed her, as she pulled the bar toward her body.

“Now you know how to weave a sarong,” the women complimented Tory.

Hold up, we joked; she’s too young to get married.

The women told us that most Indonesian women marry when they are 20-years-old. The practice of arranged marriages is still observed in Indonesia, the suitor often “stealing” the woman he wishes to marry from her family.

The weavers invited me to have a turn on the loop. I climbed up onto the table and slid my legs underneath the loop. Then, the woman clamped the machine onto my belly, securing it tightly to my waist. What an uncomfortable sitting position!

As they did to Tory, the women demonstrated how to slam the wooden beam toward my middle to secure the fabric pattern in place.

After the weaving lesson, the four of us were ushered into a showroom with thousands of sarongs on display. “Alright, here we go,” Andi muttered under his breath. Obviously, they wanted us to buy sarongs to take home with us.

The women began dressing our family in traditional wedding attire, tying sarongs around our waists, and putting crowns on top of Andi and Aden’s heads. I asked if the colors or patterns meant something special, but the woman said no — all ceremonious couples wear the same black clothing.

They led us over to the marriage hut and requested to take our picture. We found ourselves in one of those touristy travel moments, but what were we to do except smile?

“Thank you!” we all said as we undressed the wedding garments and made a bee-line for the exit. “Can we leave a tip for you?” Andi offered. The women seemed content with that gesture.

Back in Johnny’s vehicle, we drove to Katamaran luxury beach resort. The resort is located in the town of Senggigi, about 1 1/2 hours northwest of Kuta.

Now this is what I imagined when I thought about traveling to Indonesia! The resort staff welcomed us into the gorgeous open-air lobby, and handed us glasses of iced lemongrass tea while we completed the check-in process.

Andi reserved us two oceanview rooms next door to one another. The price? $2,200,000 Rupiah which is $138 USD/per room. It brings Andi great joy knowing what a good deal he’s getting on our travels.

By the time we settled into our rooms, it was nearly 3:00pm. We were all ready for something to eat. There’s two restaurants on the hotel property; we chose to eat lunch at the one called The Sail.

For lunch, Andi and Aden each ordered Nasi Goreng, a traditional Indonesian fried rice dish served with chicken satay, rice crackers, and a fried egg on top. I had a salmon poke bowl, and Tory ordered a chicken quesadilla.

For once it wasn’t raining, so we decided to soak up the sun by the pool. Aden made himself right at home on a bed lounger, before putting his swim trunks on and splashing into the pool. Even Tory swam! She said it was a hair-washing day anyway.

We showered, and then went back to The Sail for dinner. This time, we sat at a table overlooking the ocean. It was gorgeous underneath the twinkling lights of lanterns.

Our table was served by a wonderful waitress named Dwi. She was so talkative and sweet; we hit it off with her right away. She told us all about Indonesian food and Bali customs.

Andi and I both ordered Indonesian dishes for our meals. He had Nasi Campur, a mixed rice platter of beef, fish, boiled egg, tofu, tempeh, and salad. I ordered Gado-Gado, an Indonesian salad with crunchy vegetables, tofu, green beans, and boiled eggs with peanut sauce. I wouldn’t say it was the best meal I’ve ever eaten, but it was fun to try something new.