Awakening of The
Senses
Executive summary by darmansjah
Gili Trawangan is
not just about having fun in the sun. join diver as she dives deeper into this
island’s underwater garden for a spot of coral reef restoration.
Made Astawa looks out into the azure distance as the
speedboat bumps along surges of waves, heading towards the spectre of an island
on the clear horizon he knows too well. He has just left Bali with a group of
scuba divers that include myself, mostly from Singapore, to learn to care for
coral reefs on Gili Trawangan, or fondly known as Gili T for short.
For Made, Gili T is home, where he was born and raised,
where he attended high school before leaving Bali to become a dive instructor.
The 17-year-old lad is my guest on this eco dive trip on his own home island –
a welcome break from the strenuous instructor training he has been having on
Bali the last six months. He is thinking about granny’s freshly pounded chilli
sambal with coconut flavoured steamed rice and crispy anchovies. He has his
meals out near south Gili T beach, while looking out at the the tip of Mount
Rinjani on Lombok Island no too far away. His mother lives on Lombok, and so do
his sisters, but his home is in Gili T where he must return one day after he
obtains his professional instructor diving certification to earn his living.
At seven square kilometers, Gili T is the largest of the
three Gilis – the other two are Gili Air and Gili Meno – all cast in a row to
the northwest of Lombok, Gili means ‘small island’ in Sasak, a language spoken
by the early inhabitants of Lombok belonging to the Bali-Sasak-Sumbawa
subgroup. The sasaks embraced Islam in the late 17th and 18th-century
while Hinduism remains intrinsic to most of the other natives within the West
Nusa Tenggara province. More than three million Sasak and Balinese live in this
area, which includes the Sumbawa Island, where Made’s father works as a
mechanic.
The Gilis are quick getaways for Bali expats who are bored
with what picturesque Bali offers and now seek alternative scenery. Gili T,
just over an hour’s speedboat ride from Bali’s Benoa or Padangbai departure
point, is the ‘party island’ while Gili Air and Gili Meno provide quieter
escapades in comparison.
Outlining Gili T are gleaming stretches of sandy beaches,
fringed by coral reefs and deep fishing zones, where fishermen carry on a
livelihood practiced by past generations. Following the urgent call of the
mosque before dawn and whispered prayers over woven mats, the men row out to
the seas with rods and nets on their handmade sampans or wooden boats.
The largely Muslim community living in villages tucked away
from the coastline is a framed picture of serenity. Time moves slowly.
Sun-kissed kids spil out the back lanes barefoot with tangled hair, old ladies
shuffle along with rattan baskets of homemade cakes, and granddads sit out on
front verandahs shaded by jackfruit trees, exhaling clove-scented curls.
Here is an island that has no tarmac or runway strip, so
motorized vehicles are nowhere to be seen. Instead, bicycles compete with pony
carts on a ten-foot squiggly pathway that holds mud with it rains. It fringes
the beach and is where one walks on to get food, clothes or for the tourist, to
the next bar on a Full Moon party, which interestingly now happens nearly
everyday.
Idyllic? Yes. An oasis of calm: if you head inland and up
north. A place to meet new friends? For sure. Bars are aplenty, with local
tanned dudes carbon copying the Bali cowboys ever ready to befriend single
female travelers. They strike awe with their break-dance routines in front of
an Irish bar, hoping for a reward in the form of a beer. Partying hard is what
most tourists do after a sunny day out diving or island hopping; dehydration
quickens beer guzzling ,and by four in the morning, the dizzy dances continue
to the pounding base and rhytm in one big blur, more often than not aided by
easily obtainable party enchancers.
For many who make it out to Gili T, it’s a different kind of
wild creatures that are the attraction. Under the sea team varied marine life
one can easily recognise: parrotfishes, angelfsihes, jacks, puffers, and
clownfihes live in symbiotic existence with the animated anemones.
Corals ar pretty at a number of dive sites but cannot be
compared to the past; e the resplendent coral reefs fringing the Gilis have
been bombed out due to damaging fishing practices. Communities of fishermen, in
their haste to increase their catch, dynamited the spot where fishes
congregated most – the coral reefs – and then conveniently swooped up the fish
floating dead on the water surface at one go. Little did they know that they
were destroying generations of natural underwater habitat. With the destruction
of the coral reefs, the population of coral fishes plunged as a result. The
fishermen found themselves with fewer and fewer fish, and then eventually close
to none.
While the locals on Gili T recognise their growing economic
needs and want to grow tourism in a bigger way to meet those needs, it is
heartening to know that they now take personal responsibility in protecting
their environment.
A community-led movement-the Gili Eco Trust – was formed in
2001 by seven dive shops and a local organization to gather funds and resources
to heighten marine awareness and conservation of the three Gili islands. A
major initiative is to restore demolished underwater habitats and prevent
further beach erosion by building new coral reefs using electric powered
structures or Biorock with the help of the community itself.
Other initiatives include installing mooring buoys to
prevent accidental anchoring on coral reefs, increased marine police patrol to
curb bad fishing practices, waste management to prevent pollution, plastic bag
reduction awareness programmes, and education of children and youths. Today
there are more 500 hotels, resorts, lodges, dive centres and tour operators onn
all three islands, wit h50 businesses contributing actively to the trust fund
and to the upkeep of the island, which includes training youths for the
bustling tourism industry.
One of the few selected Indonesians to be fully sponsored by
PADI, a scuba diving association ,to become a certified instructor, Made hopes
to do his bit to reverse the devastating actions of the fishermen by
participating in coral reef restoration through the Biorock dive course
program.
“I want to help improve the environment with Gili Eco Trust,
especially the marine problems we face, after I become a dive instructor,” he
says. Hopefully it will be a dream come true for this brown-eyed islander in
the months to come.
Relaxed, all natural yet sprinkled wit ha collection of
restaurant and bars that would satisfy any devot cosmopolitan, Gili Trawangan
is the road-weary rambler’s lucid fantasy.
Fly into either Bali’s Denpasar International Airport or the
new Lombok International Airport before connecting to the Gili island by boat
or ferry. A ferry or speedboat company (try Gilicat)
can arrange for a pick-up service from your accommodation to the nearest jetty.
Gili Trawang is small enough for you to travel around on
foot or by bike. You can also hire a cidomo, a small horse-drawn carriage, for
a clip-clop around the island (from US$3). There is a twice-daily
island-hopping boat service that loops around all three islands (US$2.50).
Bali and Lombok travel guide has a chapter on the Gili
island, which can also be downloaded from lonelyplanet.com
Big Bubble Diving and Bungalow has
twelve spacious guestrooms designed specifically with weary travelers in mind.
They are the perfect place to relax – with hammocks and daybeds on private
terraces. There’s a large swimming pool, beach volleyball court, dive shop and
beach front bar (from US$40).
A beautiful bungalow property on the tranquil north end, Karma
Kayak is co-owned by a former champion kayaker and also triples up as a
tapas bar and kayaking school. Owners and staff are lovely, the well-lit
bungalows are spotless and the beach is absolutely gorgeous, especially at
sunset (from US$60). At Karma Kayak,
tasty Spanish tapas (including house-cured olives, exquisite garlic prawns and
delicious meatballs) are served on the beach, in berugas or on tables and
lounges made from driftwood. It’s a popular spot at sunset (tapas from US$4).
The Gili islands are relatively near each other. When the tide allows, had over
to karma kayak and look for Astrid.
This former champion stunt kayaker leads half-day kayaking trips around the
Gillis (tours from US$33).
Hotel Vila Lombok balances the comforts of top-notch
accommodation with the natural beauty that surrounds it. The hotel features 115
air-conditioned huts, bungalows and private pool villas, built and furnished
with inspiration from the traditional style of Lombok and its neighbouring
island (from US$155).
Shoestringers and divers now have a new place to feast on
terrific local food on the cheap – Bu De. Choose from an array of fresh, spicy
food on display. The nasi campur is special and usually comes with fried or
curried chicken. Service is friendly and the bright dining room is spotless
(meals from US$1.50; 62 0370 0812 3637 9516).
Scallywags Organic Seafood Bar &
Grill’s open, shabby chic décor, and plush patio seating help make it a
major draw at all hours. They have tender steaks, spicy chorizo, a daily
selection of fresh fish and Aussie pies, terrific salads, a full bar,
exceptional desserts, an organic ethos and even wireless internet (meals from
US$5).
The island is fun to explore on foot or by bike. You can
walk around the whole island in a couple of hours – if you finish at the hill
on the southwestern corner, you’ll have terrific sunset views of Bali’s Gunung
Agung. Bikes are the preferred mode of transport and are easily hired from US$3
a day.
Learn to scuba dive with the many professional centres or
freedive with Gili Free Dive. Mike Board, a British national record holder in
freediving, also teaches yoga techniques. Yoga classes are held at sunset and
sunrise. Fun dives with nitrox are available, so explore the 20 plus dive sites
surrounding Gili islands.
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