#throwback Gili Trawangan (West Nusa Tenggara, Indonesia)

At last!
After almost half year planning, I finally could enjoy Gili T in August 2013! I could say it's the best island I've ever visited (after pulau Wai in Raja Ampat). I love the sun, the sky, the beach, the water, and the sand. Simply everything! Oh well, here's my story..

I traveled with Garuda Indonesia with my best friend. Our plane took off around 6 am from Soekarno-Hatta International Airport and we arrived at Lombok International Airport around 9 am (local time). We did not ask for airport pick up service from the hotel cause we thought it's too expensive (around 700k for 2 people) and because we had plenty of time (so no rush!). We took an official airport taxi KOTAMA and chose to use public ferry from BANGSAL. It took 2 hours and costed us 300k from the airport to the harbour. We saw beautiful scenery while we were on our way (make sure you took picture at MALIMBU). During our journey, the taxi driver told us that about bad things happened when people chose to use travel (they offer you to drop you to where you want. It's like a taxi but it's a more private). Thus, he convinced us to tell our fellow friends to use either airport pick up service or official airport taxi.


When we arrived at the harbour, we had to stop in the parking lot and continued our journey with delman/andong (horse wagon) that costed us 20k. The price of public ferry is very cheap! only 13k. However, for the price you pay, you have to wait till the boat is full (I really hate the fact that they don't have fixed schedule.. come on bro! uh). If you're lucky you only wait 5-10 minutes. Overall, it took us +-3 hours to arrive at Gili Trawangan from the airport. Don't forget to wear thongs or beach sandals cause there won't be a proper place for you to disembark (when you jump out of the boat, you'll feel the smooth white sand and cool sea water)

We stayed in Trawangan Dive Hotel (I booked it from Agoda). Since it's not that far from the harbour, we just walked. The hotel is just ok. Nothing really special. Neat and modern. They have TV but do not expect to watch local or even international channel. The good news is they have library, so you can borrow DVDs and books for free (We borrowed several DVDs and a book!). I was really tired that day so we only watched the sunset and stayed at the hotel room. Sadly we missed a party cause I slept early hiks. So, if you are into night life, ask the locals about the schedule right away.

Honestly speaking, I love Gili Trawangan as much as I love Bali. I just do sun bathing. reading books. REPEAT. with my best friend. Love this kind of quality time when you can just reflect back and think how your life has been (should have time like this once in a while)

The second day, we woke up early to watch the sunrise. It's just beautiful! I can see the starry sky and a warm sun rises from the back of the mountain. Stunning!!!!
Ps. If you stay at the south of the island, you must walk a bit north to get the best view ;)

Enjoyed spending time doing nothing but sunbathing with my best friend. We stopped at several places, but my fav is the Villa Ombak sunbathing spot. You can also order some food here though you don't stay at their place. The price is just ok.

Or if you like to chill, there's a bar in the south part of the island that is famous for people who want to watch the sunset (Sorry, I can't recall the name of the bar). You can order some cocktail and listen to reggae music. Well, some people also offer some illegal stuffs herbs that make you even chiller than ever.

Third day, we tried fun diving (approx Rp. 600k/ person). In the morning, we learnt the basic in the swimming pool, then after lunch we went straight to the sea! It was really fun to have a sneak peek of underwater life. Wish we had had started it since day one. Since i hadn't bought gopro back then, I didn't have any documentation at all :(
* If you wished to take diving license, you have to stay at least 4-5 days in Gili Trawangan and bring a lot of cash (approx. Rp 3 million for the basic PADI license/ person)

What should you prepare to enjoy Gili T?

• Cash. Cash. Cash.
• Sunblock, Sunscreen, and Sunnies (Shades, Sunglasses)
• A good (underwater) camera
• A nice pair of sandals 
• Music Player
• Diving license (or take one there)
• Smile
• Turn off your cellphone :p

 “Like all great travelers, I have seen more than I remember, and remember more than I have seen.” – Benjamin Disraeli

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