Day 353: Gili Gede - Gili Meno

Mar 22 - I had arranged a ride from the port on the mainland (Tembowong) to our next destination a few days ago. Today we pack up and take a boat to the harbor, where the taxi is already waiting. It takes about two hours to go north along the west coast of Lombok to Bangsal harbor.

Arrive in Bangsal about 13:00, get a rather expensive speedboat, and go the last 15 minutes to the harbor at Gili Meno. Our homestay is in the middle of the island, but this only means about ten minutes walking.

Walk back to the pier and go south along the shore. Plenty of options for snorkeling tours here, we get some info and carry on. About a 10 minute walk brings us to the Gili Meno Sea Turtle Sanctuary. This tiny facility (just a one room house and six tanks) was set up to improve the chances of baby sea turtles to survive their first months of life. There are green, hawksbill, and leatherback turtles coming to this island to lay eggs. Rather than leave the nests at the mercy of local domesticated animals, they bring the eggs here to hatch, after which they are placed in the tanks and fed for up to three months. Then they are released. As well as eliminating the domestic animal threat, their release after three months means they are at least a bit more able to defend themselves in the ocean. Though one might argue that those three months should have been spent learning the hard way, thus keeping natural selection as a survival determinant.

Take a walk to the west side of the island, where there is a saltwater lake. It is surrounded by mangroves and a walkway over the water that is in dire need of repair.

The homestay is directly behind a mosque, and seeing that today is the start of Ramadan, there is a lot going on. In the evening, everyone shows up in their finest mosque-going apparel. There are so many people that the men fill up the mosque itself and courtyard, leaving the women to hang out in a café across the street. They sit around and chat, giving me the impression that they have the better deal.

The loudspeaker, aimed directly at our room, makes for a noisy evening, from dusk until close to midnight.