SEMBALUN—the Hills Forted Village

Mountainous area is always being a target place to run away from busy dizzy days. What is your favorite place? Is it the same like mine? Well…….if ours are different, I would love to recommend “SEMBALUN” as your next visited place for this weekend. 

Sembalun is a hills forted village that is located on the slope of Rinjani--the second highest volcano in Indonesia. This village is also called Rinjani Gate because to climb Rinjani, you need to go this village first. This Village is located about 120 km away from Mataram. It belongs to East Lombok District. It was challenging to get here, I needed to pass long winding road. However, the landscape along the road was pretty amazing to see. I got there about 8 p.m.  I sneezed many times. The weather reached 15 degree Celsius.

The following day, I was spoiled by the enchanted beauty of sunrise. To enjoy the sunrise here, I don’t need to wake up early. Since a lot of hills around this village, sunrise takes longer to be seen. In the morning, I also went to see the traditional market. Most of the sellers just sat on the ground with some sacks and put their trading goods on them. I was trying to be a good bargainer and I think I did. 

The most impressive experience that I enjoyed there was when I mingled with the farmers, I saw them were very absorbed with their work. Their hospitality made me feel good at ease. Besides, I also walked and picked many strawberries. Sembalun is widely known as the biggest supplier of vegetables in West Nusa Tenggara. No wonder, veggies are very cheap here. It’s good for a vegetarian stay here.

Around this farm, there were some traditional houses. The roof was made from the dried paddy leaves and the floor was made from the mix of poop cow and mud. Mostly, the house is pillared with some yellow bamboos. Next to the houses, there is a Lumbung—a place to store paddies. There was also heaps of garlic that were dried on the long bamboos. This area was also used as a setting several local movies. 

To see the whole beautiful landscape of Sembalun, a friend of mine took me to the hills. We hiked about 10 minutes to reach the top. There was “berugaq” or Gazebo on the top. From the top, Sembalun looks like a hidden paradise among the hills. I was so lucky could climb that hills and could see the view in the sunny sky. This spot is also mostly visited by many photographers that want to catch Rinjani pictures.

If you plan to visit this place, you need to bring your jacket and cash money because there is no any ATM service here. Enjoy your visit and bring back beautiful memories.