Life is a Journey

After one and a half hours on the road, the tiny village of Jor brought a welcome change of pace. This was the launching point for the two small fishing boats we had hired to take us to Teanjah Anjah and Gili Sunut.
Traders jostled for mooring space in the mangrove to off load their goods from the surrounding area. Rich colours attract your attention to the organised chaos that surrounds you.

 

 

 

 

 

It looks like a scene from the movie Water World with Kevin Costner. In fact these incredible bamboo structures are for catching lobster. The warm shallow waters are rich in marine life with and as we head south a school of flying fish create a frenzy of activity by our boats.

As we approach Teanjah Anjah the coast line of Lombok shows its idyllic face. Deserted beaches with only the occasional temporary hut remind us of how inaccessible this region is and how difficult life is for the villagers on Gili Sunut.

Lombok Life

Buzzing with activity, Lombok life is full of colour. It is Bali as it used to be, where you can get up close to the everyday lives of these welcoming people.

The hustle and bustle of our journey to visit Teanjah Anjah took us from Mataram in the West to the new village site at Teanjah Anjah on the South east coast.
Every corner in the road brought new surprises. Armed with a new camera, these snap shots of Lombok Life hopefully give you a taste of the real Indonesia.



A common site in the early morning are the local farmers heading to the traditional market (pasar). Here with Bananas and Jack Fruit.



There is always room for two more on the local angkutan umum (bus)! These kids are heading to a high school near Praya and like every student in Lombok, always in smart uniforms.
Selling is a necessity here, any place, any time, any where. Here pretty in pink is selling batik at one of the countless Bales along the roadside. It is an opportunity to stop, rest and chat to passers by.
The extended rain season has given many farmers the chance to plant April padi fields. With the work done, the boys have time to fly their kites.

Thanks For Visiting

The blog site may be small but our reach is Global!! I suppose that's the power of the internet.

Thanks to everyone around the world for visiting the site and for all the emails you send us. Thanks for caring about a small island community in Indonesia that needs our support.

We now have visitors from, Canada, France, India, Italy, UAE, Vietnam, Slovenia and Bahrain. As well as all our regular visitors from Indonesia, UK, USA and Singapore.

Good News

We are back on track with Phase One of the relocation programme. After a long and wet rain season, Team Sunut are back on the site. Its been a painful wait while resources and weather allow the builders to complete the construction of the new homes.

Ocean Blue Resorts will be visiting Teanjah Anjah next week for a progress update so watch this space for more photos and news of the community.

Thanks to Team Sunut and the community for their patience and hard work over the last few months.

Meanwhile back on Gili Sunut

With no kids on the site this week, we made a quick visit to the island.

As is now customary, we were greeted by the kids who rushed down to the beach to see what treats we had brought for them! Their passion for life and warm smiles reminded us why we are all here.

The excitement builds at Teanjah Anjah

Driving along the new road towards the village, it was clear that the terracotta roof tiles had arrived on site and work was now progressing to complete the first six homes.

Touring the site, we could see that most of the foundations for all the 109 houses had now been completed and the physical shape of the village was easier to identify. With some houses nearing completion you could see where the roads, private gardens and public area would be in relation to one another.  

As well as the bright red terracotta roof, a number of houses were being rendered outside, while another team was busy dry lining the interiors and putting up the ceilings in the three rooms homes.  One house even had a fresh coat of pink paint on the exterior. “It’s a modern colour’ laughed one builder, as we discussed a more environmentally sympathetic range of colours!

Building a sustainable future for the community

After only 4 weeks work, the new village at Teanjah Anjah takes shape thanks to 300 workers from the local community and construction industry working together to beat the rainy season.

When Ocean Blue Resorts Indonesia announced the start of the relocation programme in August 2010 it did not expect the overwhelming response to the news.

By week four of the construction schedule, Team Sunut confirmed that the project was so far ahead of schedule that it was running out of cash!


Project Manager for Team Sunut, Pak Zen, confirmed that due to the immanent rainy season, the labour force had been increase to 300 people and the supply of materials increased to keep the pace with the good weather. He pointed out that the foundations for all 109 houses needed to be completed while the weather remained good. Slowing up was not an option when you are in a race against Mother Nature. With emotions running high, and expectations even higher, CEO Martin Gow flew to Lombok to take a second look at the site and provide an extra cash boost to Phase One of the Resort project.

Team Sunut were on hand to give OBRI a tour of the construction site and review the great progress being made.

Now the land has been cleared, the vast scale of the project becomes more apparent. Sitting 15 meters above sea level, the site offers incredible views of the ocean. And as Teanjah Anjah sits at the end of a peninsular, the crystal clear waters of the Indian Ocean wrap around three sides on the village.