Lombok Island

      Lombok is often compared to Bali. In reality the island is very different in culture, religion, language and landscape. If Bali is famous for its 1,000 temples, Lombok island is well-known for its 1,000 mosques. This island is part of the West Nusa Tenggara (NTB) with Mataram as the capital city. Sasak is the majority ethnic group and the Buginese, Javanese, Balinese and Saudi Arabian live there too.
       Cakranegara, in east Mataram, is the main market centre and has several Balinese temples. Pura Meru is the largest temple, built by Anak Agung Made Karang in 1720. This temple holds the Pujawali Festival every year in September or October during the full moon periode.
      The best beach is Senggigi in Northern Lombok. Tourist can snorkel the sea and enjoy the beautiful coral reefs. Forty five kilometers from Cakranegara is the beautiful white-sand beach of Kuta beach in Bali. Tourist can enjoy the sunset in Pura Batu Bolong, a Hindu temple on a cliff. If they want to dive and continue to snorkel in other place, they can take trip to Bangsal and from here depart by boat to the island of Gili Air, Gili Meno and Gili Trawangan. They are various types of marine habitats.
      The centre of Lombok is dominated by the spectacular crater of Mount Rinjani, Indonesia's second highest volcano (after Mount Kerinci in Sumatra). The lower slopes of Rinjani are home to craft village.
       South Lombok features some of the best surfing in the country, excellent snorkeling, dive sites great opportunities for fishing. For those who want to escape the crowds and truly relax in the sun, this island is waiting to be discovered and explored.