From double outrigger sailboats for fishing, to artisanal gold mining, traditional Sasak weddings and ancient rural villages, there’s more to Lombok than waterfalls and beach resorts.
Staying in the area for a while, we were able to delve a little deeper into daily life and get to learn about the culture of Lombok’s south-western province of Sekotong.
The first community we came across was full of busy people. Every house had a tumbling device (some modern, some Heath Robinson-style) and all filled with rocks. The contraptions provided a soundscape of churning tumblers. which reverberated around the village, creating a kind of tinkling, clanking symphony.
The women cracked small stones while adding water to the tumbling drums. We wondered if it was a kind of cement?
It turns out this is a gold mining village, with mines dotting the hillsides around Sekotong. Most villages have makeshift machines used to extract gold from sediment. Constantly churning, breaking up the rocks to reveal solid gold specks in the sediment, workers add mercury inside the machines to help extract the gold. It’s cheap, and it’s easy. But it’s not good for their health.
Watch the video to find out more about why gold mining here is so dangerous.
Peace and fair winds!
Liz and Jamie xx
Check out the video to find out more about Sasak life (and why they build their roofs so low)!
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