PLACES OF INTEREST

Mataram and Cakranegara
   Mataram is the capital of the province which has in the past decades joined with Ampenan, the port, and Cakranegara to become the province's biggest urban complex.
   At around the beginning of the 18th century, Mataram was the residence of the crown prince of Karang Asem, a kingdom in southern Bali.
   The ruler himself had his seat in Cakranegara. The royal palace no longer exists, but many of the old temples and pleasure gardens are still there.
   Lombok's biggest Balinese temple is the Pura Meru in Cakranegara. Dedicated to the Hindu trinity of Shiva, Brahma and Vishnu, it was built in 1720 by Anak Agung Made Karang, which has three courtyards. Three pagoda-like places of worship stand in a line from north to south in the innermost courtyard. The one on the north is dedicated to Vishnu and has a roof with nine tiers. The central one is dedicated to Shiva with II tiers on its roof and the southernmost one is for Brahma with a roof of seven tiers.
   Nearby is Taman Mayura. Once part of the royal palace, it has an artificial lake set in the middle of a park. A raised path leads from the side of the pond to a pavilion built in the middle of the lake. In former days, justice was meted out and religious rituals were performed in this open-sided pavilion.

Narmada
   Taman Narmada, 11 kilometers east of Mataram, was built in 1727 by King Anak Agung Gede Ngurah Karang Asem as both a pleasure garden and place to worship Shiva. Its big pool is said to represent Segara Anakan, the crater lake on the volcano Rinjani where they used to make offerings by throwing valuables into the water. As he became too old to make the pilgrimage up the 3,726 meter high mountain, he had Narmada made to represent the mountains and the lake. Near the pond is a place of worship and a spring whose water is believed to give dedicated pilgrims eternal youth.

Pura Lingsar
   This may be the only Hindu shrine in the world where both Hindus and Moslems come to worship. About 7 kilometers west of Narmada, it was built in 1714 and rebuilt in 1878 to symbolize harmony and unity between the Hindu Balinese and Moslem Sasak population of the area, especially those who adhere to Lombok's unique Wektu Telu school of Islam.
   The Balinese temple is built on higher ground, behind the Moslem section in the compound. In the lower yard is a spring in which pilgrims in the temple yard stage a mock battle between Hindus and Moslems, in which both parties hurl rice cakes at each other.

Pura Agung Gunung Sari
   This great temple on a hill at Gunung Sari, about four kilometers from Mataram, was witness to the Puputan battle to the last man, fought on November 22, 1894, between Lombok's last Balinese ruler, Anak Agung Nengah and followers, and the Dutch troops under General Van der Vetter's command

Sukarare
   This is a village of weavers south of Cakranegara. Lombok is known for its brightly patterned songket cloth. People have been making it on their hand-looms for many generations.

Sengkol, Pujut and Rambitan
   Time seems to have frozen in these three villages in southern Lombok on the road from the capital to Kuta Beach. All the houses and barns are built in the age-old traditional style where life itself appears to be as it always has been.
The arid savanna-like landscape of this area is impressive even in its starkness.

Batu Bolong Beach
   Located 9 km from downtown Mataram, this beach has a huge rock with a hole in it. A Hindu temple lies on top facing the Lombok Strait and beyond is the contour of majestic Mount Agung of Bali. After sunbathing, relaxing and frolicking on this beautiful beach-front, try to stay till the end of the day to watch one of the most stunning sunsets you have ever seen when the sun slowly begins to disappear behind Mount Agung with incredibly flaming colors.

Taman Mayura
   The Mayura Park is what remains of the once existing Karang Asem kingdom of Bali. In the middle of a large pond is a structure called Balai Kambang which at the time functioned as a legal court of justice as well as a hall for important meetings. Curiously, its architecture shows both Hindu as well as Islamic influence, whereas around the place statues made of stone are found in the form of a Moslem haj.

Pura Meru
   Another relic remaining from the Karang Asem Kingdom is the Meru Temple at Cakranegara, close to Mataram. The temple was built in 1720 during King A.A. Made's rule as a symbol of Hindu unity on Lombok island. Several structures are found in this complex, all of them designated to function for particular purposes, including the 33 stalls located next to the main temple.