WEST
NUSA TENGGARA
The
Wallace Line, named after 19th century naturalist,
Alfred Russell Wallace, marks a point of transition
between the flora and fauna of Western and Eastern
Indonesia and acts as the Western boundary of West
Nusa Tenggara, which includes Lombok Island and
Sumbawa. Lombok is noticeably different to its close
neighbor, Bali. The northern part of the island
is mountainous and lush with tall trees and shrubs.
The South on the other hand is arid and covered
by savannas. Large Asian mammals are absents and
replaced instead by large numbers of marsupials,
lizards, cockatoos and parrots. The difference becomes
more pronounced as one moves further east where
dry seasons are more prolonged and the land is dry
and bush-like, and so in many areas corn and sago
are the staple food, instead of rice. At first Islam
time come to these islands in the 16th century,
four Hindu Kingdoms co-existed in apparent peace
what is now called West Nusa Tenggara and is still
the religion embraced by those in the west of Lombok,
which are primarily Balinese. Lombok experienced
strong Balinese influences in the past, but has
still retained a unique identifies. The indigenous
people of Lombok, the Sasaks, are predominantly
Moslem and have a strong, distinguished tradition,
as do the people of neighboring Sumbawa. Soft white
sand, virgin beaches are typical in Lombok, where
the motto is 'You can see Bali in Lombok, but not
Lombok in Bali'. Famous for its 'tenun ikat' hand-woven
textiles, the island has exceptional charm and its
relatively undiscovered, except for Senggigi City,
which becoming a major resort area. Regulars shuttle
flights from Bali and Surabaya as well as ferries
provide excellent transportation links within the
islands of the province as well as with the rest
of the country.
The two largest islands in West Nusa Tenggara province
are Lombok in the west and the larger Sumbawa Island
in the east. Mataram, on Lombok, is the capital
and largest city of the province. The province is
administratively divided into six regencies and
one municipality, Mataram. The Sasak ethnic group
mainly inhabits Lombok, with a minority Balinese
population then, Sumbawa and Bima ethnic groups
inhabit Sumbawa. Each of these groups has a local
language associated with it as well. The population
of the province is 3.821.134; 71 percent of the
population lives in Lombok.
Geographically
Geographically, West Nusa Tenggara Province is
located 115'45 - 119°10 east Longitudes 8°5
- 9°5 south latitudes. Its area boundaries
is:
North Side: Java Sea
South side: Hindia Ocean
East side: Sepadan Strait
West side: Lombok Strai
Wide
Area
The wide area of West Nusa Tenggara is 49.32,19
Km2 that contains of 20.153,07 Km2 land and 29.159,04
Km2 of sea. The two big islands is Lombok Island
with its wide area about 4.738,70 Km2 (23,51%)
and Sumbawa Island with 15.414,37 Km' (76,49%)
wide area. Beside that, it also surrounded by
thousands small islands, such as Gili Air, Gili
Meno, Gili Trawangan, Gili Gede, Gili Nanggu,
Gili Tangkong, Moyo Island, Bungin Island, Satonda
Island, Kaung Island, and Panjang Island.
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Information
and pictures courtesy of Indonesia Tourism. |
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