sumbawa contents
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Maluk is the village just to the north of Sekongkang. It is slightly larger, and therefore has a few more amenities such as telephone service, a post office (big enough for two people to enter at the same time), two banks, several hotels, a market, a furniture store, and a few other things. The ride from Sekongkang to Maluk is somewhat problematic as the road is narrow and it winds through the hills that separate Maluk and Sekongkang. If life in Sekongkang is slow, Maluk is a bit quicker. It has a somewhat dicey reputation with foreigners here, but how much of that is deserved is subject to discussion.
While Maluk isn't very big, size is all relative. The extra shopping opportunities as well as the phone and banking facilities make Maluk seem like the big city compared to Sekongkang. The market has basic supplies as well as most of the usual fruits and vegetables. If you like rustic markets, the Maluk Market is made for you. If you get there early in the morning you can buy prawns, squid and fish for a much cheaper price than you will find in Bali or Lombok. You can attribute this to the lack of tourists here. The market is friendly, and if you bring your camera, shopkeepers will ask you to take a photo of them.
Maluk has a telephone office so you can make local and international calls. There are bank branches for BRI and BNI. I have only used the BNI branch. They offer good services although the bank is usually full of customers. You can change money and get cash advances on your credit card. I got a cash advance on my credit card recently, and they said that it was the first time that they had done it - it took a while, but eventually I received my money. The main street in Maluk also has a number of shops selling furniture, building supplies, the usual snacks and a limited variety of clothing. There is a gasoline station just north of Maluk in Benete where you can purchase gasoline or diesal fuel for your vehicle if you are driving around Sumbawa.
Land transport is much more difficult to get than in Bali. Public transport exists but there are long waits for it and we often pick people up alongside the road who have been waiting for quite a while for a bus or bemo. Maluk and Sekongkang have horse carts but they don't travel along the long stretches of road here and are confined to the villages. Getting to Maluk from Sekongkang is much more difficult than getting home from Maluk. The beach at Maluk is supposed to be good for surfing. I hear that there is great surfing at Supersucks, and if you Google it you'll find recent information about the surfing conditions there.
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