the horse races of Bima, part 1

In an island as remote as Sumbawa, life is simple by demand and by nature. Despite the inescapable reach of communication networks and the media, the pace is drastically slower than the popular Indonesian cities like Bali. Neighbors know each other and children play freely everywhere- the river, the hills and the road. Domesticated animals appear to be without reins, with goats, cattle and horses wandering into homes, market places and the highway.


the Pemakaman Kesultanan Bima (the Sultans graves) is a popular sunrise promenade with a view of the rolling hills of Bima
Canon EOS 350D Digital, 1/50s, f/4.5, 80mm, ISO 100, +1EV


Disinteresting is a term that is sometimes easily and cruelly attributed to the island. The Dutch considered Sumbawa as low in the priority chain and shelved expansion plans until the early 20th century. Certainly, Dutch influence is not as marked as in the western islands of Java and Sumatra. Strangely, even the official website of the Indonesian embassy in Manila was blunt in categorizing the 7 hour bus ride of Sumbawa from end to end as as “relatively boring”, probably in the context of the famous islands sandwiching Sumbawa- Lombok and the komodo dragon-infested islets of Flores.


Red onions, like the ones seen harvested in Bima above, are a major vegetable crop of Sumbawa. In Bali, bawang merah Sumbawa is considered the premium variety, second only to the imported Philippine red onions.
Canon EOS 350D Digital, 1/2000s, f/5,6, 160mm, ISO 100, -1/3EV


Unsurprisingly, people would be hard-pressed to cite major draws for tourists to visit Sumbawa. Surfing, the ready answer for most, beckons only the more hardened of visitors as curls are really out of the way of other enticements like organized shopping or vigorous nightlife strips. Perhaps another major Sumbawa attraction would be the national park island of Moyo. It has the highly exclusive Amanwana but even the five star Aman chain advertises the 20-tent resort as a gem of the eastern Indonesian isles, hardly identifying it as a Sumbawa destination. Given the generally low traffic, other luxury accommodations are practically non-existent.


In Pulau Bajo, Dompu, seaweed farms are located in the waters that are the breeding ground of spotted whale sharks. A giant whale played with our boat, repeatedly crossing in front of us and dipping below our boat.
Canon EOS 350D Digital, 1/1000s, f/4.5, 75mm, ISO 100


Sumbawa is a red dustbowl during summer, especially in the rugged almost bald mountains which comprise more than 80% of its land area of more than 15,000 square kilometers. The valleys however are fertile and take a verdant turn during rainy season. The island is long, extending about 280 kilometers from east to west. Majority of the coastline is rocky but there are stretches of sandy beaches as well.


The palace of the former sultan of Bima is a point of interest in Bima.
Canon EOS 350D Digital, 1/500s, f/3.5, 18mm, ISO 100


An island this wide predisposes itself to a diverse culture and indeed, Sumbawa is divided into two main ethnic divide: the Tua Samawa (Orang Sumbawa) and Dou Mbojo (Orang Bima). In language, culture and geography, the Samawas and the Mbojos are distinct and are former rival sultanates separated by the usual west-east divide. The Samawas populate most of Sumbawa BESAR and Bima and Sumbawa Barat, while the Mbojos are the natives of Bima and the eastern central municipality of Dompu.


The horse race of native Bima horses held every Sunday at a dedicated arena in Panda, Bima, is a popular past time among Bima menfolk. Jockeys are children, from 9 to 12 years old.
Canon EOS 350D Digital, 1/640s, f/5.0, 18mm, ISO 100


Having found myself in a road trip to Sumbawa Barat and Sumbawa Besar in August, I was able to complete the intra-island visit in October when I covered Bima and Dompu. As far as the flight schedules from Bali dictate, I could not go to Bima without staying overnight. I got there Saturday noon and left at about the same time Sunday. In between I was able to finish my seaweed tours of duty in Dompu (with our boat getting played on by a whale shark in the process), visited the Mbojo sultanate palace and graveyards and as an added bonus, witnessed a traditional horse race featuring native Bima horses driven by children (!) jockeys.

in part 2: the Pacuan Kuda (horse race)

Photographing mosques in Bima

part 3 of continuing series in photographing mosques
part 1: Tawi-Tawi, the Philippines
part 2: Asia and Africa

Lying in the West Nusa Tenggara province of Indonesia, Bima is in the eastern seaboard of the island of Sumbawa. Arid and almost looking red during summer, Bima is not much of a happening place. Once the domain of the sultanate of the same name, it is out of commercialized tourism’s way, save for perhaps the heady surfer dreaming of catching the waves in its almost famous if not empty surf breaks. Even then, these beach destinations are not in Bima but in the neighboring regency of Dompu.

Bima does have a reputation of Muslim religiosity, not of militancy but of conservatism. I had some spare time in my short visit in this town and took the opportunity to photograph three of its mosques.

Masjid Uswatun Hasanah

As in any downtown mosques in Indonesia, this one is right at the roadside, cutting any possible angle. I decided to shoot the minaret at a widest angle of my 18-55mm kit lens. There’s the ubiquitous electric line but the trees still managed to frame the tower amidst the heavy cumulus clouds.


Canon EOS 350D Digital, 1/800s, f/4.0, 18mm, ISO 100


To add more interest, I waited for a horse-drawn cart or cedomo to pass by. It was early in the morning and there was little traffic. The road was too narrow and cedomo came too close for comfort but I still got the shot.


Canon EOS 350D Digital, 1/400s, f/4.0, 18mm, ISO 100


Masjid Sultan Muhammad Salahuddin

This mosque is dedicated to sultanate of Bima and appears to be one of the largest in town. I repeated the same horse cart-framing in the former sultan’s mosque. The facade looks aseptic and it needed some life.


Canon EOS 350D Digital, 1/400s, f/5.0, 18mm, ISO 100


Masjid Nurul Yasin

The mosque was photogenically colorful, in cream and green. Too bad that the building was being renovated. A scaffolding was covering the facade. The power cables were alslo all over the place. The only plausible I got was to crouch low and shoot up. The triangular framing emphasizes the wide angle and still played up the beautiful colors. Not the best but you’ve got to learn to work with the elements.


Canon EOS 350D Digital, 1/400s, f/5.0, 18mm, ISO 100, +2/3EV

The salt farms of Bima

Salt making is a traditional enterprise in many cultures. Using the powerful heat of the sun, seawater is evaporated and concentrated until rock crystals are formed. Sea salt “farms” were fairly common when I was growing up in the 80s but modernity brings in the convenience of imported salt (especially Indian salt) that comes out cheaper. I would be hardpressed to find sea salt ponds in Cebu.

In my frequent travels, particularly in Indonesia, I still see that this saltpanning tradition is still strong. In Java, the biggest salt tracts are in Madura island.


Canon EOS 350D Digital, 1/500s, f/8.0, 55mm, ISO 100
salt ponds, Madura island, East Java, Indonesia

Whenever I am in a plane I always watch with curiosity these salt ponds and they are all over the country. Most recently, just this last week, I flew to Bima in the island of Sumbawa and finally found the spare time to visit thriving salt ponds.


Canon EOS 350D Digital, 1/1000s, f/5.6, 55mm, ISO 200


Bima, the capital city of Nusa Tenggara Barat (NTB) province, is hot and salt farms dot the landscape at the bay, just where the airport is. The principle is well, simple. During the hot season, sea water is introduced into the plains by opening dikes during high tide.



Canon EOS 350D Digital, 1/1000s, f/8.0, 18mm, ISO 100


Canon EOS 350D Digital, 1/800s, f/8.0, 47mm, ISO 100


The salt water is fed into evaporation ponds made of compacted soil and separated by levees. Water can only take in so much salt so upon continued evaporation, it breaches “saturation point” which technically means that the solubility limit is reached. Salting out then begins. In saturated brine, salt would remain solid and would be panned in mounds and harvested. During the dry season, salt is collected at least once a week and could yield 2 tons per hectare.


Canon EOS 350D Digital, 1/1250s, f/5.6, 300mm, ISO 100


The salt ponds are typically maintained independently, some by cooperatives but often run, by families. In one pond just a few hundred meters from the airport, we chanced upon a man being assisted by his daughter who could be no more than 10 years old. It was Sunday so school was off. All throughout the time that I was around, she seemed to be thoroughly into her chores. Collecting salt cannot be all fun, especially under the heat of the biting sun, but she balanced the salt she collected on her head confidently, prancing barefoot across the pond, as if it were the most natural thing to enjoy.

Helping out the family never falls out of favor.


Canon EOS 350D Digital, 1/1250s, f/5.6, 180mm, ISO 200



Canon EOS 350D Digital, 1/2500s, f/5.6, 155mm, ISO 200