Aloha Tanjung Bira

 

My best friend Fachril has never been to Eastern Indonesia. As a beach lover, he realizes most of beautiful beaches that would make him go crazy are located in the eastern part of the country. He also understands very well that he needs a getaway to freshen up from his demanding job.

One day he decided to book  a return ticket to Makassar. His intention was clear: to visit  Tanjung Bira beach. He made the call after I lured him with pictures of the clear blue water and pristine sandy beach of Bira.

***

We booked ourselves a room in a Salassa Guest House, a recommended budget accommodation according to the travel bible.

We went in a cheap manner, using BMA, a transportation service that serves Makassar-Bulukumba route, then continued with ‘pete-pete’ or public transportation that will take us to Tanjung Bira. According to some info,  pete-pete to Tanjung Bira is only available until 3 pm, thus we had to go at 9 am from Makassar. Now in case you’re wondering, the trip to Bulukumba takes about 4-5 hours from Makassar. While Tanjung Bira is another 1 hour from Bulukumba.

The arrow shows the exact location of Tanjung Bira 

Fachril and I reached Bulukumba at 1.15 pm. We had lunch first before heading to the terminal to get the pete-pete. There was no signage showing each pete-pete route. We asked around and was informed that the pete-pete we should  take is the one heading to Tana Beru.

We hopped into the minibus and  waited for half an hour to get it full with passengers. In Makassar and other big cities such as Jakarta, Bekasi, Bogor, public transportation have fixed route. They pass through the pre-determined direction and only stop in designated  points. Yet, what we experienced in Bulukumba was hilarious. Imagine the pete-pete suddenly  pulled over in front of a small supermarket. A mid-twenties lady stepped out of the car and walked calmly to an ATM booth next to Indomaret. Then the driver turned off the engine. Fachril and I looked at each other. It took us minutes to actually realize that the driver was giving the lady a favor by stopping at the ATM! He had us, the rest of the passengers, waiting, without giving cue of what’s happening! (or probably this practise is commonly found in the area, that it's just us who were confused). 

Couple of minutes later, another incident reoccurred. This time, another lady asked the driver to pass through unusual route heading to a district agency where his brother worked. That way, she would be able to know if his brother was still in the office (she wants  to ride home with him) or not (if this is the case then she would continue taking the pete-pete til it passes the road to her village). 

Tell me, how can we not burst into laughter?

***

When we arrived in Salassa Guest House, Erik and Santi –the friendly owner- were out for a shopping. We waited for half an hour before having our room ready. We paid Rp 120.000 per night for a room for two. The room is pretty basic, it has only bed, simple wooden table and electric fan. But most importantly, it is clean.

There are only six rooms currently available in the guest house. All of them are in the second floor, having the same facilities and shared two bathroom that is located at the back of the guest house. Breakfast is included on the price you pay, with menu that varies every day.

Salassa Guest House is famous for its delicious food too. The restaurant downstairs which serves lunch and dinner is always packed. Some reviews have warned that the service can be slow. This happens because Santi works alone to prepare the whole food. To prevent people from barking with complaints, Erik and Santi put on a notification board.

Breakfast at one morning: pandan pancake with banana topped with shredded coconut

Santi is a very nice host. We chatted and shared travelling stories. She mentions that the most intriguing issue currently happening in Tanjung Bira is the garbage collection management. Nobody seems to be responsible for collecting the piling up trash. The collection truck doesn’t come often and the local government doesn’t seem to help neither. As a result, each hostel owner ended up burning garbage every afternoon.

Santi is also very helpful. She gave us recommendation for arranging island hopping trip.

***

That afternoon, we went to see the sunset. Not at the beach, but at a very nice-looking and expensive resort called Amatoa Resort. 

The resort located in quiet area, it takes you 5 minutes walk from the main road, following the small path on the left side of the road. 

In my opinion, Amatoa Resort is the most gorgeous resort in Tanjung Bira. The interior, the infinity pool, the private access to the sea (there are stairs that leads to the shallow sea nearby the resort’s resto) are just perfect. On top of that, the management seems to be serious in maintaining the facility and its service.

Stairways to the sea

The infinity pool

***

The next day, Fachril and I  rented a boat to take us hopping in the neighboring waters. 

We snorkeled in the surrounding of Bira, Lihukang island, hopped in Lihukang Island, ate scrumptious fish for lunch, visited Bara Beach, sunbathed there, sat and just watched the day went by.

We started early at 9 am and came back at 4 pm, all worn out with skin sunkissed and a smile written in our face.

Amatoa Resort

Bara Beach

***

I rented a car and a driver to take us to Makassar the next morning. He picked us up at 9 am and I said to him that we wanted to drop by at Lemo-Lemo beach. I wonder if the beach is worth a look. 

From the signage on the road, it takes another 7 km to reach the beach. Despite the crystal clear water and white sandy beach, Lemo-Lemo is just another ‘by the way’ beach (I give the term ‘by the way’ to an insignificant, less popular spot with less visitors that it is all right to ditch it from the places-to-visit list). It is poorly maintained with trash scattered everywhere. I think there is a small likelihood that people will start shaping the beach up and put it right. With not much tourists coming and no profitable prospect, people won’t bother to do such effort.

We left Lemo-Lemo beach at 10-ish and drove to Makassar.

I fell asleep instantly and dreamt of clear blue water, lucid sky and the picturesque under water view. In that dream I can smell the sea and feel the breezy salty wind blows through my hair.

My peaceful siesta was interrupted by a twinge from of my burnt back. The car was speeding and soon we will be leaving Bulukumba district.

I asked my best pal Fachril about the trip.

He shook his head and went silent.

He then looked outside the window, his mind began to wander.

That precise moment I really can tell how he wish he was still in Tanjung Bira.

My highlights: the sunset (seen particularly from Amatoa Resort); the good food at Salassa Guest House and Warung Bamboe; the quiet Bara Beach; snorkeling at the surrounding water.

My not-so-highlights: litter scattered all around; the limited transportation option to reach Tanjung Bira.