I flew to Lombok this week to participate in a workshop where we met local government officials and researchers to discuss the impact on local policy making of a citizen journalism initiative called Kampung Media. The provincial capital is Mataram. A nice little city. Not too large, not too small. Where it is pleasant to walk around as I did at the end of the first day there. The atmosphere is a bit lay back. The traffic flows quietly. People greets you with a smile particularly when you walk around with a camera.  Mataram is in nice contrast with Denpasar in Bali. So much quieter. I walked the streets at sunset, walking randomly along narrow streets as well as large avenues accompanied by rows of old and large tropical trees on each side. You can still see old Dutch houses with their low roofs and small garden and which are being used by as family houses of provincial government offices. There a nice atmosphere in Mataram. Hopefully I will go back few more time with  the project I am working in.

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