The Blue Pebbles and Black Sands of Penggajawa Flores

We all have those moments when we close our eyes and our minds begin to wander. More often than not, my mind wonders off to Penggajawa beach located on the southern coast of the island of Flores in the vast archipelago of Indonesia. I first noticed beautiful blue pebbles lining the driveway at the hotel I stayed in near Kelimutu. I looked down at the stones and immediately began wondering if they were fake, had they been painted? As we drove off from the village of Wologai, Pak Ardi said he had another “non-Lonely Planet” destination in store for me. When we arrived at Penggajawa beach my jaw dropped — it was unreal: a beautiful, volcanic black sand beach covered in blue pebbles and stones. It seemed like something out of Willy Wonka or Dr. Seuss.

I walked up and down the beach and went a bit shutter crazy. I later noticed that the cliffs near the beach also had tinges of blue in them. I asked Pak Ardi about the geology of the area. All he could tell me was that the blue stones were naturally occurring in this area and that woman come and collect large piles and sell them for rather measly amounts.

Piles ready for sale to hotels and anyone else who I suppose asks:

After about 30 minutes, Pak Ardi had to gently tell me we needed to keep driving so we would reach Bajawa by night fall. I took one last look at the beach and slid two beautiful pebbles into my bag.