Flores: Full of fabulous culture

Flores: Full of fabulous culture

Philomena Reiss, Contributor, Maumere, Flores

The 5:30 a.m. Merpati flight from Jakarta was too early for
many in our tour group, but it is the only way to connect to a
9:30 a.m. departure to Labuhanbajo via Bima.

It had been difficult to get a trip together after the Sept.
11 tragedy, but we decided to push through with our 11-day tour
of Flores.

And we were glad we did.

Any remaining doubts we may have had were almost immediately
forgotten when we took off from Bima and glimpsed the islands,
including the legendary Komodo, set in a deep blue sea.

After 45 minutes the plane landed at Labuhanbajo, the
westernmost part of Flores Island. Our local guide, Dominggus,
had driven two days all the way from Maumere to meet us at the
airport, but he still had a welcome smile.

Labuhanbajo is a small, quiet town surrounded by islands
famous for snorkeling and diving. Lunch -- grilled fresh tuna
steaks served with vegetables and rice -- was eaten at a
restaurant overlooking the sea.

We then set off to Ruteng, the capital of Manggarai regency.
There were two impassable bridges and so our van had to cross
three rocky rivers but our patient and experienced driver took us
through without difficulty. It was five hours drive to Ruteng,
passing beautiful scenery and spider-like rice terraces on the
hills and coffee plantations.

The loud sound of church bells was a reminder that the people
of the area are predominantly Christian. The church we went to in
town was a very simple, tin-roofed structure which was packed
with Sunday worshipers singing hymns in their own dialect.

Not far away was a market offering everything under the sun,
from dried fish to hand-woven textiles, especially ikat. A little
workshop nearby demonstrated how they weave the Manggarai-motif
sarongs on a backstrap loom.

Townspeople performed a war dance called Caci. This is a whip
and shield duel between two men, accompanied by the beat of the
drums and gongs played by a group of elderly women. The attacker
has a vicious whip and the defender a rawhide shield for
protection. The men were also dressed in colorful Manggarai
sarongs and protective headgear.

These macho whip fights are performed not only for tourists
but also during traditional ceremonies, like weddings and
funerals, and also on Independence Day. The aim of the dance is
to test the strength and endurance of men whom the Manggarai
women admire.

One day in Ruteng is not enough to get a real feel of village
life, but since the days were limited for seeing this big island
the next town on the agenda was Bajawa. En route was a stop at
Ranamese, with fabulous surroundings and a tranquil crater lake.

Another small town before Bajawa is the village called Aimere,
where the people make arak (palm wine). The villagers showed us
how they collect lontar palm juice, and distill it into an
alcoholic drink either fine or rough, sold cheaply in the market
for local consumption.

Bajawa is a small hill town, the center of the Ngada people.
The first day in Bajawa involved a one-and-a-half hour climb to a
newborn volcano called Wago Muda, which erupted only months ago.
The eruption left seven crater lakes, as spectacular as the
famous tri-colored Kelimutu lakes. Devastating could be the word
to describe its eruption, but it made the soil rich for
productive agriculture, an amazing natural phenomenon.

In the afternoon we headed to the village of Bolozi, where the
people entertained us with a flute orchestra and dances. The
women wore black sarongs with horse motifs, a traditional design
of this region. They invited us to one of the houses and we
joined the singing, eating and drinking tuak until late
afternoon. They were such hospitable people that it was very
difficult to say goodbye.

Flores textiles are as diverse as its people. From Labuhanbajo in
the west to Larantuka in the east, there are textiles of a
different variety of colors, motifs and cotton used. You could
practically identify the regency or even village a person comes
from by the ikat they wear. Flore is definitely a haven for
textile lovers and collectors.

Wologogo was the ideal spot to view and take photos of the
nearly perfect cone of Mt. Inerie. If you had the time, you could
gaze at this volcano practically all day. The traditional houses
of Wogo and Loba are very impressive, but Bena is most unique --
a living museum of Bajawa's architecture perched on a hill.

The Ngada people believe in ancestor worship, building a Ngadu
(male ancestral tombs) and a Bhaga (female ancestral tombs),
megaliths altars and menhirs at the center of the village ground.

Riung is situated on the northern coast of Ngada regency. Most
of the people here are Bugis and Bajau from South Sulawesi. With
Pulau Tujubelas it was an ideal spot for snorkeling.

The corals are in very good condition, with a great variety of
colorful tropical reef fish, sponges, nudibrachs and starfish.

Low tide prevented our boat from stopping at a nearby island
where flying foxes live, but we still managed to see thousands of
them after our boat captain kindly walked ashore to wake them up
for us. On the way back he picked up a few edible sea urchins for
us to taste.

The drive to Ende was long but relaxing, passing Mbay and
stopping at the Blue stone beach. On the beach, the women in this
area collect beautiful smooth blue stones that are sold in
Surabaya for building houses.

There is a stunning view of Mt. Iya and Mt. Meja as you
approach Ende. Wolotopo is a traditional village on a hill along
the coast frequented by tourists. A climb up the hill is well
worth the effort for the sight of several remaining adat
(traditional) houses and a few tombs of the village ancestors.
Women weave under their houses.

Another attraction was the mummified body of a hero called
Kakek More, kept in front of one of the traditional homes.
Accompanied by the caretaker Paulus Moro, and the oldest woman in
the village, who was carrying an offering of betel nut, the 100-
year-old mummy was shown to us.

It was still dark when the van left the sleeping village
behind.

Sunrise on top of Kelimutu lakes was missed, but the colored
lakes were as spectacular as ever.

Nggela was the next stop before heading to Maumere. When the
village people saw the van arriving, a small textile market was
set up on the street right in front of us, although we did not
buy many.

There was a short detour to the village of Sikka for the
driver to rest and also view another textile village. It was
clear, as in Nggela, that the women vendors were desperate to
make a sale because there are few visitors today.

Maumere is the capital of Sikka regency, a town just
recovering from a terrible 1992 earthquake and tidal wave
disaster which left thousands dead.

On the itinerary the next day was Larantuka, the easternmost
part of Flores Island. This little town is situated at the foot
of Mt. Ili Manderi, overlooking the sea and the surrounding
islands of Adonara and Solor.

The drive to Larantuka along the coast is breath-taking. On
the hills are cashew nut plantations suited to this dry type of
soil. All day was spent visiting the textile villages of
Loweklowok and Riankemi.

On the way back to Maumere the next day, we found Bama is a
village not to be missed. The women proudly showed us their
handspun, naturally dyed, back strap loom woven textiles, which
are really works of art.

It was a great and rewarding journey. While Flores does not
have the amenities of other famous tourist destinations in the
country, like Bali, it is brimming with cultural attractions.
It's a hard and adventure-filled trip offering stunning rewards.