Flores Island, the flower of indonesia by Reni Susanti

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I just came back from Flores, and it was one of the best place on earth where you can see lake, mountain and sea scenery from one stand point (if you understand what i mean😊). I started from Labuan Bajo, then Seraya island (about 30 min-1 hour boat ride) from Labuan Bajo, then moved to Bajawa via Ruteng, found a megalithic village in Bena with its hotspring nearby... nice people... then heading thru Ende, Moni to see Kilimutu Lake (the gourgeous three color lake up in the mountain), and finally Maumere flying back to Bali.

You can reach Flores by flight from Denpasar Bali, starting from east coast Labuan Bajo to the west coast, or viceversa. It's possible to do the overland tour in 7 days, better more days so that you can explore more and relax. I did only 7 days.... and it's not enough since I miss a few nice places to visit like Riung, Rinca island and Komodo island.

Here, you can decide to choose your holidays activities ranging from beaches, snorkling, diving, mountains viewing, trekking, cultures or just being lazy observing the villagers with their daily routines.

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Photos

rooster in action
what a cute rooster! welcoming me with its latest pose in bena!

bena from top
mmm... it feels good to see the view of megalith bena from the top! plus mee in the center, ha ha ha... (part of the beautiful scenery?)

vulcanic mountain on the way to bena
forget the name of the vulcano, but it looks beautiful when you ride a scooter while seeing this fantastic view.

ancient megalithic tradition
Don't believe myself being there, like the story of asterix with its big 'MENHIR' collected by obelix... but here they use it for ceremonies.

me with unknown bluish halo suddenly appear!
just found that my head is surrounded by blue halo when my picture is taken, good omen???

grandmas and me!
two grandmas... and me, how comfortable!

grandma..
peaceful grandmas in bena, they are siblings... look how peaceful their faces are!

looks like framed painting!
i like this picture!

grandpa and grandson!
1st and 3rd generation... lovely!

poor pig!
I came to this village just a day before 'Reba', the yearly big festive to start the new year... it involved lots of pigs... cows killing. The blood then is rubbed to the stones and other things (i don't really understand the ritual so can't explain much!).

COW HORNS!
Each house seems to have this kind of collection simbolised their status... the more you have, the higher your rank!

bena view as a whole ancient complex
cool!!! I feel like living in flintstones time...

Kids...
The angels of bena! Don't you agree kids are always special all over the world... see how the big sister lifted her younger brother?

seraya island view from my room
it's great to stay in seraya island for a few days! just to snorkle or sunbathing... and you can also do a day trip by boat to Rinca Island to have a date with the famous 'Prince Komodo'... also diving and snorkling at a nice spot! what else can you dream of this luxury?

seraya beach view from my window
it's fun... the window has no glass so you can feel the sea breeze inside the room. it almost feel like you stay in the open area. with no electricity after 10 pm, you're accompanied by the sound of the waves orchestra... moon and stars...

restaurant in seraya
the restaurant is pretty basic, and you have to order your food sometime a day in advance from the menu as they have to get the supply from the mainland orelse, just ask for whatever available. food is okay with reasonable price! nobody complain when you are in the isolated island!

Comments

[Jan]

Transport?
How did you get from one place to another in Flores? Did you rent a scooter, or did you rent a car? Great photos by the way.

[beereni]

transport in flores
Hello there... There's no Taxi for sure in Flores. But Public transport like buses are available everyday to move around from one place to another place. From 1 city to another city, you can go by bus (not really recommended unless you're an adventour freak). Me last time, some part I rent a car, others I went with what is so called 'travel' car... they have daily schedule from one town to another. And it's also cheap... like IDR 50,000 (8bugs). You can ask the hotel for the phone number, and the travel car will pick you up to the hotel and send you to your next hotel where you gonna stay. I know travel is available from Labuan Bajo to Ruteng, Ruteng to Bajawa, Bajawa to Ende, Ende to Maumere. So the whole nice area is pretty covered already. And when you stay in 1 place, you can rent a scooter that will cost you about IDR 50,000 a day. The people there is nice, so you can always ask them how to get around. Renting a car is quite expensive, it's about IDR 500,000 per day if you rent it at least for 3-4 days. If it's only 1 day, they gonna charge you more (unless you bargain). It usually comes with a driver already. Renting a boat daily is about IDR 350,000 if you want to visit an island like Rinca, etc... Hope this info help.

[Jan]

Thank you
Thank you for the information. I hope to put it in use in June.

[beereni]

You're welcome!
Hello... June is gonna be the right month to visit Flores. Good luck , and have a great time in Flores! You'll be lucky to have a chance to witness the three color lakes Kelimutu without difficulties during June. Make sure you be there before sunrise, you'll see the stunning view!

[Angin Petang]

i was there 10 years ago...
Thanks, Reni..Your travel to Flores reminded me to my solo travel to 10 years ago. That’s part of my long land travel starting from Solo, Yogya, Bromo, Surabaya, Bali, Lombok, Sumbawa, Flores, and ended in Timor island. I finished my travel in west Timor, ie. Kupang, reached Kupang by onvernight ferry from Larantuka town in Flores/ I could not go through to East Timor since they had big riot then following national referendum.