Blogs from Tana Toraja, Sulawesi, Indonesia, Asia

Majority of people who have traveled for extended period of time know that it is hard sometimes to find the excitement anymore. It can happen especially when you spend too much time in the same region of the world. I guess we got to that point in Borneo where we were so fed up with things and people that we seriously had to try hard to stay motivated to go on. We were very relieved though when we landed in Sulawesi as we knew for fact that we would love this place. From the airport we had no trouble getting to the center of Makassar by public bus (15,000/1,5$ each) and again we did some walking around to find suitable accommodation. Then and there Makassar surprised us. We walked in to probably 5 or 6 hotels ... read more

**Disclaimer** This may be the longest blog posted on Travelblog and we tried every way possible to break it up but it just wasn’t going to happen. So we apologize ahead of time…make sure you use the bathroom and grab a cup of coffee before reading this. The video and photos included in this blog show some extremely graphic images of animals being slaughtered. If you have a weak stomach DO NOT watch the video. We will try to keep the more graphic photos towards the end. Well, even though Nate was sick and we didn’t get to go diving in the place we were looking forward to most, we still really enjoyed Bunaken. We really felt like we were off to a pretty good start in Sulawesi, but we knew it might not last for ... read more

I woke up on Bunaken and was about to trek over to the ferry but Lorenzo offered to take me there by speedboat because I had stayed so long. I got to the ferry and it was empty. Some men were loading empty containers of water and petrol obviously to be refilled and brought back to Bunaken. The boat then drove out 100m and anchored while smaller boats ferried locals onto the boat. After a time we were off. Beside me a group was playing a game of dominoes and were quite into it. We arrived at a dock that didn't look like a dock and entered into a bit of a market. Having absolutely no bearings or map I managed to ascertain the direction towards town and walked that direction. I came across a travel ... read more

After arranging for the bus to collect us from the hostel sometime between eight and nine, waking up at 7:55 wasn't the best start. But I managed to have time to get ready and have my last breakfast at Wisma Maria - homemade bread with homemade jam and smoothie - so good. The bus finally arrived to pick Hylke, Joszi and myself up just after nine and it looked alot more comfortable than the one we arrived on! Joszi forgot her mp3 player so after telling the driver she had left her passport he returned to the hostel. The bus gradually filled up with men, rice, rice and more men and after we asked them not to smoke it was a not very eventful 13hr trip to Tentena. The roads are in such a bad condition ... read more

This morning we slept through the 7am alarm waking up at 8am after a night of heavy rain. The plan was to take a scooter again to the village of Pallawa for the funeral ceremony but due to the rain and subsequent wet roads Meana wasn't confident driving so after breakfast we went in hunt of a bemo. In the end we took a bemo half way and then a jeep to the village. The jeep left when full and we were the first in so we had to wait about half an hour. They crammed as many people in as possible, two people in the one front seat so it made for an uncomfortable trip. It dropped so off just a short walk from the village and even though we were told to be there ... read more

Wow Indonesian people are so friendly! The first two days in Rantepao Meena and myself hired a scooter and set out to explore the outskirts of Rantepao. Firstly we headed south and visited Ke'te Kesu, a small village of traditional style houses, hanging graves, cave graves, rice paddies, collections of bones in open coffins with skulls placed to watch to goings and comings. It is a great example of how the Torajan people treat the dead like the living and shows their traditions have been the same for thousands of year. We then followed the road back towards Rantepao through rice paddies and amazing scenery to Karassik. Karassik is another town that has traditional houses and a great view over Rantepao. For lunch it was Mee Goreng, amazing. After trying to find out some information about ... read more

It was time to finally leave Malaysia after two month to discover Indonesia! So exciting, but i had a lot of traveling to do to get to my first destination Rantepao in Tana Toraja. Aiming for the 930am bus from Semporna i was told this bus no-longer left even though it was advertised, good start! But after asking around a bit more i found out there were mini buses that left when full so i headed for them and after waiting half an hour it was full enough to depart to my first stop Tawau. The two hour bus journey was bumpy, hot and uncomfortable, we got stopped my the police and the driver got a ticket and then one of the passengers wanted dropping off inside an army base so we got stopped by the ... read more

As you travel from Tentena to Rentapao you will notice a shift from Muslim to Christianity with some villages displaying a large Crucifix in their front yard as well as the symbolic Crucifix lining the streets. I wondered as I was sitting in the bus watching the crosses fly past one after another like a flicker in a film, how & why is religion so intoxicating & consuming to some? Why does religion have to mean fanaticism & absolutism? In 2005 there was unrest in Palu, Poso, Tentena and surrounding districts between the Muslims & Christians which, resulted in a hideous bomb attack in Palu on Christmas day killing 8 people coupled with a bomb attack in Tentena killing 22 people. Such occurrences attract negative press within our western media leaving us, westerners little understanding of ... read more