Blogs from Tana Toraja, Sulawesi, Indonesia, Asia - page 5

My first day in Tana Toraja was indescribable, It was the most different place I have visited while in southeast Asia. Astounding rice fields forming terraces that,if someone asking me what was the most particular place you liked in southeast Asia I would say the rice fields, is absolutely a must see sight with prestine scenaries and walking trails around the fields. Secondly, the odd but characteristics wooden houses of Tana Toraja known as "Tongkonan" ,meaning to sit, are the traditional Torajan ancestral houses. They are built on wooden piles, completed with layers of bamboos shaped in a curved arch and decorated with hues of red, black, and yellow carvings on the outside part. They are really unique and I just loved to observe such a different place that I have never visited in my all ... read more

In keeping with tradition our journey from Flores to Sulawesi was.. err.. interesting to put it mildly. Like we said in our last blog we'd decided to make use of the Pelni Ferries that travel all across Indonesia to get between the 2 destinations. We had no ideas on what it would be like but when the ship pulled up we got quite excited. We'd joked about it being like a cruise liner and it really was... well the ship was... the journey itself was probably as far away from a cruise as you could be without being on dry land! Although there is the option of 1st - 4th class on these boats there was no way we could afford 1st class (around $US80 a ticket) and the 2nd - 4th classes are separate sexes ... read more

In the first week of June, 2009, I arrived after a 37 hour journey to Makassar, in southern Sulawesi by a massive, overloaded Pelni ship. Thousands of people piled off, pushing and shoving their way, each one needing to be the first one down the narrow stairway onto the concrete pier below. I couchsurfed with a wonderful and kind guy in town and the night I chose to do so, I was invited to a fancy-shmancy wedding. 2,000 people, all swanky and dressed to the nines, attended the function held in multiple ballrooms of a "five star" hotel. The guests, all people of high class and clout (even the governor of Sulawesi was in attendance) were dressed so fancily and here I was in my backpacker's finest. Ha! Tell me I didn't stand out! Eight buffets ... read more