Sumba Travel Guide
South of Flores, between Sumbawa and Timor lays an island where the traditional customs are among the best preserved in Nusa Tenggara. The population of Sumba reaches about 600.000, the capital is Waingapu.
Today much of the population are Christians, some are Muslims while a large minority still adhere to the animist “marapu” religion. Sumba is separated from the other islands in the region by the deep waters, and due to the limited natural resources it has not been much influenced by the rest of the world. An old pagan culture can still be found alive here, not like the rest of Indonesia which has been greatly influenced by the large world religions and their culture.
East Sumba has a different climate, it is more dry and mountainous, the people here belong to one single ethnical group with one common language. Waingapu, the capital, is located here and is a hub for transport to and from the island.
There are some facilities here, but the main attractions are located west and southeast on the island. Some traditional villages are located southeast of Waingapu and can be visited on a daytrip from there. This part of Sumba is known for the “ikat” produced here, this is a woven textile that can take weeks and even months to produce because of a complicated production process. Traditionally ikat was only used for special ceremonies and only by members of the highest clans and their personal attendants.
During important funerals the corpse was dressed in the finest textiles to make a good appearance in the afterlife, and piles of extra textiles was often sent with the dead as well. Horses are still used for transport on Sumba and is a symbol of high status, the large grass fields in the interior of the island are well suited for horse raising The island is famous for its megalithic tombs and war rituals. A well known ritual is “pasola” were hundreds of men on horses throw spears at each other.
The tips of the spears are cut off, but serious accidents, even deaths, occur frequently. The season to experience this festival is in February to March, it will take place in four different districts to satisfy the gods and bring a good harvest. The exact date and time is depending on the arrival of the small “Nyale” fish to the coast (see also Kuta, Lombok). The priests will study the fish and from it’s behavior predict the outcome of the harvest. When this is done the Pasola festival can begin, the fights will usually start at the beach and then move further inland.
Related Travel Information
Flores Travel Guide
Flores is one of the most beautiful islands of the Indonesian archipelago. Lying close to the equator, Flores is a long, narrow and rugged island marked with dramatic volcanoes and beautiful mountain lakes and forests. Strategically located between the bigger islands of Java and Timor, it is just 360 kilometers long and varies from 12 to 70 kilometers wide. Flores is located east of Sumbawa and Komodo and west of Lomblen and the Alor archipelago. To the southeast is Timor. To the south, across the Sumba strait, is Sumba and to the north, beyond the Flores
Nias Selatan Travel Guide
Nias Selatan located in Nias Island, many turis object in here such as Desa Bawomataluo, Lagundri / Sorake beach, Hilisimaetanö, Gomo, Mo`ale beach, Pulau - Pulau Batu, Tello, etc. Nias Selatan is central Nias tourism. It is one in the chain of islands parallel to the coast that stretch from Simeulue in the north to isolated Enggano in the south and includes many smaller islands, separated from Sumatra by the Mentawai Strait. This chain, which resurfaces in Nusa Tenggara in the mountainous islands of Sumba and Timor, is the forearc of the South
Bintan Travel Guide
Bintan Island or Negeri Segantang Lada is an island of 1,866 square kilometer making part of the Riau Islands province of Indonesia. It is the largest of 3,200 islands in the Riau Archipelago.
Bintan Island is located about 48 km (30 miles) southeast of Singapore.
Because of the strategic location in the Growth Triangle and its location close to Singapore, Bintan developed rapidly. Since the early 1990s, the island has been one of the main industrial estates and popular tourist destinations of Indonesia.
The main city of Bintan is Tanjung Pinang. From Singapore (Tanah Merah Ferry Terminal) Bintan can be reached
Indonesia
Indonesia, is a term that strikes deep into the heart of this dynamic and attractive Southeast Asian nation. Few places offer such cultural variety and geographical complexity as Indonesia, and no two journeys here are ever alike. Indonesia is composed of seventeen thousand islands that stretch over five thousand miles along the equator.
A rich history of kingdoms, conquests, colonialism, trade and natural disasters has bequeathed it with an exhilarating kaleidoscope of cultures and traditions, people, languages and religions, aspirations and problems, and the dramatic scenery of changing landscapes. Indonesia offers something for everyone. Sumatra has an untouched wilderness and
Maluku Travel Guide
The Maluku Islands (also known as the Moluccas, Moluccan Islands or simply Maluku) are a part of Indonesia. They are located on the Australian continental plate, lying east of Sulawesi (Celebes), west of New Guinea, and north of Timor. The islands were also historically known as the "Spice Islands" by the Chinese and Europeans, but this term has also been applied to other islands. Ambon is the main gateway to southern Maluku, where the Banda islands are the most popular tourist destination with their colonial architecture, great coral reefs and active volcano. The Kei Islands to the South-East
