Garuda Indonesia Colours Magazine October 2017 | Page 107

Travel | Sumba 105 We turned into the narrow canyon, walled with sharp coral, which was the entrance to Waihola village. 2 1 A Sumbanese boy riding through Wairinding hills, carrying a sack of corn. Sumba and horses are inseparable. 1 “Most people in Sumba are considered nominally Christian but the local religion, Marapu, still prevails,” explained Tiger when we stopped to quench our thirst with coconuts which he hacked down from a tall palm and opened with the sword that hung permanently from a sash at his waist. “Mostly it’s the old people who know the ways of the spirits – or a few youngsters, but only if they are still from the Marapu religion.” We turned into the narrow canyon, walled with sharp coral, which was the entrance to Waihola village. Even today, entering the village is like climbing to some hilltop citadel. The steep thatch-roofs of the houses rise through the swirling smoke of cooking fires like the hats of giant wizards huddled around a cauldron. Set back under the wide brims, like dark eyes, are the twin doors reserved for the entrance of men (on the right) and women (on the left). Likewise, male and female effigies on the roof beams invite the ancestors to enter the houses. These homes were clearly designed for effective defence: the wraparound verandas 2 Ratenggaro is said to boast the tallest roofs in Sumba, with this house rising to about 25 metres. provided a raised platform from which the local men could fight, and the inside of the steep roof was where food stores and valuable heirlooms could be kept. War was a way of life here and many villages still retain a ‘skull tree’, although stripped of their gruesome adornments. Dato Daku had told me how, growing up in this village, he’d had to walk 6km to school each day, as well as make trips to the river with his mother and seven siblings to collect water. Today Dato works for Sumba Foundation, the organisation which has been instrumental in improving lives in many Sumbanese villages. Since the foundation was established in 2001, it has set up 300 wells and water stations, built and supplied schools for 4,200 students, and built four clinics that care for more than 25,000 people. One slice of heaven that you should not pass up when visiting Sumba is Weekuri Lake, an exotic lake separated from the sea by a rocky cliff, which promises visitors fun swimming opportunities and the pleasure of enjoying the blue waters from the shore. The word weekuri comes from the Sumba language, meaning water derived from grated coral that passes on to the 5 Senses – Touch REST AND RELAX Revel in the touch of luxury on a Nihi Oka Spa Safari. A 90-minute walk through the paddies brings you to the idyllic clifftop spa where you’re served a sumptuous open-air bush-fire breakfast on a tree-house platform, before enjoying a range of rejuvenating treatments on your private bale. Priced from US$495 per couple. www.nihiwatu.com Nikmati sentuhan kemewahan di Nihi Oka Spa Safari. Berjalan kaki 90 menit melewati persawahan akan membawa Anda ke spa di puncak bukit yang indah, di mana Anda akan disuguhi sarapan di atas rumah pohon, dilanjutkan dengan berbagai perawatan peremajaan di bale pribadi. Tarifnya mulai dari 495 USD (sekitar Rp6,6 juta)per pasangan.