The Pousada at Maubisse.

Feature Trip

Visitors often ask where to go if they have some time to spare in Timor Leste. So we decided that it was about time that we found some spare time ourselves and headed out to explore some of the beautiful places that East Timor has to offer.

What we experienced from the following trips was the sense that though Timor Leste is a small country, the range and variety of different opportunities for visitors to explore is unbelievable! See you on the road!

Maubisse

The road to Maubisse takes you through Aileu and some of the main coffee growing regions. The drive took almost three hours with a long stop near Aileu. The stops we made also gave us a chance to meet some of the Timorese who live in the hamlets along the road. With children appearing whenever we stopped we were continuously waving and being greeted with the familiar call of “Hello Mister!”

We arrived at Maubisse just in time for dusk and watched the fog roll up through the valley over a glass of wine. What better way to wind down the day than the cool, quiet feeling you get when you arrive at the Pousada.

The combination of the beautiful scenery and accommodation makes the Pousada one of the best and most romantic places to stay in Timor Leste. The more active guests can work up their appetite with a gentle walk into the valley but the other options such as a drink at the bar are no less tempting.

The Pousada offers a simple menu of well prepared food, all served with rice, salad and the best home cut fries on the island. The bar has a good selection of drinks available and after a fantastic meal in the warm lounge, the sensation of looking forward to a very hot shower and cuddling up with several blankets is simply superb.

You can drive down to Hatabulico and make the gentle two-hour walk up the path to the summit of Mount Ramelau for sunrise.

The journey to Dili is so short that trips to the Pousada need only take a day and a half. The longer you stay though, the more you fall in love with it. So if you only have a little time available, take my advice and try a retreat to the Pousada at Maubisse.

You can also use Maubisse as a base for walking up Mt. Ramelau. To do this, drive 45 minutes to Hatobuilico village which is at the base of the mountain. It is a gentle 2 hour walk up the grassy slopes to the summit, which offers fantastic views which stretch from Atauro in the north to the south coast.

Baucau, Com
and Jaco Island

For a more in depth look at the country, especially for those interested in Timor’s cultural heritage, a trip to the far Eastern tip of the island has to be one of most interesting adventures you can have in Timor Leste.

With a four day trip, it is possible to see some of the cave paintings in Lautem, visit the protected marine area of Jako Island with an overnight stay in Baucau.

The coast road to Manatuto is breathtaking; the views are similar to the Big Sur coastline of California. On your way through Manatuto you travel past the coastal plains and into the dry ochre coloured hills that lead to Baucau. Finally the forested areas around Baucau spring up around you as you pass the airport. The trip takes around three hours and gives visitors a glimpse of the incredible biodiversity of Timor Leste’s geography.

Baucau itself has a sleepy atmosphere and an obvious colonial charm. The new Pousada de Baucau proved to be a lovely place to stay, with excellent facilities and friendly staff. Its worth checking out Baucau markets, as well as the clean beaches - 5 minutes from the center of town.

Heading East towards Com you pass through another series of coastal plains and arrive in the district of Lautem. The roads are well maintained and the routes to Los Paols and Com are well sign-posted. We arrived at Com and were greeted by Ildephonso Xavier, the manager of Com resort.

The resort itself has a variety of accommodation available, including a camping area under traditional woven roofs. The real gem of the resort though is Ildephonso; his easy going nature and sense of hospitality left us with a feeling that we weren’t just new arrivals but friends finally coming back from a long journey. Not only did he give us all the information about the district that we needed but he also offered to act as our guide the next day for our trip to Tutuala!

The next morning we set off for Tutuala in search of cave paintings, ancestor tombs and the marine park of Jako Island. The road to Tutuala is in poor condition but the journey through the villages makes up for this many times over. We stopped to look at the numerous tombs just off the roadside, many of which can only be identified by the sacrificial totems of buffalo horns and skulls that decorate them.

We stopped in the village of Ilequequere so that we could meet the head of the village, Mr. Paolo, who acts as a guide for the cave paintings which are situated near his village. The journey to the cave paintings is a hike through a dense jungle path and down a steep rocky slope taking approximately half an hour from the village. As we approached a cliff face that materialized out of the jungle the pace slowed down as our guide gestured silently to walk softly.

The cave paintings of Ilequereque are protected by swarms of honeybees whose hives hang from the ceiling of the cliff. There were some 10 to 15 hives, several of which were at least three feet long. There appeared to be many separate drawings of different designs that were similar both to the aboriginal artwork found in Australia and animal rock art that I have seen in Africa. The feeling that I had as we walked back through the jungle was magical, what I had just seen was not only beautiful and provocative, but also left me with an experience that connected me with the history of Timor Leste.

The magnificent marine park of Jako is situated very close to the cave paintings but the road to get there is in absolutely awful condition. Jako Island is an amazing place, with its turquoise seas and beautiful white beaches. The snorkeling is as good as any dive I have made in Timor Leste. Turtles, sharks and rays ignore you as you gaze at pristine coral. Jako is a sun and sea lover’s image of paradise. The only real problem was the lack of accommodation at Jako and the inaccessibility to the island unless there are fishermen to take you across the channel.(most sleep on the beach and travel across in the early mornings!)

We cannot express enough gratitude to Mr. Xavier for his helpful and friendly attitude - we left knowing that if we recommended Com resort to anyone they would be well looked after with Ildephonso present. For those who have never been, put a little magic in your Timor Leste experience and visit the Eastern side of the island.

Ata’Uro

Discover Dili had been waiting for an opportunity to visit Atauro, the island opposite Dili, for some time. When Gabriella, of Roman Luan, the NGO that works with the community on the Island, invited us over to visit their eco village, we saw this as the perfect opportunity to explore Atauro and also promote the great work that Roman Luan does on the island. Roman Luan is commited to protecting the heritage, traditions and environment of Atauro while improving the standards of living for the Timorese who live on the island.

Our plan was to go over to Atauro with Dive Timor Loro’ Sae, dive the beautiful reefs, stay overnight at the eco village and return the next day. Here’s what happened...

The day started beautifully with calm seas, blue skies and Atauro staring down the bow of the Maguerita, Dive Timor’s custom built dive boat. We were headed for our two drift dives off the East coast of Atauro. We paused along the way to watch the surface of the ocean erupting with spray and churning with dark shapes; our Dive Leader Brett simply said “Sharks”. The level of excitement was definitely rising. It took us just over an hour to reach the north side of the island from Dili.

What can I say about the diving at Atauro: after years of diving around the world, these two dives absolutely confirmed that Timor Leste has world class diving. The biodiversity and unspoilt nature of Timor’s coral reefs is simply fantastic. Hundreds of fish, with huge palegics gathering, drifted past us as we were carried along by a gentle current. With a delicious lunch served up between dives I was struck by the service and knowledge that Dive Timor Loro’Sae provides for their clients. After two great dives, I hopped off the boat onto Atauro’s jetty at Beloi. As the Maguerita sped off into the distance I knew that I’d have to be back on board sometime soon: thanks for everything guys!

With slight post dive euphoria and a sensation that I was still carrying my weight belt, I set off down the coast heading south towards the eco village at Tua Koin. Atauro’s isolation is a double edged sword, its remote location has protected it from most of the destruction in 1999 but also cuts it off from support from the mainland. The island suffers from a lack of rain which makes life for the Timorese on the island hard. Despite this the traditions of the three clans that inhabit Atauro are still very much intact and the sense of community is very strong. Walking for about 3kms. through the villages that dot the east coast of the island I was enthusiastically greeted by the locals both in Tetun and in English.

Arriving at the eco village I was pleasantly surprised by the layout of the resort. The main dining room / lounge and a series of locally built cabins on stilts are all a stones throw from the ocean. The cabins and the environmentally friendly toilet and shower rooms all use permaculture methods which benefit the gardens of the resort and reduce the resorts environmental impact. I was impressed by the eye for detail in construction.

The rooms were simple and delightful while the sea breeze took away the worst of the heat that you normally suffer in Dili. I was told that a boat returning to Dili, would leave in the morning. My first night on Atauro was beautiful as I fell asleep listening to the lapping waves and looking up at the moon.

“So when does the boat leave for Dili?” I asked on the way to breakfast. “Oh not until tomorrow” came the reply by one of the staff, quickly followed by “would you like some bread and coffee?!”. It looked like I would be spending another day on the island.

There is no better way to start your day in Timor Leste than with a strong cup of the locally grown organic coffee followed by a snorkel along the coral garden opposite the eco village. Simply superb!

Later on, with the help of the resort staff I hired a fishing outrigger to explore the Western coast of the island. Timorese outriggers are made from a single tree trunk and the stability required for ocean travel is provided by two support beams attached to the hull. Never the less the boat still took on a fair amount of water that needed bailing while it rocked through the swell. My admiration for the bravery of the Timorese and their forefathers was reinforced by this short journey for it was on watercraft like these that the idegenious people of Timor first arrived on these shores from the West.

The island of Atauro is stunning, its geography of high cliffs plunging into the sea with protected bays harbouring beautiful beaches is one that I will not forget. With the mountain of Manucoco to climb, the hotsprings of Maquili to indulge in and the sacred stone drum at Atreku to visit, Atauro has a variety of activities for visitors to enjoy.
As I returned from my swim, I was greeted by some other guests who were staying at the eco village. They were staying on the island to mediate discussions between the local communities, leaders and priests on what Atauro’s needs as an island were. The group invited me to a local wedding taking place down the coast at the village in Makili.

Timorese weddings are something to experience; All of the guests greet the bride and groom and their parents (still wearing their formal wedding dress, including gloves some six hours after their wedding!) before they are seated. After this, guests are fed delicious Timorese curries, caldera’s and are invited to drink the local tua mutin, undistilled palm spirit and beer before the dancing starts. The party would go on all night. My first wedding in Timor was one I’ll never forget: thank you for your hospitality and consideration Jose and Marcela.

I awoke the next day with the slightest of hangovers and walked down to the village determined to make my boat. I stood there on the beach, speechless, as I watched the boat fill up and leave. As a fit of western, apoplectic rage uncontrollably set in, Julio, one of Roman Luan‘s resort staff, suddenly appeared and told me that the eco village boat had just returned from the mainland and that the next day it would travelling to Dili and there was definitely, absolutely going to be room for me.

And so it was, with another coffee under my belt, the understanding that I was in Asia and the knowledge that I would eventually return to Dili, that I realized I was being forced to spend another day on a deserted beach in the country that I love the most: Timor Leste – it’s a terrible life, but someone’s got to live it!

And, if you are living it, then go to the Travel Log section and tell us your story. You can also upload the photos from your trip there as well.