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Sulawesi
is divided into four regions ; South, South East, Central and North Sulawesi.
Sulawesi is a holiday destination that is becoming popular with those in search of the exotic. Most interesting to visitors are the more populated south and north regions, as the central region is a little known area rarely visited ( though of course for some travellers this is its very attraction ).
South Sulawesi is a region of dramatic contrasts - of rugged volcanic peaks and glistening white beaches. So it's hardly surprising the region is home to two vastly different peoples - the seafaring Bugis and the mysterious highland Torajans.
If
you are a first-time visitor make sure you take a trip to the Torajan communities
of the South Sulawesi highlands. New roads have made the eight-hour journey
to Toraja land much easier so these once remote people are now used to
seeing visitors.
You
will drive through spectacular mountain scenery, steep terraced slopes
and tall bamboo forests to arrive in a true paradise of unspoilt
natural beauty. ( You'll have no trouble understanding why the Torajans
believe their forefathers were descended from heaven, for this is heaven
on earth ).
Most
visitors can't wait to see the Toraja tombs - man - made caves cut into
sheer cliff faces with eerie effigies on suspended balconies staring out
across the jungle. InTorajan culture a funeral is festive event and elaborate
rites are performed to ensure that souls pass to the afterworld in an appropriate
manner. Families spend much on these feasts and if you're fortune to be
here for a burial ceremony you should be sure to contribute something
such as food, soap or perhaps even money to assist the family. Be
warned, though, some parts of the ceremony are not for the faint-hearted-the
slaughter by single sword stroke of a sacred buffalo is common.
Funeral
ceremony usually last about a week with the feasting, chanting and dancing
continuing throughout the night. It is on the last day tht the coffin is
hauled carefully uop the mounntainside to the family gravesite amidst great
shouting and excitement. The best known gravesites are at Londa and Lemo.
Here the effigies are those of noblemen and other high-ranking community
leaders.
You'll
also be struck by the unusual architecture of the traditional Toraja house,
the " Tongkonan ". The roof rises at both ends like the bow and stern of
a ship and legend has it that this was the shape of the vessels that carried
their ancestors here.
For
a different experience visitors cross South to North Sulawesi with an overland
tour through Central Sulawesi with its beautiful coral reefs, white
sandy beaches and clear in Togean islands. If you are nature lovers there
is plenty of wildlife and be sure to see the ancient megalithic stones
at Bada Valley in Lore Lindu National Park. At the end of your Trans-Sulawesi
trip. You'll be arriving at a home of friendly people ; Minahasa
people in North Sulawesi . As a result of Portuguese and Spanish and Dutch
missionaries , Manado is one of the most Christianised places in Indonesia.
Another heaven on earth, complete with its Bunaken island for those who
love in scuba diving.
There are number of interesting towns around the delightful Lake
Tondano that you will want to visit. And while in the area, be sure to
see the ancient grave as as Waruga
( Watung Pinabetengan ). It's a mysterious , huge, anvil-shaped
stone covered in as yet
undeciphered hieroglyphics.
