Kids in Alor, go to school by boat from Kepa island to Alor Kecil.

ITB Berlin 2012

ITB Berlin 2012, salah satu album di Flickr.

Flores Exotic tours, one of indonesian exhibitor at ITB in Berlin 7-11 March 2012.

Komodo, Rinca and Padar island

Komodo, Rinca, and Padar Island are the main islands of Komodo National Park. Famous for some of the world’s best dive sites and their popular inhabitant – the Komodo dragon – the area attracts thousands of tourists each year.

Komodo Island is the most visited place in Flores. Rinca, a smaller island where the Komodo dragons can also be found, is a good alternative to crowded Komodo Island.

Despite the invasion of tourists, you can still find some quiet and remote areas on these islands, particularly on Rinca and Padar. The islands’ interiors consist mostly of dry forests, where you can also encounter other animals than the Komodo dragon: water buffaloes, birds, pigs, and deer. The islands also offer unique beaches and good options for trekking.

Trekking on Komodo and Rinca Island

On Komodo, you can choose between different trekking routes, depending on your time and physical condition. All of them start from the ticket office at Loh Liang. A short trek takes around one hour and goes along flat trails within the dry forest. This option is suitable for visitors who do not have much time, for families with small children, or for people who prefer a relaxed and non-strenuous hike. The medium trek takes about 1 1/2 hours. It passes a waterhole where the Timor deer and wild pigs often come to drink. Sometimes, dragons can be found there lying around and waiting. You will climb Sulphurea Hill and Frigate Hill, where a magnificent view across the islands, bays and beaches awaits. The longer trek takes about 2 1/2 hours and leads you up another hill. You will pass the location where Komodo dragons used to be fed in front of enthralled tourist crowds. If you are up to a real workout, you may book a 4 – 8 hour hike in advance which will lead you up Mount Ara or to the island’s northern shore. 

Treks on Rinca Island start from the ticket office at Loh Buaya. You also have the option to choose between three trails. The shortest trek takes 30 minutes. It is an easy, shaded walk that passes an artificial waterhole before ascending to a small hill with a view over the bay. The one-hour medium trek winds between dragon nests and out into the sunshine across an exposed savannah that is studded with lontar palms. For the best opportunity to see dragons and their prey, choose the two-hour trek past a permanent waterhole and across steep, exposed slopes that offer breathtaking views.

Pink beaches

Padar Island features a natural phenomenon that you should not miss: a pink beach. This peculiar beach gets its color from red coral fragments. It is definitely a great place to spend some time by just laying back or enjoying the underwater world with your snorkeling equipment.

Another pink beach smaller in size can be found on Komodo Island as well. The shallow reef begins just in front of the beach. Being deep enough to snorkel at low tide and not too deep at high tide, it is one of the best snorkeling spots in the park.

Sources: www.florestourism.com

Lake Kelimutu Flores Indonesia

LAKE KELIMUTU

East Nusa Tenggara's natural wonder and one of Indonesia's most mysterious and dramatic sights that can be found on top this mountain, some 66 kilometers from Ende, or 83 kilometers from Maumere. It has a unique and spectacular view on its three crater lakes with their respective colors. The colors, however, have changed continually since the eruption of Mount /ye in Ende in 1969.
The mountain is located at the back of Mount Kelibara, in the Wolowaru District in the Ende, Regency of Central Flores. Keli means mountain and Mutu means boiling. In short, it means volcano. To the local people, this mountain is holy, and a token of God's blessings. It provides fertility to the surrounding lands. It is both heaven and the hell to the people of Lio Ende. Many travelers and scientists, have written about Kelimutu since it was discovered by Van Suchtelen, a Ducth government officer,
in 1915
Father Bouman published an article in 1929, which made the name Kelimutu known all over the world. Since then, many researchers and tourits have come, as well as the Governor General of Batavia (Jakarta). To get to the lakes, one follows the road, from Moni, then proceed to the crater's top. Near the crater rim was a bungalow, which has now been dismantled.
The presence of the white men, or Ata Bara, was regarded disturbing to the peace of the ancestral spirits. As a result the spirits of Kelimutu disappeared. Earth quakes began rocking the land. Smoke is often released from the crater.
The eruption of 1928 caused many victims and much damage. In 1938 there was another eruption, coming from Tiwu Ata Koo Fai Noo, Ata Nuwa Muri (the Lake of Youth). The biggest took place in 1968, in which the water in the lakes was shot 10 kilometers high into the sky. The peak of Kelimutu itself is 1,690 meters high, and its lake crater I ,410. Other geological data are as follows: Tiwu Ata Polo (the Lake of Evil) has a slopping wall, 150 meters high. The lake is 380 by 280 meters large and 64 meters deep. The volume of the water is about 446,000 cubic meters.
Tiwu Ata Koo Fai Noo and Ata Nawa Muri (the Lake of Youth) has walls 128 meters high. The lake is 430 by 300 square large and 127 meters deep with a water content of about 500.000 cubic meters.
Timu Ata Bupo (the Lake of the old) has twi layers of walls, 240 meters high. The lake covers a surface of 300 by 280 meters high. The water is 67 meters deep and 345,000 cubic meters in volume. The total water content of the three lakes amounts to 1,3 million cubic meters.
In the last three ti five years, the lakes of Kelimutu have changed in color, a phenomenon caused by the geological and chemical processes in the bottom and walls of take lakes. It could also have resulted from changes in the bacteria and micro organism populations due to changes in temperature.
Another theory proposed by village elders, is that there has actually been no change at all, but that the effect is due to optical illusions. To reach Kelimutu can be done by flying to Ende or Maumere, then going by car to Kelimutu
The surrounding villages are good places serving as bases for visits to Kelimutu, particularly those who wish to have a more leisurely pace and enjoy the views along the road between Ende and maumere, or spend more time in Kelimutu. Those title villages are also known for their excellent weaving all hand made, still use natural dyes.