Kelimutu

The weekend before last, we (Peter, my fellow hospital volunteer and I) had the opportunity to visit one of the "must see" sights of Flores in the company of some friends who were visiting from Kupang on the island of Timor. These are the three coloured lakes of Kelimutu, about 1650m high in the hills of Flores and about 100km east of Maumere. 100kms, I hear you say, that's an easy enough trip...

Well, I can tell you that a 100km trip with two people on a 160cc motorbike on the tortuous roads of Flores is an undertaking and a half ! We left Maumere at about 11am and reached Moni (the village near the lakes) after a trip of over 3 hours actual travelling time, with frequent stops for lunch and helmet rests. Moni is a small village high in the mountains (and beautifully cool, I needed a long sleeved top there for the very first time since arriving in Indonesia) and has a small bar with a great view over rice paddies and green hills. We stayed in a family run homestay (Rp75,000 or €5 for two people including breakfast), and spent some of Saturday night watching a local traditional dance performance before partaking of some of the local hooch.

Early the next morning, we headed further up the hills to the lakes of Kelimutu. These are three lakes in volcanic craters – not particularly unusual in an area known for its volcanic activity until you hear that they are all different colours and that the colours change from time to time depending on changes in mineral composition, making this quite a spectacular sight. When we visited, the lakes were vivid turquoise, black and a sort of murky brown. Local legend has it that this is where the souls of the departed end up, young people to one lake, old people to another, and those whose lives have been less than exemplary to another (you are probably guessing that that's the black one but it isn't).

While at the lakes, most of the other visitors were Indonesian and, as usual, I was engaged in conversation by many of them (many Indonesians are delighted to get an opportunity to practice their English language skills). One of the people I met there was Andrew from Timor. He is a student at the seminary in Ledalero, about 10km away from Maumere. As he visits Maumere frequently, I expect to see him again for some mutually beneficial conversation practice.

The worst part of visiting the lakes was the journey back home again on Sunday – another long and twisty trip, this time mostly downhill back to sea level. However, the weekend was well worth it as this was our first opportunity to see some of the spectacular countryside of Flores and experience just how long it takes to get anywhere. There are frequent bus services linking most towns on the island but I have yet to enjoy the delights of one of these journeys. Apparently, conditions can be a little cramped (the passengers' luggage is often alive) and the twisty roads mean that many passengers suffer from travel sickness so it sounds like a motorbike is a "fresher" option.