Of course the prision can't help but look nice from the outside in a tropical country

When I decided to take my own advice and re-visit Timor-Leste, I didn’t expect to find myself in a dark suffocating prison. Travel is not just about beaches, bars and mountain tops; its also about learning the history of the country and its people. I am sure the 13 odd government employees I brought with me to learn about post-conflict land administration and conflict management were hoping for the former. I can’t name where the officials are from as elements of their own government might not be happy we discussed ethnic reconciliation. If you know me well, I am sure you can guess.

The Indonesian era prison is actually home to a permanent exhibit on the Reconciliation process that occurred in Timor after independence, called the Commission for Reception, Truth and Reconciliation (CAVR). It is tricky business getting people together to admit to crimes they committed against their neighbors, but it’s an exercise that’s vital to forgiving and moving on to a more peaceful society. With war raging in Afghanistan, and post-war countries like Iraq trying to move on, examples like the process in Timor are a great way for travelers to gain a greater appreciation for the difficulties so many countries face around the world.

The family greets you as you enter the mildew soaked buildings

If you are planning a trip to Timor-Leste I recommend a visit to the exhibition, but if you can’t get away just yet here is short tour from my visit.

Community meetings and reconciliation

The CAVR was asked to investigate less serious crimes and bring victims and persecutors together to reconcile. Most people wanted reconciliation, but also rehabilitation for victims, engagement with refugees, and grassroots reconciliation based on both traditional methods and involving the Church.

About 1,371 reconciliations were facilitated by CAVR between perpetrators and victims of less serious crimes.

Before the (CRP) I felt ashamed to walk around the village. Now when I walk around, I feel freer. People didn’t talk to me sometimes before. Now I feel that people are more open. Before I felt a weight on me when I went to work in the fields.

As you walk though the prison various rooms are set up with displays showing the history of not only the CAVR but also a history of Timor-Leste’s struggle for independence from Indonesia.

Presentation by one of the members of the CAVR and director of the exhibit

Description of the Isolation Cell

As you move through the exhibit it is impossible not to be moved by the pain and suffering experienced by the Timorese people. And yet amid all of this suffering there is a message of hope, justice and peace. Nothing can become  so bad as to be beyond redemption as there is also an equal ability of forgiveness by human beings.

Of course this does not make it any easier and some of the images are graphic and disturbing. Such as the one below (scroll fast if you do not want to see).

Inside the prison cells

At the end of the tour you are brought to a small garden to discuss what you have seen, share your feelings and work through what is at once a shame for human beings but also a model of triumph and forgiveness. As the humid breeze  brushes your hair, the palm trees groan under the weight of gigantic coconuts, and the twittering of birds fill your ears you are reminded that nature has a capacity to revert to its original self, as do we humans after tragedy has stuck. The final message the tour has for you is not one of the past, but of the present. On the wall leading out is a question, scrolled in illuminating moss and algae: “What will you do for human rights now?”

Its a good question. Hopefully more travelers take it to heart and leave something positive wherever they go.

The CAVR exhibition is open to the public each working day on Balide Rd in Dili. Tour guides are available in English and Tetun. Bookings and further information are available at: tel 3310315, email chegatours@gmail.com

Have a strong feeling about the CARV? What do you think about a traveler’s responsibilities? Leave a comment below.

Reconciliation and Human Rights in Timor-Leste (East Timor): more to travel than just beaches and beer is a post from: Todd's Wanderings

My friend Megan who writes the blog See. Write. Live. nominated me to share my three best travel secrets on Todd’s Wanderings. The nomination is a part of Trip Base Blog tag in which the Top Bloggers’ Best Kept Travel Secrets will be published in a free ebook that will be shared with the “entire online community…” Hmmm, good luck with that!

1. Mount Koya, Japan

Everyone visits the major temples in Kyoto and Nara but these days they are little more than tourist attractions, albeit pretty ones, lacking that lived in, struggle for enlightenment feel. Mount Koya, the secluded mountain temple complex of Esoteric Shingon Buddhism in Wakayama Prefecture, is a hideaway for a more authentic massive temple experience. Located in the heart of the Kii mountains, it was founded in 816 by the monk Kukai, mythical founder of the Shikoku Pilgrimage. The complex houses 100 temples, many offering lodging, and the most famous cemetery in Japan leading to Kukai’s tomb. A walk through the cemetery is an otherworldly experience dominated by centuries old cedar trees and hundreds of moss covered stone Buddhas playing hide and seek in the mist.

2. Castlereigh Reservoir, Dikoya, Sri Lanka

3. Dili, East Timor

Now that I have shared my secrets it is time for me to “tag” five bloggers to participate in the “Three Best Kept Travel Secrets”. Your it:

1. Lili at Muza-chan’s Gate to Japan
2. Kirigalpoththa, name to remain a mystery…
3. Suzanne, THIRTY: Own up to Being Growing-up
4. Stephanie, Where in the world am I?
5. Marianne, Zen & the Art of Peacekeeping

My 3 Best Kept Travel Secrets is a post from: Todd's Wanderings

As promised here is the beginning of my updates. While I am currently living in Sri Lanka I want to share with you a road trip myself and 3 friends went on to East Timor’s tallest mountain, Mt. Ramalou. Located in the middle of the country it is not the easiest of places to reach. I don’t remember the exact distance (maybe about 160 km from Dili), but the first 140 km took about 4 hours and the last 20 kilometers another 3 hours!!

It was great to get out of the “city” and see a little more of the country side. East Timor has an abundance of natural beauty and while the mountainous areas are some of the poorest and least accessible in the country, they also hold some of the most spectacular vistas, and kindest people there are.

Enjoy the trip!!

Climbing the winding roads above Dili, we were given one final glimpse of the Capital before rounding a bend and plunging into the mountains for good

We were fortunate to have a 4 wheel drive car to ourselves. The rest of the country is not so fortunate and packed trucks and buses (with people sleeping on the top even) is a common sight on the ‘main’ roads.

Even when you do reach a sizable town, the traffic signs can be a bit confusing. As this little town’s sole stop sign the town council might have been a bit confused about where it would be most effective…

After 4 hours on paved road (but averaging only about 30 km and hour or so) we made the last 20 kilometers on a very rough, lonely path

The road brought us through a beautiful mountian landscape with traditional huts scattered throughout, adding to both the beauty of the area but also the sense of loneliness and remoteness

Children often ran out of their homes at the sound of any car, hoping to catch a glimpse of anything new

We passed some friends on their way back from climbing. With no pubic transportation in the area these women welcomed a free ride.

Group photo attempt number 1

Our Posada (inn) for the night. The lonely planet lists a Posada that was actually closed. We were lucky that this one had been opened. It was very basic but the people were very friendly and we shared the food we brought and shared a meal with the caretakers and the guests (all Timorese).

Our room for the night. The Posada was full due to a teachers training going on in the town. However, 4 woman moved out and in with their coworkers and were kind enough to allow us to stay for the night. We started hiking in the middle of the night (around 2 am).

The common room of the Posada had creepy stuffed animals as decoration…

I reached the top just in time for sunrise and was greeted by a statue of Mary along with a stunning sunrise.

Sunrise, Mount Ramalou

As the sun rose higher the blue in the mountains came out

Group picture number 2. Much more successful…especially if you tilt your head to the left while viewing.

Sea of Clouds

Sorry for the self portrait but I am sure at least my Mom will be happy…

On the way down, the lonely landscape we hiked during the night became visible for the first time.

Heading back home we encountered our first signs of civilization as the locals walked towards the Sunday market.

Thankfully we got a flat tire off of the mountain. It seems it takes 2 internationals and 5 Timorese to fix a tire if anyone ever asks…

I hope you all enjoyed the trip up to Mount Ramalou and back. Feel free to post comments or ask questions.

Cheers

Road Trip to Mount Ramalou, East Timor is a post from: Todd's Wanderings

A more recent update…. All of the other posts are basically background information to catch people up on my life here in East Timor. So here is what has been happening for the past 3 weeks or so. (beginning of November through the 3^rd week).

Bali…

Kay (the woman I am dating) left East Timor to go back to Washington D.C. She is quitting her job with the World Bank and moving to Sri Lanka where she will start a new job with the UNDP (United Nations Development Program). So what other choice did we have than to take 5 days off and spend them in Bali, Indonesia. So I worked overtime to get comp time and then we took off for Bali…my contract doesn’t give my any vacation or sick days.

We decided to head up to the northeast coast and go diving. After some confusion at the airport we rented a car, got a horrible map and took off on a 4 hour odyssey to find the right roads. It was a great time and we saw a ton of Bali by getting lost in the back mountain roads and small villages. We finally arrived and stayed for 3 nights in a resort right on the water that had a dive shop attached. We did two dives the next day, one to a ship wreck that was massive and about 25 meters down and the other to a drop off full of coral. We saw all of the normal tropical fish, such as puffers, clown fish (think nemo), a school of mackerel in a circle and even a giant barracuda.

It was a really relaxing time and was just what we needed. We took the car out and explored the area and found terraced rice fields up in the mountains. They were so beautiful and such a vibrant green.

On our third day we headed back to the south coast near the airport area and stayed at a small villa in the middle of rice fields and about 10 minuets away from the beach. We took our time shopping and spent a half-day taking surfing lessons. It was amazing and after surfing first in San Diego and now in Bali I think I really need to add it regularly to my life…more on this later. I was a bit bummed because I had been hoping to take kite boarding lessons (where you use a kite to pull you across the water on a board strapped to your feet), but the timing was just not right and between heavy rain and low tide I had to settle for only scuba diving and surfing…..Yes I know I have a rough life.

So to sum up Bali…great time, great weather, awesome sporting activities and possibly one of the best atmospheres I have encountered around Asia. The Balinese have a great sense for design, whether it is for architecture, sculpting, furniture making, or wood carving. I would be very happy if I could outfit my future house (if I ever settle down…just joking Mom…..maybe….) with anything from Bali.

We got stuck in about 15 festivals while driving. Bali is a mainly Hindu island and these festivals were to celebrate the full moon.

A view of rice fields from the road above.

Me and the rice fields…

Kay and I taking a break from driving

Some more rice fields built into the side of some mountains.

Traditional Balinese boat…you didn’t think all the pictures were going to be of rice did you?

Having fun on the boat

Back to Timor-

I arrived back to Timor (alone…sniff sniff) and jumped right back into work. I am coming up on the end of my contract and the seminars/workshop I am organizing need to get done, and quickly. The problem is negotiating the agenda and content with my boss and still keeping the impact of the content close to my vision. In either case the situation is very fluid here and without notice the police and military have begun reconciling with each other (they had been shooting at each other just 3 months ago).

Yes, I know this sounds like a good thing…and it really is. But it makes organizing the seminars more difficult because the security sector has its own program going (with all the right secret handshakes) and getting our agenda picked up is going to be even harder. So what do you do when work gets difficult…go on a camping trip with friends.

5 of us got on our motorcycles and drove an hour up the coast to Dollar beach (no I have no idea where the name came from) and camped out for the night. Yup, just one hour away and you get a nice deserted tropical beach. The ride out there was amazing as we zoomed over mountains and hugged curves that dropped hundreds of feet down to the ocean; through little villages and past fishermen spear hunting for dinner. I had bought a camping hammock in Bali, complete with a mosquito net. However, the breeze kept going all night so not only was it cool, and the sky star filled, but all of the bugs were blown away.

The next morning I hiked up a small rise to see the sunrise and then went snorkeling over the reef. Kay and I had come out to the same beach about 3 weeks ago with a friend to go diving so I had a pretty good idea of where all the fish were. It is amazing all the fish and other creatures you can see even just snorkeling.

Some locals were trying to bounce a truck on tires to get it high enough to work on its axle…so we got off your bikes and decided to help. Not the easiest way to raise up a car but when you don’t have a garage near by it is the only way.

Yup that’s right, that me and 125cc of pure power. This is the spot where we set up camp.

My new camping hammock and mosquito net. This is a single and I should have bought a double. Maybe I will buy a new one on my way through Bali next and one you lucky souls might be getting a slightly used single camping hammock as a present…one can only dream.

Dollar beach at sunrise…the next picture is from the small hill in the distance.

A view of the beach from a small hill.

Sunrise

Well that is basically what has been going on with me up to about 2 weeks ago. I will update you all soon on the past 2-3 weeks….

Bali, Camping and Everything Inbetween… is a post from: Todd's Wanderings

As you may have already heard I have changed homes here in East Timor to a bungalow just outside of Dili (the capital of East Timor). I now live in a one room bungalow inside of a guarded “compound” right across the street from the ocean and a nice rocky/sandy beach. My compound has 3 other bungalows that are rented out by foreigners and our landlords live in a house slightly up the hill from us. There is 24 hour security, a wire fence with gate, 5 dogs, various other Timorese living in the compound (not sure who they are just yet), a bunch of construction workers building a new 2 story bungalow and a garden with three friendly monkeys that like to pick at my arm hair and try to find bugs.

I live about a 45 minute walk outside of town so I have bought (and learned to ride) a small 125cc motorcycle to get me back and forth (and out into the mountains in the near future). I have always wanted to learn how to ride and it is the perfect place to learn (minus the pigs, cows, goats and chickens that run out in front of me constantly). My commute is beautiful, hugging the side of the mountains and right next to the water. I am pretty much living up my tropical island fantasy, and the conflict and violence here keeps me from getting too bored. There have been a wave of stabbings recently and more and more foreigners are being attacked at night for money. Not sure if the trend will continue or not.

Anyway I decided to walk home on Saturday and take pictures along the way so that you can get a better feeling for where I live and my trips to and from home. I hope you enjoy the pictures and there should be more to come. I really want to buy a nice digital camera but it would never make it here in one piece (I might just have to make a trip to Thailand).

Enjoy!

In front of a supermarket and on the main road out of town people sell their fish. You can get 2 red snappers weighing 8 pounds each for about $20 US.

One more “shop” on the way out of town.

Just in case you didn’t realize that there are trees and houses outside of Dili (the capital)

The windy road just out of town. And yes this is a two lane road and SUVs and buses (called Microlets here) squeeze by each other.

Leaving Town we come to the first Beach (although the beach runs along the whole coastline, even in the “city”. I live close to the mountains in the distance.

Beginning of the first beach.

Fisherman fixing his nets.

Traditional boats. These are left all over the beach and are the main fishing boats used.

I passed by a bunch of kids swimming and a few adults looking for shell fish (I think).

The kids here love having their pictures taken and like seeing themselves and their friends on the digital screen even more.

The next J-Crew model?

Loving the attention!!!!!

View of the next beach/cove

This cove is filled with fish BBQ restaurants, and various other foods. There is even a “dance club” called Exotica.

Animals (like these goats) like to jump out at me while riding my motorcycle. The pigs here (hogs really) have no fear as they know I will die before they do! The chickens love flying right in front of my face too…

This is a shrine to Mary. The Island is mostly Catholic but mixed with a native animism that believes in a mother earth and a father sky. In the far back of this picture is a statue of Jesus up on top of the far mountain.

What more can you ask for. They have tables on and off the beach and two nights over the past week I had dinner with a friend here. You sit by candle like on the beach with the stars nice and bright overhead. Both nights a large pig as walked by. Animals here are not penned up and everyone knows which pig belongs to who.

Leaving the restaurant area.

Where I just came from. Damn Goats!!!

Looking back at the “City”

The beach and cove where I live

The cove at low tide

There are lots of abandoned or unused boats “floating” around…There are still about 100,000 refuges that have fled the violence here in Dili. A lot of their possessions have either been burned or taken by those who have stayed. It is a huge mess sorting out their return.

The simple life

The fishing village just before my house

The beach right in front of my house

The gate into my “compound”

View from the gate…not too bad right?

The center of the compound

My Bungalow (if you are lucky the next installment of Cribs will show you the interior)

And finally my Hog. This bad boy has 125cc of pure power. There is not much to it besides the gears and engine. No fuel gauge, no start button, just pure power and a kick start. It is really fun to ride around (yes Mom I wear a helmet)…..I am fulfilling my island fantasy as I ride around with flip flops all around town and out to the beach. I am going to take it for a day trip next Tuesday during a national holiday….stay tuned.

The Way Home is a post from: Todd's Wanderings

A more recent update…around the beginning of October

Well I have to say life is treating me really well at the moment. I have an interesting job, job security for the next 2 months (until December 8^th), a great groups of friends out here and some exciting news…..I just moved to a place by the water and I bought a motorcycle and have learned how to ride it.

But first things first. I had one of the best weekends I have had in a long time. Not really sure what happened on Friday night…always a good sign….I do remember Saturday so I guess I will start from there. I had my first diving session (my confined dives in the pool) and it was really fun. I get to go out on 4 open water dives in the ocean starting from next weekend. After wards I met up with the Hash House Harriers and we ran and hiked (I hiked because my dislocated toe is still bothering me) through the hills and up a dry river bed. We were met by a supped up party “van” that brought the beers and music. After getting trashed in the middle of nowhere we headed back to a private bar and ate, drank and played ping pong.

Next I found myself at a toga party and danced until 2 am until a friend gave me a ride home. Although come to think of it, the Toga party could have been on Friday. Not really sure of time out here. Sunday morning saw me buying a 125 cc motorcycle (with clutch and gears) and spending an hour riding up and down the street learning how to ride it before I took it home.

Shortly there after I moved to my new place, 10 min outside of town, and right across the street from the water. I live in a small 1 room bungalow with security and a friend who lives right across from me. There are 4 houses in the compounds, 5 dogs and 3 monkeys in the garden. I live a 10 min walk or 2 min drive to the best beach around and there is a small fishing village right down the street. The water in front is a small bay with mountain surrounding the area. The sunsets are amazing.

So now I get to ride back and forth to work on my new motorcycle. Most of the ride hugs the water so I get to feel the sea air on my face and soak up island life. The only dangers I have is dodging pigs, goats, dogs, chickens and oxen that like to jump out into the street. I am happy I left my old area as someone was stabbed to death at noon 2 days ago because he went into a store a gang was “protecting.” This all happened about 5 blocks away from where I lived.

Ok I do not have too much more news. I hope you enjoy the pictures and keep the e-mails coming, it is nice to hear what is going on at home.

Kids I met by a dry river bed

Tricked out bus we used for a party on the dry river bed

Kay humoring some drunk Australian

A sunset from the beach near my house

Tough life I know.

I will send more pictures of my place, neighborhood and my motorcycle in the next blog…

A Good Weekend and Moving is a post from: Todd's Wanderings