I wish it were Rusli writing these emails so he could explain the beliefs behind the design of the homes here.  There are design structures  for the rich and powerful and designs for the locals.  Now money is what determines design, not just title though they go often hand in hand.

The most unusual homes shown on post cards look like “boats.”  Originally when the sea people moved to land they lived under their boats.  Boat design is still kept more as ornament than as useful space.  I don’t know if there is another “functional” purpose for this design as well as historic.  Lowland homes do not have them so they are linked only with Torajans, now mountain people.  If you want to know more about Tana Toraja architecture or beliefs, you will have to ask at your local library.

  Our “motel”  The setting was lovely.  Our area was not on poles but had a bottom floor.  I think these were the suites.  But this is the architecture they are famous for in Tan Toraja.

This is the gate into the geographic area that is Tana Toraja.    Many areas have ornamental gates marking their main entrance.  We arrived about 6:30 on an overcast evening.  Rusli and I walked across the bridge so I could take photos.             U mild is a brand of cigarrettes.     Lots of smokers. Ironincally, offerrings left for the dead include cigarettes!

  Real people and real homes.  The structures on the left are homes. The ones on the right are “rice barns.”  This is a rice culture and no meal is a meal without rice.  The number of poles holding up the rice barns was determined by your status.  This whole area is now a UN World Heritage site.  It was also where the bones and skulls are found behind the houses up the mountain further.  It was an amazing area.  And August is the end of the tourist season.  Not crowded with tourists as you can see. 

The underside of the ornamental roof.  There is lots of bamboo here and is used in lots of ways.  The ground below the living area was for animals, vegetables, or meat…live food sources.  The central second part was for humans to live.  The top part and roof was for the gods of the rice.  The structure represents all of life, plants and animals, then man, then the gods on top. 

  The buffalo horn adorned home across from its rice barn.  Beyond that you see the rice fields.  Water buffalo are sacred and raised solely for funeral celebrations.  People do the work of the water buffalo in the fields.  “Rental women” go to the fields to work and get 10 % of the yield as pay.

  Up the narrow stairs and entering one of the homes. 

The area below the home is for chickens and animals.  The body of the home is for humans and the roof is for the gods. Lots of lovely wood carving.

The home owner had been resting in the separate sleeping room.  Notice his sorong.  The front room was practically bare except for a few pots for cooking.  There is no plumbing and water comes from wells. Rusli says the people live with the sun.  They close up the windows of the homes at dark to keep out mosquitos.  They do have electricity provided by the government.   Many places that we stopped while driving to Tana Toraja are built on the 3 level design.  Private spaces are made outside for a toilet. One place was just some crossed boards to stand on and a big urn for water to wash with. 

Next email will be the beautiful scenery of Tana Toraja.  And after that, a home visit with the now orphaned daughter of a widow. (The stop had been billed as the home of a widow.  Donations were probably a source of income for her.)  The daughter named Nur which means sun,  seemed to be doing quite well for herself, cutting hair and doing sewing.  She had an old Singer machine, less modern looking than even the one my mother used to make our clothes in the 50s.  But with it she was filling an order for local school uniforms and seemed to have lots of rice stored up.  She enjoyed her independence and was not following the tradition of early marriage.  Her nephews would sleep below to keep guard during the night. 

We are hoping to leave for Labuanbajo early Monday morning.  Too soon to say good-bye to Makassar, but we are on our way to meet up with the Indonesia rally, Sail Indonesia.