From Soe the road east becomes narrower and steeper and it seems like a long way to the East Timor border past Atapupu.
Niki-Niki is the first major village along the road. It is only 22km from Soe. Every Wednesday morning a busy market is held. People from all over the district come to trade. Niki-Niki was formerly the capital for one of Timor’s biggest kingdoms. There are historic buildings and graves to see, and many interesting stories and legends about this place.
Between Niki-Niki and Kefamenanu there are lush valleys, rivers and mountains. Scattered throughout the countryside are small villages. Several villages sell honey along the road. Honey tastes different where ever you go because of the different flowers that the bees use.
Kefamenanu is 197 km from Kupang and 86km from Soe. It is about a two hours drive from Soe. Kefa (for short), and the surrounding districts have been greatly influenced by Catholicism. Kefa is the capital for the Northern Central Timor Regency, (TTU or Timor Tengah Utara).
About half way between Kefa and Atambua is a small roadside village called Desa Leba. There are many villages along the roadside because the government encouraged villagers to relocate their houses from the hills to the road. This made trading easier. The problem has been however, that often there is no good water source or fertile land available. The village life is simple, and economically not so easy. Animals like pigs, cows and goats are only killed for ceremonies or sold for cash, but not eaten.
Atambua is the capital of Belu Regency and is another two hours drive (93km) from Kefa. The people of Belu Regency speak both Indonesian and their mother tongue Tetum-Belu. ‘Belu’ means friend. Catholicism is the main religion of the Tetum people. Atambua is a bustling, ‘wild’ country town. For example, while walking down the market street all of a sudden the market erupts with shouting and yells, everyone swarms to see why ... two pretty girls! It is the main stop before departing for Dili, and carries a wide selection of goods in the shops.
Atapupu is 25km from Atambua. It is a small but pretty port on the north coast, and the last town before the border to East Timor. Up until the late seventies there was a thriving cattle business ‘Timor Livestock Company’ near this village. Cattle were imported from Australia, cross bred, killed, and the meat then sold to major Indonesian islands like Java and Sumatra. The Atapupu port is still used to ferry people and goods, including livestock, to other NTT islands. From the quiet relaxing beach of Pasir Putih (White Sand) the islands of Alor (part of NTT), and Kisar (part of the Maluku Province), are visible.
Questions / activities
1. What is the picture of at the very top of the first page? 2. In Desa Leba food is cooked and eaten 3 times a day. The family don’t eat together, when they are hungry they serve and eat by themselves. Interview 4 people in your class and find out what their meal time custom is. What is yours? 3. Find a map of Timor and follow the road from Kupang to Atapupu to Dili.
Extra Comprehension, Discussion and Research Questions
1. What did the Timor Livestock Company do?
2. How far is Niki Niki from Soe?
3. In Desa Leba, as in any other place there are passed on remedies for all sorts of situations. They say for example, that if a woman is about to give birth she must eat coconut and banana mixed together. Can you name any family remedies you have.
4. When a person in Desa Leba dies they kill the fat pigs or goats or cows or even the horse, and feast for three days and nights. What do we do when somebody dies?
5. To fatten an animal to sell there are a number of ways the villager uses: injections, salt (so the animal is thirsty, drinks a lot, and its body swells) or lots of good feed. Does your area export live cattle/animals overseas? What are they, where do they go, and how much income does it provide? How do they keep they animals fat?
