The relaxed little town of Labuanbajo on the extreme western end of Flores is a principal port and the favored departure point by sea for the islands of Komodo, Rinca and Sumbawa to the west. The port also serves as the gateway to the overland trip across the island of Flores, one of Indonesia’s most fascinating ethnological regions little known outside obscure missionary journals.
Originally settled by the Bajo sailors (its name means “port of the Bajo”) from Sulawesi, your first glimpse of predominantly Catholic Flores will probably be the shiny aluminum onion dome of the mosque by the harbor. During the colonial era, Labuhanbajo was famed as a pearling center. The town slept on as an isolated fishing village until the road from Ruteng was built in the 1980s.
Nestled into the hillside on a beautiful bay offering incendiary sunsets over the island-studded sea between Flores and Komodo, Labuanbajo is popular with travelers because of its location, diverse good-quality accommodations, nearby beaches and wide range of services (tourist office, banks, moneychangers, post and telecommunications offices). Most visitors arrive from June through August, when you’ll find Labuanbajo quite busy; the rest of the year it’s considerably more laid back.
A pier berths large vessels and Pelni ships make regular stops here; the airport has been extended so that long-range aircraft can now land and group travel is on the increase. New hotels, losmen and eateries have appeared in the last several years.
The tourist office (tel. 41170) is on the road to the airport; open Mon.-Fri. 7 a.m. to 3 p.m. and Sat. 8 a.m. to around noon. Though reliable information on Komodo and Rinca islands is difficult to come by, the Komodo National Park Office (PHPA) near the port has some displays and a few brochures. Ask here about a local guide (count on about Rp40,000-Rp50,000 per day) or make inquiries at your hotel.
Batu Cermin (“Mirror Cave”) is a huge limestone rock outcrop, riven with caves full of stalactites and stalagmites, 3.5 kilometers from town on the far side of the air terminal. The road there leads from the end of the runway east and ends at a parking lot and guard post from where the cave is just a five minute walk. Between 9 and 10 a.m., the sun shines through a crack in a cave roof, illuminating stones with shiny particles which reflect light beams around on the cave’s walls. From rock outcrops above dangle long tree roots, some of which have wound their way into intricate patterns along the rock face. The area offers great exploring through various rooms, up rock faces and into forested canyons. Be sure to bring a flashlight.
But Labuanbajo’s best “tourist object” is the harbor itself. At the end of the day, walk up the hill south of town and take in a spellbinding scene with perhaps 100 spidery outriggers and single-hulled sailboats riding at anchor with the sinking sun bathing them all slowly in soft orange light. As night falls, you might even hear the faint, bell-clear sound of a Bugis flute - sorrowful and happy at the same time - drifting up from one of the faraway lantern-lit boats, a scene of such serenity and complexity that all the magic of the Indonesia’s eastern islands seems to be encapsulated in a perfect, fleeting moment.
Forget about snorkeling around the harbor as sewage and trash have killed the coral reefs, but there is good snorkeling in the sea gardens out in the bay. The closest beaches are south of town on the way to the Bajo Beach Hotel. But for those who want peace, quiet and seclusion, the best is a short boat ride away at Waicicu, north of Labuanbajo, for spectacular sunsets, no crowds and no noise.
From Waicicu you can swim to the tiny island of Kukusan Kecil just offshore and Kukusan Besar further out. However, the snorkeling is second-rate due to reef dynamiting. At low tide, walk around the headland south of Waicicu to Wai Rana which also has a good beach. A trail leads from Waicicu’s bungalows up a hill and back to Labuanbajo. Even better beaches to laze on, also with bungalows to rent, are found on Kanawa Island, one hour east by boat from Labuanbajo.
The ferry from Labuhanbajo across the Sape Strait to Sumbawa is an unforgettable maritime adventure, passing by tiny green islets, over whirlpools and powerful currents with cavorting dolphins often following the ship. If heading east across the island, regular buses travel the 137-kilometer paved road between Labuanbajo and Ruteng, the next major stop on the 667-kilometer long trans-Flores highway through a land of grandiose volcanoes, high altitude multi-hued lakes, stretches of savanna and tropical deciduous forests.
E-mail : pakbill2003@yahoo.com
Copyright@2004 PakBill
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