Benefits and Challenges for International Tourists Visiting Dili, Timor-Leste
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6 January 2022 23:17 WIB
Rubbish is an eyesore for tourists and throughout the city and suburbs there are many public collection areas, which on a daily basis are quickly filled and garbage overflow onto the streets.
After heavy rains, discarded waste from many villages in the mountains is carried down a number of large rivers and canals into the sea, heavily polluting Dili’s beaches.
Rubbish on local beaches. Lafaeknews.com
Another negative factor for Dili is that it does not have a sewage treatment plant.
Raw sewage, mixed with debris and discarded rubbish, flows 24 hours a day through polluted channels directly into the sea parallel to the scenic route to the city.
A significantly larger problem is when a visitor ‘gets caught short’, meaning they need a toilet in a hurry.
There are no public toilets situated around the city.
For centuries, Timorese women have been hand weaving a traditional cloth called Tais.
Tucked away in a small area not far from the city center is the Tais Market, where visitors can haggle over the price with the weavers and take home a colourful memento of Timorese culture.
Hand weaving cloth. Lafaeknews.com
Tais Market. Lafaeknews.com
The nearby statue of Jesus, perched on the tip of small a mountain just outside the city limits, is ‘must-see’ for most visitors.
To get up close to this impressive religious figure, tourists are faced with a physical climb of nearly six-hundred steps to reach the top.
597 steps. Lafaeknews.com
However, their reward is the specular panoramic view from the base of the statue.
Jesus Statue. Lafaeknews.com
98% of Timorese people are Catholic and many religious pilgrims come to worship at a statue of John Paul ll, who came to Timor-Leste in 1986, during the 24-year Indonesian occupation of the county.
Statue of Pope Paul II. Lafaeknews.com
The most important sacred site in Timor-Leste is the statue of the Virgin Mary at the top of Mount Ramelau, the highest mountain peak in the land.
The journey takes around 5 hours from the city along a road that is sealed most of the way, but becomes rocky and dusty a few kilometers from the stop off point.
The hike to summit. Lafaeknews.com
Statue of Mary. Lafaeknews.com
This visit also involves a very cold, early morning, 4-hour climb from a base camp to reach the summit, but again the 360-degree view at sunrise is spectacular.
Only a short walk from the City center is the now infamous Santa Cruz Cemetery.
Santa Cruz Cemetery. Lafaeknews.com
In 1991, Indonesian soldiers callously opened fire on a huge crowd of unarmed people protesting the death of a young activist who was murdered outside a church, earlier that day.
Massacre Day Santa Cruz Cemetery . Lafaeknews.com
More than 270 young people were shot dead inside the cemetery and countless others were injured in the deliberate attack, which was secretly filmed and smuggled out to Australia.
When it was shown to the world, an International outrage against the Indonesian occupation followed and resulted in Timor-Leste becoming an independent country eleven years later in 2002.
Timorese Resistance Museum. Lafaeknews.com
A Resistance Museum dedicated to the 24-year struggle is located in the City limits and adjacent to it, is a Historical Media Centre established by Max Stahl, the Australian cameraman who risked his life to film the Santa Cruz massacre.
Max Stahl: National Hero of Timor-Leste. Lafaeknews.com
The local currency is the US dollar and ATM machines are at the Airport and easily located throughout the city.
The only hiccup here is that all of the machines only accept cards linked to Visa.
Tourists using MasterCard cannot withdraw funds anywhere throughout the country. The only way they can access their money is to go to the Indonesian Customs building across the border, two and a half hours away, which houses an ATM that accepts MasterCard.
On arrival back in Dili, they then have to find roadside moneychangers and convert their Indonesian Rupiah into US dollars.
Roadside Money Changers. Lafaeknews.com
Dili has an efficient mini-bus service called Microlets. These small and normally packed buses go everywhere around the city and nearby suburbs, for the meagre price of 25 cents a trip.
Microlets. Lafaeknews.com
For the tourist this is the easiest and quickest way to travel during the daylight hours. Public transport does not run after sunset.
Portugal colonised Timor-Leste for over 400 years and its influence can still be seen and tasted in a few Portuguese restaurants.
Unfortunately, there not many buildings left that were constructed by the Portuguese.
Governor's palace. Lafaeknews.com
Casa Europa. Lafaeknews.com
Two excellent examples still standing are the Governor’s Palace and Casa Europa, both close to each other on the City’s waterfront.
When the Indonesian forces reluctantly withdrew in 1999, hundreds of buildings were burnt and destroyed by the angry soldiers, being transported by road back to West Timor.
Poignant Reminders of The Past. Lafaeknews.com
Ghostly Remnants. Lafaeknews.com
There are still many ghostly shells of burnt-out buildings in and around the city to remind people of the past.
Dotted around Dili are several small health clinics and chemist shops called Apotek, but only one, the Stanford Clinic, offers international medical treatment for tourists, should they need urgent attention.
