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Sulawesi, Indonesia Batuputih Batuputih is not only the gateway to wonderful   Tangkoko National Park, it's also a great place to go snorkeling, diving, or dolphin watching. Lea, the local guide and divemaster (find her contact info below) with whom we booked a snorkeling and dolphin watching tour, promised us that, if we'd go, our boat would be the only one. We didn't want to go if there'd be a whole lot of boats practically chasing a few dolphins like, unfortunately, it happens in other places (Bali, for example). Dolphin Watching Since it had been raining the whole night and we couldn't start as early as planned, it wasn't sure if we were going to see any dolphins at all. But we did, and not just a few, but "thousands!", as Lea cried out when the animals started jumping out of the water.   Thousands   may have been a bit of an exaggeration but there were many, many dolphins; I never even dreamed of seeing so many in one place. It was fantastic, they...

Sulawesi, Indonesia On the easternmost tip of North Sulawesi lies Tangkoko National Park. According to the Lonely Planet, it's possible to get there by public transport from Manado, but in reality this proved to be close to impossible. Even if you'd manage it, it wouldn't necessarily be cheaper than a taxi from the airport directly to Batuputih, the village next to the National Park. Tarsiers Accommodation in Batuputih is limited and almost everything was full when we arrived. The Tankoko Ranger Homestay still had a room - a decent one for the first night but a very basic one, where neither the shower nor the faucet worked, for the second night. I was sick (I had probably eaten or drunk something bad; this had to happen at one point in our trip) and feeling terrible but what can you do (reserve ahead maybe...). We wouldn't leave before having been to the national park. Tangkoko National Park - a Haven for Wildlife I didn't want to spend more days than necessary in t...

Sulawesi, Indonesia   Rantepao's big market takes place every six days. Vegetables, fruit, fish, livestock, baskets, knives, clothes, coffee, you name it. Here you can find almost everything you need (or don't need). As a tourist, you're usually offered fresh fish - and not only here but in other places as well, actually this happens at almost every market we visit in Asia - which always strikes me as odd because what would I do with a fresh (and still moving) fish..? Anyway, the market is fun to walk around a good place to buy freshly ground Toraja coffee, one of Indonesia's best.

Getting to know the unique culture of the Torajan people in Sulawesi Death is just another part of life for the Torajas. When someone dies, that person isn't buried immediately because the deceased is not considered dead but sick and keeps on living in the family home. Dead But Not Really With our guide Yacob (a very kind and knowledgeable man who last year guided a National Geographic team around Tana Toraja; read the very interesting article   here ) we visited a dead woman. That's right, we didn't just go to see her but we visited her. Before we entered, we agreed that we'd talk to her and thank her for receiving us. But once we were inside the room where she lay in a coffin, none of us six tourists talked to the dead woman. In fact, we kept very quiet and left the room as soon as possible. Our way to deal with death and to treat a dead person is completely different from the Toraja's. There were two little kids in the house and they obviously didn't mind at ...

Sulawesi, Indonesia In the Land of the Toraja In Indonesia there are over 300 different ethnic groups. One of them are the Toraja, who live in the highlands of South Sulawesi. Tana Toraja, the "Land of the Toraja", is known for its good coffee but also for the - for an outsider rather strange (or, more accurate, strangely fascinating) - funeral ceremonies of its people. The ceremonies are huge events that last several days. Hundreds of guests attend and in order to accommodate and seat them all, temporary pavilions are built. It's a whole industry. The events are filmed with professional equipment; we've even seen a drone recording the whole ceremony from a bird's-eye perspective. Funeral ceremonies are held throughout the year. Most, however, take place in July and August to coincide with the holiday period in Indonesia since many Toraja live in other parts of the country. You may ask yourself now, how can they time the funerals? It's not as if people could o...

A few days in the capital of Sarawak, Malaysia The City of Cats Kuching is the capital city of the Malaysian state of Sarawak. Its name means   cat   in Malay so it's no wonder the city is full of cat statues and paintings. Even the souvenir shops sell all kind of cat related things. A Pleasant Place Kuching is probably one of the nicest cities in Southeast Asia and definitely the most pleasant one in Malaysian Borneo. It's a place where you can easily spend a few days before traveling on. It's a pleasure to stroll around the old part of the town, admire the colorful old buildings and discover new details, paintings and graffitis, and corners on every walk. If you want to get out of town, Kuching is close to Bako National Park, Matang Wildlife Center and Annah Rais Longhouse. These places can be visited independently or with a tour from Kuching, although tour operators tend to charge a lot of money. They even admit their tours are a bit overpriced. The big boss ...