If you conduct a research in another culture it is good to respect and adapt to this culture. Also if this means that the students from the tourism high school in Labuan Bajo we work together with want to meet early (7.20 am!) because the day here starts early. Or if you are offered a welcome tea or coffee while you do not like tea and coffee. Or if you have to wear t-shirts with long sleeves and long trousers while it is hot weather. It is all part of learning about and adapting to another culture, something which I like a lot. Therefore I do not mind to wake up early, drink tea or coffee or wear clothes that are way too warm for this weather. If you show your respect to the other culture, you will be amazed how much you will be welcomed by the people of this culture.
Today we went to Melo village, a traditional village near Labuan Bajo. Especially when going to traditional villages you need to follow the rules of their culture. We met the chief of the village, who welcomed us and showed his respect to us by putting the traditional scarfs around our necks. After this, we tried to play some of the traditional music instruments for the Caci dancing. Caci dancing is the traditional fighting dancing for the Manggarai region of Flores. Unfortunately we did not see the dancing ourselves, but we could see the costumes and could hear a lot of stories about it. The fact that the chief of the village did not speak English did not bother us. By using our feet and hands, smiling a lot and some translations by the students who help us, we could have a nice interaction with him. Not only this traditional house but also the trip by bemo (kind of minivan) was nice as we could enjoy the beautiful sceneries and the Indonesian music that was on.
Before we went to Melo village we went to the Komodo Bank, a waste bank. Here on Flores you can see waste everywhere; on streets, on the beaches, in the sea, in the forests, etc. To get rid of their waste people often burn the waste or just dump it somewhere (e.g. in the river, forest or sea). The Komodo Bank is an initiative that focuses on how to deal with this waste. People and organisations are asked to separate their waste and to sell it to the Komodo Bank, which in turn will sell this to a company on Java that recycles the plastic, paper and glass. This initiative just started some months ago. I am curious what Komodo Bank and other actors focusing on waste in Labuan Bajo and its surroundings can achieve in the coming years!
Now my blog post comes to an end. Writing this blog post, sitting outside in front of the hotel, took me some time. The workers in the hotel try to learn some Dutch words, why I am still trying to learn some words in their language (which are hard to pronounce and remember!). And they are always in for a chat, also if it is better if they do not disturb you because you have to write your blog post.. ;-). I want to close this blog post with saying hi from my friends of Labuan Bajo, the hotel workers, to you all and by recommending you to visit this amazing island that has so much beautiful culture and nature to offer!
Written by: Simone Camps
