Published on June 17, 2014
Presented by the Ministry of Tourism and Creative Economy in collaboration with the Regency of Lembata, the Festival Adventure Indonesia (FAI) 2014 will be held at Lembata , East Nusatenggara Province from 24th to 29th September 2014.
The festival will feature Photography and blog writing competitions themed “Adventure & Culture of Lembata” which will be participated in by photographers, travel bloggers, adventure enthusiasts, and the general public. The festival is projected to attract over 500 participants who will be taken to traditional villages and engage in various activities. They will also taste traditional Lembata cuisine and stay with local families.
The festival will also take participants on a trekking trip called, “peanut festival”, and enjoy the beautiful sunrise on the peak of Mount Ile Lewotok. As Lembata is widely known for its dramatic traditional whale hunting, participants will also get a chance to observe this fascinating action firsthand. The pinnacle of the festival will take place at the town of Lewoleba and feature traditional art performances from 9 districts of the regency.
The FAI 2014 is the first festival that is aimed to introduce and further promote the wonders of Lembata to the international world. To support the festival, the regency of Lembata is undertaking preparations in some of the regency’s tourist attractions such as Lewoloba Town, Wolorpass Hill, Lemagute Village, Amakaka Village, Mount Ile Lewotolok, Jontana Village, Waienga Bay, a s well as The Fishing Village and the Market of Lamalera.
Around the world, the village of Lamalera on the island of Lembata on Flores is known as the home of traditional whale hunting. Portuguese documents dating back to 1643 already mentioned that these heroic hunts were sighted then. Villagers hunt large sea animals, like whales, manta rays and sometimes dolphins to provide food and a living for the entire village, which they undertake on simple and fragile sailboats, following ancient beliefs, taboos and tradition.
It is for these reasons, therefore, that the Lamalera whale hunts are until this day exempt from the international ban on whaling, considering the traditional way this is still done and the fact that hunting these large sea animals do not have a significant impact on the general marine population, since the numbers caught are also very few.
To reach Lembata, take a flight from Bali to the town of Maumere on Flores. From here travel by bus to Larantuka. There are daily ferries between Larantuka and Lewoleba, or a weekly ferry that crosses from Larantuka directly to Lamalera.
More information available at: www.way2east.com
