Mia: if you don’t mind hopping in the back of a Tuk Tuk, I can arrange a pick up 6:30am.
Me: Sure. That’s no problem.
…and that is how on a Friday morning a few weeks later, I found myself frantically washing off sand from my clothes at Dili airport, having just barely made it for my return flight (I exaggerate only a bit).
I had abandoned the family in Bali, and gone solo to Timor-Leste, a small young country (born 2002 after a brutal struggle). I arrived in Dili, the capitol city, in the afternoon, finding that I may be among the very few who come here for tourism.
After a quick pitstop at the hotel, I went siteseeing. At Motael Church of St Anthony’s, the school was out and I was quickly surrounded by inquisitive children wanting to take selfies with me. And I had to engage with fellow Anthonians! From there I walked across the street to the beach area. They understand Portuguese but the main language is Tetun that even Google translate can’t handle I had to look up a different translation website for that. BTW GoogleFi doesn’t work here either.
Next, a short tour of The Archives & Museum of East Timorese Resistance to get some perspective followed by a visit to the Cemetery of Santa Cruz. This is an important landmark here, as the cemetery showed the outside world the scale of human toll of their independence struggle.
About 4 miles across the bay is Cape Fatu Cama, where atop a hill stands Cristo Rei overlooking Dili. I walked up a few hundred steps to enjoy a closer look at the statue and the picture-perfect views of the beaches. It seems to be a favorite hangout as a lot of couples were hiking up and staking out sunset watching spots, as well as many runners. When I came back down, I treated myself to a $1 coconut water (they use USD here). These coconuts have deceptively large amount of water in them; took some effort to finish one.
On the way back, I stopped at a fruit market and also at Largo de Lecidere area that has beach-facing shops and local restaurants. A group of guys asked me to take their photos with an iPhone and I happily obliged. Tais Market is nearby, so I went there. I got some souvenirs, and also a weaving demo. Upon my return to the hotel, I found out that I can go the roof of a nearby building, which I did, and ended the day appreciating a cloudy but colorful sunset over Dili.
The tuk tuk arrived. It was not the rickshaw I thought it’d be, but a mini “dump truck” with a toddler size chair placed in it for me. 15 minutes of a wobbly, slippery, fun ride and giving passerby’s peace signs and thumbs up later, I was at the “port” hopping on a 90-minute fast boat to the heavenly island of Atauro.
The island is a true remote paradise with less than 8000 people living across various villages. This is a fantasy version of a tropical Island. Undisturbed, with twice a week ferry service only. You can hitch a ride on a fishing boat or hire a private connection as well. Regardless, due to rough seas in the afternoon, you have to stay at least overnight. And I am now glad I got to.
I was the only guest at the hotel. And the hotel gave me the bit of a feel of The Overlook. I spent the day swimming, lounging, snorkeling, and hiking. The hotel had a pool overlooking the village below, and I really enjoyed my time having the whole place to just myself.
Turns out that the island is home to the worlds most bio-diverse coral reef that even a newbie like myself can enjoy. I’d say just for that, Atauro is worth coming to. This was a great highlight of this visit.
I was treated to a gorgeous sunrise at 6:30am, had breakfast and headed to my 9:00am return boat. This time a smaller boat welcomed us, and thus started my ~1:45hr bumpy and very water-soaked ride back. Back in Dili, sandy and soaking wet, I hopped in a taxi to the airport, was lucky enough to run through checkin, immigration, and security and able to make it with 15 minutes to spare to clean up and board. That Karma did come in handy.
I loved my very unique experience in Atauro, the amazing surreal views of the Coral reef and colorful fish, and the very friendly people living up to their airport code DIL (the heart).
Thanks: When I was planning to go to Timor-Leste, I couldn't find much information about what to do there etc. and sites such as Tripadvisor were unclear, until I found some great and useful information here: https://www.beenaroundtheglobe.com/travel-guide-dili-east-timor/
Some more trips are linked on the main page.