West Timor | West Timor Textiles & Culture
Escorted by Ruth Hadlow
West Timor is the centre of a strong regional textile tradition featuring an extraordinarily wide range of hand loomed textiles including ikat, sotis (songket), and buna (supplementary weft), indigo and morinda dyeing, basket work and pottery. Crafts, especially textiles feature strongly in all aspects of life for the Timorese, and neighbouring islands of Flores, Sumba and the lesser islands. Our aim is to immerse you into these traditions through observation and hands-on demonstrations, and above all by meeting the artists and seeing them at work. Tour is limited to 12 participants.
| Duration: | 15 Days |
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| Tour Code: | ITW302 |
| Trip Style: | Standard |
| Departure Dates: | 01 Jun 2012 |
| Price: | From $3,115 |
| Single Supplement: | $456 |
| Places you'll visit: |
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| Highlights: |
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Ideal for Solo Travellers
Solo travellers with an interest in textiles, crafts and culture would enjoy this tour, sharing an interest with fellow travellers. There may be an opportunity to share a room with a person of the same gender. Alternatively, a single room is available on most nights at an additional fee of $456.
Trip Details
Your Tour Hosts
Ruth Hadlow and her husband Willy Kadati are based in West Timor. Ruth teaches in universities across Australia and lectures on West Timorese textiles and techniques. She is currently working on her doctorate in Art. Willy is a consultant to Threads of Life - a fair trade organisation that sponsors the weaving of natural dyed, handmade textiles throughout the Indonesian archipelago.
Christine Pearson, a director of the tour operator, will accompany you to handle the daily programming, allowing Ruth to focus on sharing her extensive knowledge with tour participants.
West Timorese Textiles - Background
The long island of Timor, located less than 500 kilometres from Australia, is the biggest island in Nusa Tenggara (the eastern Indonesian archipelago). The natural environment is characterised by extensive savannah broken by hills and mountains with forests. The Timorese consist of a variety of ethnic groups, that have different customs, languages and social structures. Christianity is the main religion of Timor, but the ancient belief of the ancestors is not forgotten.
The island was once divided into two distinct parts: Dutch territory in the west where evidence of Dutch presence can still be found, and the Portuguese territory in the east, is newly independent and predominantly influenced by the Portuguese. Both sides share a common cultural background. Earlier Timor was divided into a great number of princedoms and kingdoms, that were inhabited by populations made up of several different clans. Each of these kingdoms and tribes has, or had, its own style of textile making.
As in other Indonesian societies, Timorese textiles have a very important role in community rituals and as they are produced by numerous different ethnic groups they can be distinguished from each other, both in style and technique, and by their cultural meaning. Timorese textiles in their most traditional form are made of home grown, hand spun cotton, dyed with natural dyes, ornamented by ancestral motifs and woven on a back strap loom. In all parts of Timor clothing for men has consisted of a waist cloth and a shoulder cloth, with frequently a head cloth added to this. The women of Timor wore a long two to four panel sarong.
Of all handicraft traditions, such as basketry, silver jewellery and carving, traditional textile weaving is considered the most important. Weaving is done by women. Woven textiles are prolific in west Timor, particularly in the central section, but the inhabitants of Timor Leste (East Timor) side of the island also produce ikat and extra‐warp sarongs.
Natural dyes are still relatively common, especially indigo for ikat, but nowadays increasing use is made of synthetic dyes, which are replacing the natural dyes. Spinning has been relegated primarily to older women. Textiles are now things of luxury and beauty, but for some they still have their traditional symbolism and ikat and ornamental weaving techniques have held their historic ground. Patterns being woven today show a spectrum from exact copies of historic motifs to modern creations.
Itinerary Outline
Arriving into Kupang (via Denpasar, Bali) we begin our textile experience weaving our way from village to village discovering the unique style of the many weavers in each region. The final nights in Bali allow us to visit the Threads of Life and local markets.
In West Timor from our hotel base we visit up to six villages all showcasing unique styles of weaving or dyeing, and other crafts. Some villages are very traditional - using thatch and bamboo - and are wonderful places to see traditional architecture including palaces and communal houses.
One of the many highlights is our stay in Boti Village where we are well treated as guests including staying in the royal family compound. Accommodation is local style. Here, our guests can join with local women who will provide a hands‐on demonstration on all aspects of textile production.
Apart from textiles, you will see the length and breadth of West Timor from coconut fringed coastlines to mountains harbouring tiny villages that have not changed much over the centuries. The capital, Kupang, is our starting point and from here we embark on a circular journey taking us to many villages and small communities, as well as delightful natural areas - all being a photographer's delight.
Returning to Bali for three nights, we visit Ubud in the highlands and the centre of Balinese crafts. Here, the Threads of Life organisation have a marvellous gallery featuring displays of textiles from the region we have just visited. We can at the same time refresh our travel experiences and remind ourselves of the wonderful textiles we saw being produced at the many textile villages just visited.
Inclusions
- all accommodation (twin share in most places and simple village accommodation in one stay)
- most meals throughout (breakfast only in Bali)
- sightseeing, transport, guiding, entrance fees to attractions listed
- domestic flight Denpasar to Kupang return in economy class
- several hands‐on demonstrations of textiles, basketry and other crafts
- visits to villages and markets by private vehicle,
- comprehensive discussion facilitated by Ruth
- services of Christine Pearson as Tour Manager to attend to the fiddly bits
- comprehensive pre trip information in an attractive hand loomed travel document wallet.
Accommodation:
In our village stays the rooms are simple and clean. Hot water and western toilets are standard facilities on this tour. Single rooms are available on most nights.
Food:
Food in West Timor ranges from simple village meals featuring corn, beans and vegetables, through to the Indonesian specialties of Javanese, Padang, and Chinese cuisine. Fish and meats are popular and vegetables and rice accompany every meal. A diverse range of meals are available in Bali.
What's Not Included
- Drinks (water is inexpensive, alcohol is about the same as in Australia)
- Extra food
- Shopping (is there a limit on this?)
- Travel insurance
- international air travel
- Indonesian Visa ($US25 on arrival)
- Gratuities (about $100)
Terms & Conditions
Click here for our Terms & Conditions
For more information, availability and pricing and options, please contact our expert travel specialists at Inspired Travel Worldwide on (02) 9449 8598 or send us an email. We look forward to hearing from you.
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