Honestly, what I like to do when I am in Toraja, is to simply zonk out.  In the morning, I will have my coffee meditation, take a short or long walk into the valleys, then read one of my books, write my poems, have lunch, take a nap, have coffee again, read or write again, enjoy my mother-in-law’s dinner with a glass of wine (that we bring from Bali or Jakarta), watch a silly sit com with my mother-in-law, then sleeeeeep.

Ran-my daughter likes to go hiking.  There are so many walking trails in Toraja.  You can be dropped somewhere in the hills, then walk down to where your driver can pick you up.  Or simply walk down towards Rantepao or Makale. If you are feeling energetic, you can walk up hill.  One of my favourites is to walk from Batutumonga to Pana, stand quietly in front of an old rock tomb stone, then walk across the valley, among the rice fields and crossing a river, walk back up to Batutumonga.  It’s an easy but beautiful two hours walk. Enough to make you hungry for a big lunch.

Mon-a friend of mine went river rafting when she was in Toraja.  She is into adrenalin type of activities, so she enjoyed the trip down the Sa’dan river immensely.  Son, another friend of mine, is an avid photographer. On his first trip in Toraja, he walked everywhere with his Canon camera  complete with the long zoom lense and took beautiful pictures (see picture). Gab, another friend enjoyed taking pictures during a week long funeral ceremony of a relative of my husband’s.  Gil, another friend, enjoyed buying trinkets, textile and handicraft for his beloved wife of 35 years. Ad, a husband of my friend, enjoyed trying different types of Torajanese cooking. BK, an old friend of mine, enjoyed going to the buffalo & pig market, then he spent the rest of the holiday, cuddling his wife on the terrace overlooking the valley.  Nin, my sister, simply loves to drink coffee in the verandah and watch the clouds go by.

So, as you can see there is something for everyone in Toraja.  You can be as lazy or as active as you want to be! You can stay for three nights or two weeks or forever, like me!  One thing in common, though, all my friends want to come back to Toraja.