Facts about Flores

And both of the myths are true. The rare Komodo dragon lives on four islands on earth. All of them are in Indonesia and one of them happens to be Flores. It is a giant lizard that can be 3 meters long and weight up to 70 kilograms.

Komodo dragon

Even though the hobbits do not exist anymore, the so called Ebu Gogo people live strongly in tales and dreams. Archeologists found remains of the Homo floresiensis in 2003, the proof that these myths about hobbit men maybe were not only grand tales.

The land of Flores

The Island is divided by mountains and volcanoes which is making it difficult to expand the infrastructure and connections across the island. The land is also unstable with more or less fourteen active volcanoes on the island, and massive earthquakes.
Flores is one of the Lesser Sunda Islands and is located in the Nusa Tenggara province. It is split into eight regencies or local government districts. From west to east there are: West Manggarai, Manggrai, East Manggarai, Ngada, Nagekeo, Ende, Sikka and Flores Timur. The Capital city is Ende and the largest city is Ruteng.
The wild terrain has also resulted in a high diversity in people, culture and traditions.

Flores seen from the top of Kelimutu

The people of Flores

In the 1500th, the Portuguese people discovered the island and introduced the people to the European culture and catholic Christianity, which is now the main religion with 85% of the Flores population being catholic. In the lesser populated areas, the traditions holds strong, and have resulted in a mixture of Christianity and the ancient beliefs. There is a red line between Christianity and traditions, and the people do usually not combine the Christian god with the traditional spirits. Many people still live in traditional villages, living the same way as their ancestors did and keeping the traditional culture alive.

We can divide the Flores people into five different groups, who each have their own city:

Western - central Flores
Manggarai – Ruteng
Ngadha - Bajawa
Ende/Lio - Ende
Eastern Flores and isles immediately east
Sikkanese - Maumere
Lamaholot - Larantuka

There are several different languages spoken on Flores. Many of the groups above have their own.

The Flores way

Flores means flower in Portuguese; a fitting name to represent the high diversity of people, animals, plants and terrain. There are so many different colours in nature and culture, and it gives Flores the unique character it deserves.

Human Resources

Beside seaweed and fishing, rice, cassava and coconut is some of the popular resources used to earn money by the famers. There are not so many tourists on the island compared to Bali and Lombok. The main attraction is the majestic volcano Kelimutu. Three coloured lakes, in three craters. There is also possible to climb other volcanoes, and there are so many of them that there is enough for everyone.

Sources

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