Timor Leste 2024 Trip A Blog

Today we started off with another mass in Hatolia with Father Olek speaking in tetun at today’s mass. The teachers and priest set up the kids with a challenge at the markets, they had a list of 10 items to buy with a budget of $5 usd. This was a great opportunity for the kids to interact with the community. It was great but for some an overwhelming experience with the large crowds of people, different sounds and smells. There was no overall winner of the challenge but the most interesting items were fish, chicken feet, underwear for Manna Bernadette and Fr Olek and a Gucci sparkly rabbit t-shirt for Fr Olek.

The next experience was very different. We went for an hour long drive up and down some very steep hills to arrive at a church where we parked the cars. We were then instructed to walk into a small village called Manu-see where we were greeted by a group of men chanting and the woman playing the drums. We were welcomed into a meeting room for short speeches and morning tea.

We then were on again to the next village with approximately 300 people. The chanting from the men continued with the drumming from the women leading the way. We stopped at another village where dignitaries received tais, including Fr Olek, Manna Bernadette and school captain Teangi aka flames. Mrs Goodfellow was not happy she didn’t make the cut! More speeches and prayer then we witnessed the horns and jaw of a sacrificed buffalo nailed to a cross and raised in prayer. We were all a little baffled about the context of the cultural ceremony especially without Eddie who is in Dili for meetings. We did find out that this will be the last ceremony for 5 years as the community are struggling with poor child health, malnutrition and inadequate education.

We left feeling interned by what we had witnessed and been a part of and ready for a rest. Another good part of the day was meeting the students who are coming on the exchange to Mount Gambier. They are very excited and looking forward to their immersion in Mount Gambier. When we returned to the parish some slept, some ate a second lunch (long story) and then played with the local children all dressed up in their Sunday best after a children’s mass. We finally got to have a dance but all music was stopped at 7.00pm, a new rule that has come in across the district. We chilled after dinner with Ben playing the organ with others just chatting and some still sleeping.