Skip to main content

Liang Bua, Home of Indonesia's "hobbits"


Liang Bua is a cave in a limestone hill in Manggarai District, Flores. The local community is familiar with this cave because of its huge size (50 meters long, 40 meters wide, and 25 meters tall). Due to its size, it was once used as a religious worship place and school.

Liang Bua is famous the world over following the finding of an ancient skull. The skull was that of a short human called Homo floresiensis, found at a depth of 6 meters.  Its brain measured only 380 cc (compared to a minimum 1200 cc for a normal modern human brain). Archaeologists are of the opinion that this skull originated from an era back in time some 18,000 years ago.

In addition, in a depth of 10.7 meters, ancient animal bones were also found including those of stegodon (an ancient elephant), komodo, turtles, and lizards.



Get Arround

 Liang Bua and its surrounding areas are only accessible by foot.

To Do
 Despite its famous archaeological findings, no replica or information about these findings is located in Liang Bua.  Visitors can only see the massive cave with stalagmite stones, imaginating that ancient elephants, komodo and short humans (Homo floresiensis) once lived here thousands of years ago. Near Liang Bua, there are other caves such as Gua Galang (with bathing stones) and Gua Tanah.  You can walk to these caves.

Get There
 Liang Bua is located 14 kilometers from Ruteng, the capital city of Manggarai district. Bemo (rural public transportation) and trucks carrying passengers from Ruteng usually pass this site but their schedule is tentative.  The best way to visit this cave is by taking a rented car or a motor taxi.  To reach Ruteng, you can take land transportation from Labuan Bajo, Ende or Maumere.  Everyday there is a flight from Kupang to Maumere and Ende. There is also a daily flight from Denpasar to Labuan Bajo, and a twice a week flight from Kupang to Ruteng.

To Stay
No hotel is available in Liang Bua.  The nearest hotel or motel is in Ruteng pending availability.  Rima Hotel, Losmen Agung, Hotel Sindha and Hotel Dahlia are good choices to stay in Ruteng.

Tips
Please bring along your own food and drinks.  Be careful when taking a private car or a motor taxi because the road to Liang Bua from Ruteng is very narrow and only accommodates one car in width.  Its driving conditions are also dangerous due to many turns and hills.

To Eat
No restaurant or food stalls are available here.  The nearest restaurant is in Ruteng.  Restoran Merlin, at Bhayangkara Street (0385-22475), serves various types of Chinese and Indonesian foods.  In addition, Agape Cafe, which is also located at Bhayangkara Street, is a new cafe serving espresso, beer, and Western, Chinese and Indonesian foods.

To Buy
No souvenir or handicraft shops are available near Liang Bua.
Labels:

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

ORIGIN AND HISTORY OF THE KERIS

The most famous pusaka or heirloom for Javanese people is Keris (dagger). In the ancient time, a man is not considered as a real man if he has no keris. The keris is highly valued, treated and respected with special care. This pusaka is usually inherited from fore fathers. According to Javanese ancient tradition, especially in the court families, a father was obliged to give to his adult son at least a keris. In general, keris is divided to two important parts, the blade (Wilah) and the scabbard (Warangka), to protect the blade. The process of the making of the blade in the old days may last one year only for one keris. The keris maker is called an Empu. Only the respectable Empus could make a high quality keris, physically and spiritually. Empu has to do some spiritual deeds to prepare a keris, like fasting, not sleeping for several days and nights, meditation, etc. In Principle, a keris is a personal sacred weapon, it is made by an Empu, in accordance with the wish of the consum...
8 comments
Read more

Jambi Traditional Clothes

A. Jambi Traditional Clothes Jambi is the designation for the people who inhabit the area along the river Batang Hari, Jambi province. In the women dressed daily at first only known with a cloth and a sleeveless shirt. While the men wore trousers and a half wide in the field of his calf and usually black, so that more freedom of motion in performing activities of daily activities. Clothing for men is equipped with a cap as a head cover. In the next development known as the traditional clothes. Custom clothing is more luxurious than everyday clothes are decorated with gold thread embroidery and the use of jewelry as a complement. B. Custom Men Clothing Men Jambi tribe in traditional dress to wear in head.Lacak track is made of: red velvet cloth that was given in dalammnya thick paper for making it hard. Headgear has a towering two parts, with a higher julangan on the front. For decoration there were paintings of flora from the leaves, flower stalks that will bloom clan. The edge of the ...
2 comments
Read more

Customs Cloth Lampung Province

Lampung is the southernmost province on the island of Sumatra. Its location adjacent to Java Island made Lampung in the past became one of the transmigration destination of Java's population. This causes the inhabitants of this province to be very heterogeneous. There are many tribes who live in this province, among them the tribe of Java, Sundanese, Bali, and Lampung own tribe. Custom Clothes Lampung Despite having a population of heterogeneous tribes, the indigenous culture of Lampung itself is still sustainable. One of the cultural heritage that we can still often see is the traditional clothes of Lampung. Traditional clothing Lampung Lampung is a cultural heritage that is very distinctive and has a high artistic value. Traditional clothing is often used by the bride as a symbol of cultural greatness Lampung. This outfit is also sometimes used in dance performances in the Lampung area, such as dance worship, dance bedana, and so forth. Custom Clothes Mal...
1 comment
Read more