Our second and third days in Toraja proved to be just as interesting as the first day. Yulius, our guide took us to the livestock market the morning of our second day. The livestock market occurs every 6 days in Rantepao, one of the major towns in the Toraja area. Of course, other items are sold as well, including bamboo tubes of palm wine. Yulius took us to a stand to sample the different kinds before choosing which one we liked the best. Needless to say, Danna and I got the most stares and laughs whenever it was our turn to carry the bamboo.
Upon making this purchse, we made our wayover to the actual livestock area. The only animals I saw being sold were water buffalo and pigs. Yulius took us around and explained the different qualities that are desired in a buffalo by the Torajans. A longer tail, light coloured eyes, and any kind of albinism is coveted by the Torajans and therefore drives the price of the buffalo quite high. We learnt that a small buffalo with a short tail will go for $1500- $2000 USD, while a buffalo containing any of the above mentioned qualities can cost more than $35,000 USD. We even heard rumors of a buffalo there worth $100,000! I cannot comprehend spending this much on a buffalo that is going to end up being sacrificed. However, it is a way of life here and a way of showing respect for your deceased family members. The price helps explain one of the reasons the Torajans spend most of their lives saving for when they or other family members die.
The buffalo are well taken care of once they are purchased by a family. They do not work in the rice paddies, are given ample amounts of food, and get a bath every day!
After the market, we took a very scenic route through the mountains to a hotel/ restaurantwith beautiful views looking down the mountain and over all the rice paddies. The food was delicious and the company pretty stellar as well.
As we drove up to the restaurant, we passed a bunch of boulders with small doors in them. As it turns out, these were tombs for families. Yulius explained that they still chisel everything out by hand and one cubic meter takes about 3 months to complete. Each tomb is around 3 meters, so it takes them at least 9 months to chisel one tomb. We did learn, that they will bury multiple family members in one tomb and a permanent door and lock is placed on it once it is full. Scott informed us that some day, when he dies, that is how he would like to be buried. However, I think he's going to have a difficult time finding someone to do all this inTexas.
The final part of our tour was a short walk through some rice paddies and villages. Just like when my family and I walked through the paddies, we also had a 50% success rate of not falling down. Our clumsiness made Yulius pretty nervous and I got the feeling he cut our walk short. The views were spectacular and there is no other colour in the world quite like rice paddy green. Some day, I'm going to miss it, but for now, I'll take it whenever I can get it.
After our strenuous day of bumpy car rides, laughing and walking, I took Matt and Scott for their first masages. It was very communal experience and comical to listen to their descriptions of what was going through their heads while it was going on. I'm quite certain they did enjoy it in the end. The day was topped off by getting invited to a pork barbecue right outside our hotel to celebrate the end of the presidential election. I even tried liver! Never thought I'd ever say that one!
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