Culture
Marapu, the Pasola, ikat weaving and the traditional villages of Sumba.
What to eat in Sumba: local dishes, markets and coffee
Corn and rice, sweet katemak, grilled fish by the harbour, betel nut on every veranda and an award-winning robusta: a practical guide to eating well and politely in Sumba.
Sumba ikat: how it is made, what it means and where to buy it from the weavers
A single hinggi can take most of a year to make, and every horse, shrimp and skull tree on it says something. Here is how to read it, where to watch it being woven and how to buy one fairly.
The horses of Sumba: the Sandalwood pony, the Pasola and horse culture
Small, fast and sacred: why the Sandalwood pony is part of every Sumbanese wedding, funeral and festival, and how to see these horses without disturbing them.
Pasola 2027 in Sumba: dates, places and how to see it
Who sets the dates, which fields hold the battles in February and March, every date from 2024 to 2026, and how to watch safely and respectfully.
The Pasola, explained: Sumba's ritual battle on horseback
Riders throw blunt wooden spears at each other across an open field. It is not a show. It is a ritual that opens the planting season.
Marapu, ikat and the traditional villages: a respectful guide to Sumba's culture
Tall thatched roofs, stone tombs still in use and cloth that takes hundreds of hours to weave.