Twice in one week, the alarm clock went off before sunrise. This time, the diabolical sound put an end to our peaceful slumber at 4am. I must admit that it was a small solace to know that Herman would break the peaceful slumber with us to drive us to the wharf.

Crowd waiting at the gate to embark

At the waterfront we found that a crowd had already gathered, sleep drunken, in the dark in front of the closed gate. Our tickets stated 4:30am, it was 5am now and nothing but goods was allowed through the gate – no reason to worry in Dili.

We shuffled through the gate at about 6am in the end, which was all well for us. The wait gave us a chance to get to talk to a group of malae waiting there with us. It turned out they had another motorcycle traveller in their midst. Chantal, recently from Australia, originally from the Netherlands, is on a very similar route to ours.

Unfortunately, the early hour severely limited Nina’s enthusiasm for any type of conversation not consisting of grunting noises. So while Nina caught up on sleep on the ride over, I had a great conversation while the sun’s slow rise was illuminating our boat ride.

Land ahoi, first sight of Atauro. Note the calm sea!

The sea was very calm and the trip a calm and orderly affair. On board, and even more so after landing, was the first time we got to see a number of Timorese over the age of twenty. Nina picked up somewhere that the average age of Dili is 19, and I have no trouble believing that.

Saturday, the only day the ferry goes to Ataúro Island, is also market day in Beloi, the village where the ferry lands and Barry’s place is located. Barry is the founder and owner of the eco lodge here, organizer and overall anchor of the community here. When the volunteers from Dili need a break to relax and refuel, this is where a lot of them go. The place definitely holds up to the expectations. Just behind the market, a little oasis opens up. Beautiful little huts built with traditional materials are loosely sprinkled among the beach front premise. Everything is well kept and the staff are incredibly welcoming and friendly. Barry seems to have done a great job of training local staff for the everyday operation to free himself up for more behind the scenes work.

Walkway to our little hut named Dotan

We booked into the cheaper option and ended up with a 2 bed hut right at the beach. Add a hammock and a lazy chair and we had all we could need. Meals are included in the price, so after a filling lunch all we had to pick up at the market was a bunch of bananas for snacks.

Cheaper is relative in Timor-Leste. With the US Dollar as their official currency, they cannot compete with Indonesia or Thailand in that regard. So the chance is to develop tourism that is of a different quality or style. In Barry’s case, this means sustainable eco-tourism in harmony with local communities.

After the market, we wandered over across the street to have a look at Sentru Ataúro Di’ak, a local project by an NGO that is suported by Joris, another VSA volunteer we have met in Dili. We were genuinely interested and impressed with what they have build here, but it was also a good opportunity to get the staff to practice their English. I am happy to report, José did a great job answering our sometimes cheeky questions.

The showcase project: Use compost as soil to grow tomatoes and chili

Beside a lot of straight up relaxing, we still had time to catch a boat out to the reef for some great snorkeling (after we sorted out the little issue with Nina’s leaking snorkel). We were dropped off where the reef was only two meters deep at high tide. It was a great way to just float on top and marvel at this almost fully intact reef. Timor is a diving paradise, with a great many healthy reefs left to them. I with them genuinely that it stays that way and they can keep it free from harm through climate change.