Hotel Tropical Dili

... unico ostello della citta', nella fantastica ospitalita' di Rita e degli altri ragazzi e ragazze che ci lavorano, mi hanno fatto veramente sentire come a casa. Poi ti possono sempre capitare delle esperienze fantastiche in un posto come questo: ieri sera, nella sala aperta annessa all'ostello, un gruppo di caschi blu dell'Onu in borghese ha organizzato una festa con braciolata. L'occasione era troppo ghiotta per non tentare di intrufolarmi: ho parlato con un po' di gente ...

... tried to sell me handmade crafts in the streets or in the markets. A pleasant surprise, as I expected something similar to the cities of Southeast Asia! As I was checking out, I met a young American tourist in my hotel. He was looking for other tourists, but had not succeeded. The country is abundant in prestine beaches (ideal for snorkeling and scuba-diving) as well as mountains for the more active tourists, making it an ideal place for nature-loving Aussies and ...

... Even worse I am chained to Cookie for the duration having to listen about his fav comic books and his one big regret is that he will never every get to see the new transformers film. Then the customs blokes start checking through our bags and i remeber that both me and Mike had packed our sumartran coffee in the bottem of our rucksacks. Only coffee i promise but the bloody was wrapped up in plastic and looked like a flippin bag of you know what. I can ...

... Even worse I am chained to Cookie for the duration having to listen about his fav comic books and his one big regret is that he will never every get to see the new transformers film. Then the customs blokes start checking through our bags and i remeber that both me and Mike had packed our sumartran coffee in the bottem of our rucksacks. Only coffee i promise but the bloody was wrapped up in plastic and looked like a flippin bag of you know what. I can ...

... de Passage auszufuellen und zu stempeln hatte - obwohl East Timor nicht als Carnet Land v**m**kt ist. Danach **oeffnete sich ein fast menschenle**es und bettelarmes, ab** unglaublich freundliches Land mit fantastischen Landschaften und imm**-laechelnden Einheimischen. An menschenle**en Straenden und vom Tourismus unb**uehrt ging es nach Dili. In Dili wurde in d** einzigen, ab** ganz sympatischen billig- Unt**kunft East Timor ...

... and we could see why the Indonesian military weren't able to clear out the Fretilin although the killed lots of innocent bystanders. Just north of Venilale we saw seven openings to the tunnels the Japanese had forced the locals to dig and then killed the workers so they couldn't reveal their whereabouts. East Timor is not a very lucky place. In Venilale we visited the Catholic boarding schools there. [GPS 08 38.275S 126 22.902E]

... better then to expect much. Turned out the embassy was closed for Martin Luther King Day. So we returned today egged on by the Aussies, but feeling like suckers for doing so. We've never registered with our embassy before and probably never will again. The American embassy is the biggest and best here. It has large grounds with manicured grass and an Olympic size swimming pool for the use of about 5 staff members. We heard that the staff could each invite up to five friends ...

... to save some money on cheap accommodations by staying at the Dili Guest House for $5/nite but one look scared Irina off. So we had the driver take us to the Hotel Torismo, listed as a mid range accommodation at $50/nite. No need to change money here they use US dollar bills, although their coins are distinct. East Timor shares the island of Timor with Indonesia to the west and has been racked by violence since 1999 when they voted to separate from Indonesia. It is the ...

... permission to date boys. Last year he found out she had a boyfriend and beat her, not too bad I am sure. They asked me lots of questions about America and are amazed that my dad lets me have boyfriends, that my oldest brother is married and has no children yet, that men cook and clean too, that my mom tells my dad what to do as much as the other way around, etc. I wish that I could do something to end the oppression. But my house is considered pretty liberal because the women eat ...

... thanks to all the foreigner!) and also you can find many of the things you can at home. DVDs and CDs are sold all over the place as are cameras and American/asain food! So that is all very comforting. However, once you leave Dili and head into the suburbs and especially in the countryside all the conveniences are lost. I am currently living with a family of nine (I think, it is hard to tell who is family and who ...