Larantuka
A Town At The End Of Flores Where A Portuguese Descended Holy Week Has Been Kept For Some Four Centuries, Drawing Tens Of Thousands To A Night Procession By Candlelight · Larantuka, East Nusa Tenggara
At the eastern end of Flores, in a country that is overwhelmingly Muslim, a town of some tens of thousands KEEPS A HOLY WEEK INHERITED FROM THE PORTUGUESE AND HELD FOR SOMETHING LIKE FOUR CENTURIES. SEMANA SANTA AT LARANTUKA IS NOT A REVIVAL OR A REENACTMENT. The confraternities, the Latin-inflected prayers, the statues kept by families and carried out only once a year - THE MATER DOLOROSA, TUAN MA, whose chapel is opened and whose image is washed and dressed - have been passed down without a break, and ON GOOD FRIDAY THE TOWN GOES OUT AT NIGHT BY CANDLELIGHT, tens of thousands of people, on foot and by boat around the harbour, for hours. Outside that week Larantuka is a quiet port under a volcano with ferries to Alor and Lembata. During it, there is nowhere to stay for miles. Book months ahead rather than displacing pilgrims who will otherwise sleep rough, dress soberly, and do not photograph the statues or the confraternities - this is a town at prayer, not an event with an audience.
Larantuka, Flores, East Nusa Tenggara, Larantuka, East Nusa Tenggara, Indonesia
LARANTUKA IS AT THE EASTERN END OF FLORES, reached by road from MAUMERE in a few hours or by limited flights; FERRIES RUN TO LEMBATA, ALOR AND TIMOR. SEMANA SANTA FALLS IN HOLY WEEK, WHICH MOVES WITH EASTER - the central days are Wednesday to Good Friday and the main procession is on the FRIDAY NIGHT. ACCOMMODATION IS FULL FOR MILES AROUND AND MUST BE ARRANGED MONTHS AHEAD; many pilgrims sleep rough or with families. THIS IS A RELIGIOUS OBSERVANCE, NOT A FESTIVAL - dress soberly, do not photograph the statues or the confraternities without permission, and follow instructions from stewards. OUTSIDE HOLY WEEK the town is quiet and the chapels are ordinary. IT IS HOT AND DRY here.