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EAST
NUSA TENGGARA (LESSER SUNDA ISLANDS)
Stretching 1,500 km East from Java, the Lesser Sunda Islands
include the six major islands of Bali, Lombok, Sumbawa, Flores
and Timor, as well as hundreds of smaller islands and islets.
These islands are typically steep and mountainous, with narrow
coastal currents deep and fierce. Most of the land is covered
with dry Savannah, scrub, open grassland, eucalyptus groves
and forests.
EAST NUSA TENGGARA is home to hundreds of ethnic groups who
speak scores of different languages and dialects and hold widespread
beliefs in magic. Flores and Sumba produce some of the most
exquisite hand woven ikat in Indonesia. Another of the area's
striking cultural characteristics is the great variety of adat
architecture, the shaggy, elliptical thatched roof houses of
Timor, the Sumbanese native houses which resemble a gigantic
straw hat. In Sumba, massive stone-slab tombs sit in the front
yards of houses.
Astounding natural wonders include Komodo's 3m long monitor
lizards, the coloured volcanic lakes of Kelimutu, superlative
snorkelling with 100m drops off Flores, the virgin game reserve
of Moyo Island, and the huge rocks in West Timor which look
like the ruins of ancient castles. The area is also rich in
dances, arts, animist ceremonies, and unique religious holidays.
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