Thursday, December 15, 2016

Just a Few Steps from Makassar, The Biggest Karsts in The World, The Ocean on The Mainland, and The Butterfly Kingdom

When I got a chance to Makassar, my friend told me to visit Rammang-rammang, located not too far from the Sultan Hassanudin Airport in Maros.
I started my trip by a rented car (the price was Rp 350k for full day), the trip took about 1 hour to the dock near Bosawa Cement Factory. From the dock, I continued my trip by a small boat (Rp 100k for round trip).

Rammang-rammang actually is one of the largest karsts in the world (some sources said it's the second largest, some said it's the third). Rammang-rammang itself means clouds/fogs, named because the clouds and fogs that come every morning. The river, the caves, the karsts, the paddy field, all in one place makes rammang-rammang a beautiful destination you must visit.

Sulawesi
The dock to rammang-rammang


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A traditional house at the river bank of Rammang-rammang

From Rammang-rammang, I continued my trip to Leang-leang. Leang-leang is a South Sulawesi native language  for holes, maybe because this area has lot of caves (holes). This place is beautiful, the guide (who was using a policeman suit) said that this area was once an ocean, as proven by the ancient corals and lot of shells (which mostly we can found on the ground). We can also found ancient painting inside the cave, there were hand print of primordial man aged 8000 years ago. If you have enough time, you may also want to visit the other caves located farther from the main area. One of the caves has a painting from 45000 years ago. The guide told me that it could be one of the oldest cave painting in the world.

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These rock-like things were actualy  ancient corals

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Hand stamp and wild boar painting from about 8000 years ago

My last destination was Bantimurung, The Butterfly Park. This place is famous for its various kind of butterflies living in the park, especially when you visit it on dry season. The guide said it will be great if you wear red colored clothes, which attracts butterflies more. There is also a cave which once used by one of the King of Celebes in the ancient times. I didn't get to take lot of pictures here, since my battery was drained out and I don't have much time.

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