Tana Toraja, Indonesia
Palawa, the oldest village of Toraja
Palawa is the oldest traditional village in Toraja, South Sulawesi that is also the perfect place to explore the culture of the Torajans, an ethnic group indigenous in the region. There visitors can see an example of well preserved rural community with old characteristic Torajan houses called tongkonan. These houses stand high on wooden piles with a layered split-bamboo roof in a sweeping curved arc shape, and they are decorated with buffalo horns and motifs as a sign of the owners’ social status and wealth. Palawa village is also renowned for their colorful wood carvings on the house exterior walls and elaborate funeral rites.
