2013 ~ P R E S E N T |
S T I L L E V O LV I N G
ISOMakTor
Mariyam Falak Ahmed
At a recent work function (2018). ▶
Instagram has a way of acting as a life timeline. Scrolling
through your posts is like scrolling through your life.
Looking back at old posts can take you back to certain
times in your life.
152
Signing up for
the “In Search
of Makassar &
Toraja” study
trip was one
of the best
decisions I
made during
my days at
SASS.
The famous Torajan
houses! (2014). ▼
One of my favorite memories I like to reminisce about
by scrolling through Instagram would be the “In Search
of Makassar & Toraja” study trip that I took part in 2014
while a student of the School of Arts & Social Sciences
(https://insearchofmakassartoraja.wordpress.com/).
Our group of eighteen student-travelers nicknamed
the study trip, which went on from November 24th to
December 7th, 2014, “ISOMakTor”. The fourteen-day
trip was jam packed with adventure. If I were to go
through all of them, the stories would be endless!
So I am only going to highlight some of my
favourite memories.
The Toraja are an ethnic indigenous group living in the
mountainous region of South Sulawesi famous for their
elaborate funeral ceremonies. Though death may seem
like a morbid topic, for the Toraja people, death and
funerals are more a celebration of life than a mourning of
loss. While most of the Toraja converted to Christianity
during the Dutch colonial period, they still honour their
ancient customs and beliefs.
◀ At the Lemo
gravesite in Toraja
(2014).
◀ Walking through the beautiful
Torajan countryside in the rain (2014).
Our visit to an ancient Torajan burial site called Lemo
was among the highlights of the trip. The dead are
buried in human-made caves high up on cliff surfaces.
Wood-carved mannequins in the likeness of the
deceased are then placed on the balcony of the cliff
to stand guard and watch over the villages. In some
places, the corpses are put into wooden caskets
and hung from the side of cliffs. These coffins have
geometric pattern carvings. Overtime, some of the
wood of the caskets have rotted away and the bones of
the deceased left exposed. For me, it was the first time
I saw skulls! As eerie as it may seem, seeing the skulls
arranged on top of the coffins in the cliffs was a beautiful
sight which, of course, I captured on Instagram.
The main highlight of the trip for me would be the group
trek in the Batutumong hills in the Toraja highlands.
Coming from the tropical island nation-state of Maldives,
the rainy and chilly atmosphere was a complete
contrast to my familiar surroundings. Walking along
the paddy-fields dressed in umbrellas, raincoats and
mountain-trekking shoes, the uphill ascent and the
downhill descent was a refreshing and rejuvenating
experience. The scenery was truly breathtaking, and the
photographs we were able to snap were truly
postcard-worthy!
Without a doubt, signing up for the “In Search of
Makassar & Toraja” study trip was one of the best
decisions I made during my days at SASS. Being in
an unknown land and having first time experiences
together with a group of fellow student-travellers allowed
us to form a special bond that lasts till today.
Mariyam Falak Ahmed graduated with a Bachelor of
Arts in Social Sciences, majoring in International Studies
& Communication in 2016. She currently works as an
Executive Assistant to the CEO of Ooredoo Maldives
(Telecommunications Company).