Category Indonesia

Most people stop at Bali. I didn’t. One of Indonesia’s least visited islands, Sulawesi, shocked me the most. I have found that places without the tourist infrastructure are often where the most extraordinary things happen.

Asia, Indonesia

A Funeral Like No Other: Inside a Rambu Solo Ceremony in Tana Toraja

A horizontal portrait of a Torajan ceremonial leader with a determined expression. He wears an elaborate feathered headpiece, a red ceremonial wrap, and stands among traditional warriors holding spears, against a backdrop of traditional curved-roof houses.

The sound of a squealing pig reached me before anything else. Walking up to the space where the Tana Toraja funeral ceremony was being held, I was not sure what to expect. My guide, Salim, had prepared me with facts,…

Trish Makovsky
March 22, 2026