A couple weeks back I went hiking around Oecusse with Marie Anne. We were descending a steep and treacherous trail less than a foot wide and a steep drop-off on the left on wall on the right. The trail was of a poor quality, the unmaintained type with rocks, tree roots, sudden drops, climbs, disappearances in a stream, and so on. While on our way down, we had to step off the trail onto a tree (remember, the ground dropped away quick and it was not wide enough for two people to pass) for some Timorese coming up the trail. In this group there was a man carrying a backpack (for the back, right?) on his head, though with the assistance of his hands. Following him were three women all carrying items on their head, balanced. Most impressively, a woman was carrying what looked like a large soup kettle. Not once did I see them touch the pot as they climbed and manoeuvred up the difficult trail. I should note that the women put a towel rolled up like a donut on top of their head to provide cushioning and a flat surface (at least flatter than the top of the head) to carry objects on.
After Honduras, I thought I was accustomed to seeing people carry objects on their head, but the Timorese are exceptional at it. They carry many more things and much greater weight on their heads. And I guess the women look exceptionally elegant with their locally woven tais worn like a long skirt and rolled over at the waist to keep them up. Now, if I can work up the brashness to photograph a group of women carrying stuff on their heads. That is how we transport sand to distant sites without road access where we need to make concrete. But that is another blog post why the local people don’t use mules or horses for transport here.
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