Baliem Valley

Introducing Baliem Valley

The Baliem Valley is the most accessible gateway to tribal Papua. It’s a place where koteka (penis gourds) are not yet out of fashion, pigs can buy love, sex or both, and the hills bloom with flowers and deep purple sweet-potato fields. Unless you land here during the August high season, when Wamena and nearby villages host a spectacular festival with pig feasts, mock wars and traditional dancing to attract the tourism buck, you will be outnumbered by Christian missionaries (a constant presence since the valley’s ‘discovery’ in 1938) and Javanese transmigrasi. You may also be startled by blatant evidence of Indonesia’s neocolonisation of Papua, but mostly you will marvel at the mountain views, roaring rivers, tribal villages and at the tough but sweet spirit of the warm Dani people (for more on visiting the tribal interior, see boxed text, below).

Wamena

The commercial centre in the Baliem Valley, Wamena is dusty and sprawling, but the air is cool, purple mountains peak through billowy white clouds, and local markets are enthralling. It’s also a base from which to explore nearby tribal villages. Wamena is expensive – a consequence of having to fly everything in from Jayapura.

Last updated: Feb 17, 2009