The east of East Timor: Between Baucau and Lospalos

The small town of Venilale, surrounded by rice paddies, is about 28 km south of Baucau, just off the road that continues to Viqueque. The most notable building is the colourful Escola do Reino de Venilale, a school that was originally built in 1933 and recently restored and freshly painted. It is now used as a library.

Heading east from Baucau, the road follows the coast to the village of Laga, about 19 km away. It has an old Portuguese fort and the large São João Bosco church, featuring a large ceramic panel depicting grateful Timorese introduced to Catholicism by a Portuguese friar. Next to the church is a house, built in the style of the Fataluku people who live further east. It is an elevated house with a high pitched thatched roof.

40 km further on is the village of Lautém with a crumbling Portuguese fort; its walls flank the road. There are still Japanese bunkers on the beach here as well. Turning inland and heading east for Tutuala, there are various examples of traditional houses of the Fataluku people, who live in this region, around the village of Mehara; this was a place of refuge for independence leader, Xanana Gusmão, the first President of East Timor.

	School in Venilale	Hills of Venilale	Laga village	Church in Laga
	Panel, Laga Church	Traditional house	Village near Laga	Portuguese Fort
	Church, Mehara	Traditional roof	Fataluku house	View near Tutuala

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