Manggarai is one of the 300 ethnic groups recognized in Indonesia. And nothing is more distinct in their culture than their traditional houses: raised conical shaped structure with few small windows, around 15m x 15m in size and covered with dark colored palm fiber. These houses are called Mbaru Niang.

Wae Rebo, a remote village accessible only by 2 – 3 hours uphill trek in a dense forest, consists of 7 Mbaru Niang sitting in a semi-circle. As one would expect, the tribal chief lives in the largest and tallest one in the center. The village is 1,100m above sea level, nested among tall hills and steep slopes and gets covered with fog and clouds in the late afternoon and evening.

There are around 50 people that live in this village, many of their older children attend boarding school or work in nearby towns. Growing and selling coffee beans is a main commercial activity. Now it might be superseded by tourism.

A well dressed little girl playing with the puppies before "helping" the elders to dry coffee beans. She's the cute subject for tourists to take photos of coffee drying.

A Wae Rebo resident

A glimpse of the milky way behind a cloud filled sky.

In 2012, the UNESCO Asia-Pacific Heritage Awards for Cultural Heritage Conservation honored Wae Rebo village an Award of Excellence. And that firmly put Wae Rebo in the tourism map.