As much as I enjoyed the previous evening in Dili, the greatest joy from my brief trip to Timor-Leste came in the early hours of the following morning, when I decided to take a chance and attempt to hike to Cristo Rei, the Christ statue overlooking Cape Fatucama.
A Sunrise Walk To Cristo Rei In Dili, Timor-Leste
I got back from dinner after 9:00 pm and I had work to do. My apartment, which I’ll share about in my next post in this series, had stable Wi-Fi and I worked for several. That left me with a decision around midnight: do I get up at 3:00 am and try to walk the way to Cristo Rei or get up a 5:30 am and try to get a driver to take me there?
First, I reached out to reception, but everyone had gone to bed for the night (this wasn’t a Ritz Carlton…). I found a taxi service on Instagram and reached out on WhatsApp. The driver (or company) instantly replied! We agreed that he would pick me up at 5:15 am at my residence. I asked how much and he said meter (well, he said, “Our taxi is based on Argo so you will know the price after you used.”).
The only “Argo” I know is the Ben Affleck movie (one of my favorites), but when I looked it up I saw that “argo” is short for “argometer,” a term widely used in Indonesia for a taxi meter.
Fine.
But at 5:30 am no taxi showed up. No response either when I messaged on WhatsApp.
So I set out walking, hoping to find a taxi…I knew there wasn’t time to make it by foot, since my flight back to Bali departed at 9:00 am.
As I walked same road I had walked down along the beach the previous night, no cars came by. Everyone was sleeping!
But then all of a sudden a beat-up old yellow cab rolled down the street!
You should have seen the smile on my face. I jumped in and told the driver, “Let’s go to Cristo Rei and then come back.”
His response was, “Ok, 30 dollars.”
I know I could have haggled, but I just agreed and hopped in the car.
This car was really falling apart! The doors would not really open and shut and the engine was making all sorts of noises.
But we drove to Cristo Rei and I immediately realized how fortunate I was not to have to walk this…it was 2.5 miles on the map, but it seemed much further.
We got to the base of Cape Fatucama and got out. The driver had been smoking one cigarette after another while we were driving and finished his cigarette outside the car, before we began the walk up.
The walk itself was easy…starting on Cristo Rei Beach, you pass 14 stations, symbolizing the Stations of the Cross passed by Jesus Christ on his walk to Golgotha on the day of his crucifixion.
The History Of The Cristo Rei Statue
Interesting sidenote about this project. The Christ the King statue was a gift from Indonesia to the people of Timor Timur in 1996 (Timor-Leste was part of Indonesia at the time). Garuda Indonesia, the flag carrier of Indonesia, was put in charge of this project. It was tasked with raising the money for the project (it failed) and also in constructing it. It was Garuda that hired the architect Mochamad “Bolil” Syaililla to design and build the project. The statue was constructed of 27 separate copper sections. Once complete, these were loaded onto three containers and shipped to Dili via ship.
Interestingly, the Roman Catholic church in Dili was against this statue, viewing it as poltical interference with the Church and propaganda meant to whitewash the oppression of Indonesia against the people of East Timor. Bishop Carlos Belo (Bishop of the Disocie of Dili), said:
“What’s the point of building a statue to Jesus if people are not going to be treated according to the gospel? It would be better to improve the situation rather than build statues.”
But almost 30 years later, citizens appear proud of this statue and link it to their independence.
Perfect Timing
The timing of our hike could not have been better. As we reached the base of the statue, the sun peaked over the mountain…as we watched the sunrise, I was overcome with thanksgiving; thankful for this trip and that I had somehow been allowed on that flight to Dili the day before and also thankful for the one that statue represented, who is the Savior of humanity and the source of salvation.
We stood up on top, overlooking the Bay of Dili for several minutes, then headed back down…I had a flight to catch!
But first, I wanted to try the country’s premier coffee house, Letefoho Specialty Coffee Roaster.
It opened at 7:00 am and our journey back to Dili’s city center would put us there just after 7:00 am.
Hilariously, we ran out of gas on the way back. The car just sputtered to a stop. But the driver kept cranking the key and somehow got it to start again.
Sadly, Letefoho was closed: Dili has rolling blackouts and there was no power this morning, according to the barista.
Instead, we just returned to my apartment, where I still had time for breakfast before I had to get to the airport for my flight.
I gave the driver 40 USD and thanked him. What a great guy. What a great morning and a great trip.
I’m sharing about my whirlwind trip through Asia.
Wow!! This alone was worth your trip to Timor Leste.
What a wonderful experience – Thank you for sharing it so well!
And Praise God for Jesus, our only hope and source for salvation.
John 3:16