East-Timor

For many of us it is unthinkable to stop collecting cards but to some others, for whatever reason, it comes a day when that decision has to be made. That's what happened to Paulo, he decided to stop collecting cards and knowing that I might be interrested in getting some of his "leftovers", he send me 2 big, fat envelopes with hundreds of cards. Most of them are from Portugal and Spain but there are also a few from some rare and hard to get countries. This one from East-Timor has to be the rarest. This is only my 3rd card from this country, one of the newest in he world.

Comprising the eastern half of the island of Timor, just north of Australia, Timor-Leste — then known as East Timor — was under Portuguese control from the 16th century until 1975 when it finally declared its independence. Soon afterward, however, Indonesia claimed the territory and quelled the independence movements, with over 200,000 dying from the violence and famine. In 1999, Indonesia allowed East Timor to vote for its independence, and 78 percent of voters chose sovereignty. East Timor became its own nation in 2002 and is now officially known as Timor-Leste. - in: https://matadornetwork.com

Uma Lulik Houses - East Timor

Today I've something new in this blog. Well, all the cards are new but this one is from a country I've never posted cards from, East Timor. 

These strange and beautiful houses are called Uma Lulik, they're sacred houses. These two can be found in Bauru. 

Photo 2010 © Karel Hrdina

Uma luliks are sacred animist totem houses in East Timor, made out of natural materials like timber, bamboo, wooden planks, twine and rope made out of the native palm called arenga pinnata. Besides being just a construction, the concept of uma lulik includes rituals, ceremonies and beliefs – these were the houses where the living could communicate with their ancestors. The word itself, Lulik, refers to the spiritual cosmos, root of life and sacred rules that dictate relationships between people and nature.

These houses were constructed by traditional architects, who possessed the knowledge of rituals to be performed while building these constructions. They knew the intricate details of the building materials – which grass had to be used for the house's roof, what wood to use for making posts and planks, what to use to tie the parts together. All the materials had to be natural in order to tie the house with the intangible forces of nature. - in: http://tripfreakz.com/offthebeatenpath/uma-lulik-the-sacred-animist-houses-in-east-timor