One of the best locations - to experience the island’s cultural heritage up close
The remains of historic architecture can be found and numerous cultural events are held throughout the year including the Lariangi Liya and Honari Mosega dances, which are both long-held traditions in Wakatobi.
Mangania
Mangania is the name for a feast held during important occasions in the village to express gratitude and praying for the prosperity of Liya Togo. These occasions can be a bountiful harvest, abundant marine life, inauguration of heritage buildings or a child’s birth. During the event groups of young girls in colorful traditional dresses bring offerings of flowers, drinks and snacks while humming a unique kind of poetry called „Kadandio“. It is common believe that Kadandio poems can only be created in a joyful state of mind and this happiness will reflect upon all those who hear it. All visitors are welcome to join in this celebration. During mangania, youngsters have a chance to meet-up and get to know each other.
Nighttime activities
Come nighttime, visitors can choose to mingle with the friendly locals of Liya Togo who are happy to tell stories about their history, culture and local wisdom while sip-ping on a cup of coffee and snacking on fried yam. When the moon is bright and the tide is low, you can also accompany the local fishermen as they search for crabs, clams and other marine creatures. Armed with only torchlight and simple fishing gear, it’s a lot of fun to catch your meals with your own hands.
Cuisine
Enjoying Liya Togo’s traditional dishes such as susuru (bowsprit cakes), onde-onde and wadhe (glutinous sweet rice cake) is a must. Don’t miss the delicious tamarind juice, the main ingredient of which grows wild all around the village. For lunch or dinner, visitors can order soami (a rice substitute made from cassava) with fresh moringa leaf and a wide variety of fresh fish. The ingredients are all organic and come straight from the local’s gardens and the sea and are guaranteed to pamper your taste buds. Delve deeper onto Liya’s local cuisine by taking a cooking class with the local community. The dishes are easy to make and the experience will surely leave you with fond memories.
How to Get There
If you visit during Ramadhan or after Idul Adha, make sure you to watch Posepa’a, a traditional battle performance and Honari Mosega, a traditional heroic dance per-formed by a group of men. The village is south of Wanci and is reachable by motor-bike or car in 20 to 30 minutes. Take the main road, Jalan Poros Liya, from the center of Wanci, and follow it south until you reach Liya.
