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Travellers come to the extremely pleasant south-coast village of LAMALERA to participate in the traditional whale-hunts , in which local people use only wooden outriggers and bamboo spears. Be warned, though, that this is not a whale-watching pleasure cruise: the people of Lembata are here to kill these magnificent beasts, which can be extremely harrowing to watch, and as a tourist, you will be expected to take up a paddle and help overhaul the animal. Whaling takes place from May to October, never on Sundays as the people are devout Christians. They use extraordinary outrigger prahus - 10m to 12m long, a mere 2m across, and constructed without nails; the sails are woven from palm fronds. In the peak year of 1969, the Lamalerans took only 56 sperm whales as well as many manta rays, turtles and dolphins. The World Wildlife Fund has carried out numerous surveys in the village and decided that their occupation has no effect on world whale stocks, or those of other endangered species. As with certain Inuit peoples, the whaling purely serves the needs of a small community. Lamalera has therefore been declared a protected, subsistence whaling village and is not subject to international charters. Every part of a captured whale is used. Its meat and blubber are shared out amongst the village people according to ancient lore, and non-edible bits serve as fuel or jewellery.
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