Backpackers Guesthouse

Backpackers Guesthouse in Dili The best value in Dili is the Backpackers Guest house in the suburb of Mandarin on Rua de Thomas Americo. Phone (+670) 7238121. The showers are hot, the rooms clean and the kitchen is well equiped. There are few street signs with the names in Dili so you just have to wing it. The taxis will find it and you will get the hang of the traffic flow after a few days. Tell them it's next to Tiger fuel, Mandarin  (Dili has 2 Tiger Fuels so be sure to specify).There are a lot of one way streets that take a while to figure out. Henry has a fleet of old Australian outback mail delivery bikes for rent  that are well worn but pretty tough. As long as the spark plug is good they seem to keep chugging along. I took one of them on a tour over some back roads the last two weeks and was surprised at how well it held up, especially coming up the trail from Jaco Island. That road is in sad shape and probably hasn't been worked on since the Indonesians left. I had get off the bike with the throttle going and push it along a bit. It was a work out, but it would have not been fun to get stuck down there. At the Backpackers a bed in the dorm rooms costs 8.00 a night. There are not too many tourists there right now (may-june 2006) so you will probably have a room to yourself. There are also 2 or 3 private rooms and an apartment out back. The political situation will calm down with time and a lot of people might consider using Dili as a place to go and get a new Indonesian visa. It is worth hanging around a few weeks in East Timor if you are there anyway. There are a lot of outback places to see and there is some great scuba diving right outside of Dili. Henry's place is air conditioned and has a nice lounge area with a dvd player. There's a heap of dvd's to sort through but only half of them work. Out front is Sun's, an Indian restaurant that has a regular following and across the street is a Pakistani restaurant that isn't too bad. The Prime Minister stops in from time to time to get something to eat here. (With his Australian bodyguards) The Indonesian embassy is a short walk away if you are applying for a visa, the cost is 35.00 USD. They only accept US currency. For normal service it takes about a week. Rita is very helpful with information and always invites guests for dinner. She seems to know everyone and is a good politician. Gloria, a doctor with the Red Cross, Patrick, a cool Irishman, and the pickle were the only guests lately. At the Backpackers you have full use of the kitchen and you can save a lot of money if you don't mind cooking. There are street markets where you can get your produce and stores like Litas and Leaders where you can pick up other staples. The problem is with the tension and uncertainty a lot of shops are not open for business. One aggravating thing with Dili is that the internet connections are very slow so I might only put text on line and add the pictures later. Very  slow internet costs 5.00 an hour and that can really add up in a hurry. The Hotel Dili has broadband but you have to get a room to use it. Their economy room single with shared bath is 25 US. The basic is 42.50, Suites 62.50, delux 110.00 and Apt 142.50 plus 6.00 per day for internet. phone 670 723 1055 The best value in Dili for budget travelers is the Backpackers Guesthouse but the Dili Guesthouse might work for you if you are tight on funds. (Located near the roundabout. Rooms 5 dollars per night.) Keep in mind if you are just waiting for an Australian visa or hanging out in general you can go to places like Maliana (Rita's hometown) or some of the other towns that are not much more expensive than Indonesia. Update dec 2006 - Timor Telecom has lowered internet rates to 2.00 dollars an hour. They have several computers in the telecom office by the parliment building. They plan to put in an internet cafe in the Leaders supermarket complex soon. Boozey's story This dog is one street smart pooch that patrols the area between the refugee camp across from Hotel Timor and Tiger fuel. The official mascot of the Backpackers Guesthouse is rarely to be found during the day but he always shows up for guard duty at night. He was already shot one time by a hook dart by someone hunting dinner so it takes a long time to earn his trust. The only one that can give him a bath is his pal Henry. This is the type of hook dart that went through his side missing his heart. These "ambons" are also used in the gang warfare. Fortunately the good Dr. Dan from the clinic patched him up and he was good as new but a bit tender for a month or so. Backpackers Guesthouse in  Dili, East Timor jun 2006    www.dutchpickle.com

 

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