Once you read or give it a deeper study to Danis way of life, dont be surprise that you may find your eye lifting or forehead wrinkling. Why? Because the Dani is uniquely amazing.

The Dani men and women sleep separately in different honai (Danis traditional house). The men sleep grouped in one honai, while the women and children slumber in another honai. As descended from their ancestor, sex is taboo for the women after giving birth, for 2 or 5 years, as the result the Dani generated healthier kids since the women focus on babysitting the kids during the most important phase of growth. This situation makes the men vulnerable to polygamy, its a true fact of life that the Dani men are allowed to have more than 1 wife or as many as he can afford. A man should give 4-5 pigs to the girls parent he wants to marry. For Dani men, his social status are initiated by the number of wives and pigs he has.

Another remarkable custom of Dani is that women will amputate their finger when their relatives die, hence doesnt be surprise when you see women with missing finger.

To enhance the quality of your experience in Baliem Valley, guide is essential since there are no clear maps or signage initiated for visitor. The guide will help to lead the track, communicate with the local people and in advance, the guide will inform the tourist about local dos and donts.

Flying might be the only way to access the Baliem Valley through Wamena. Here are some alternatives on carrier from Jayapura to Wamena: (For further info, ask the officers at Sentani Airport Information Center).

• Trigana Air Services provide daily flights into and out of Wamena. Spot the Trigana Air Service Offices at Sentani Airport terminal and Wamena Airport terminal.
• MAF
• AMA
• Yajasi
• Manunggal Air
• Hercules carrier provide by Indonesian army (TNI)

To access Baliem Valley, you can rent car or public bus from Wamena.

For those who are adventurer and cultural observer in heart, stay and mingle with the Baliem Valley people is possible, just make sure your guide booked it before your visit. Go Show? Affordable.

If the first alternative is way too extreme, you can stay at hotels at Wamena:

• Wamena Hotel at Jl. Homhom 61
• Srikandi Hotel at Jl. Irian 16
• Pondok Wisata Putri Dani at Jl. Irian 40
• Nayak Hotel at Jl. Gatot Subroto 63
• Hotel Syah Rial Makmur at Jl. Gatot Subroto 45
• Hotel Anggrek at Jalan Ambon 1
• Baliem Pilamo Hotel at Jalan Trikora
• Baliem Valley Resort (3 star resort), www.baliem-valley-resort.de

Would you mind if we say ON FOOT? Healthy foot and fit body? Absolutely. Through trekking, you can witness traditional ceremonies, traditional markets and the people of Dani.

There is no restaurant inside the Baliem- Valley, a guide could bargain the Dani people to provide simple meals. Its stoutly advised, that the visitor bring their own meals and snack during the trekking. Meals and snacks can be found in grocery store at Wamena

• Souvenir can be easily found on the valley and buy the crafts directly from the Dani people.
• Stone blade is a major favorite for the tourist
• Sekan: rattan bracelate
• Noken: made from trees bark
• Head and arm necklace
• Jogal: grass skirt
• And other head decorations

• The captivating Baliem Fiesta is held on August around 10 - 17 August every year. The festival performs traditional dances, pig races, ancestral fighting and races. Today, Baliem Fiesta is one of the main reasons why tourists visit Papua. Its a magical Fiesta says most of the tourist.
• Join the large and busy local market at Sinatma.
• Spotting mummies at Kurulu Village.

• Guide is needed to explore the valley
• Dont forget to bring the copy of your Surat Keterangan Jalan
• Best time to visit is between March and August
• If you travel during the rainy season, be prepared with cold weather equipment
• Ask your guide about Dos and Donts in the Baliem Valley

Foreigner must obtain a travel permit letter or known as Surat Keterangan Jalan to get the access into the interior part of Papua. You can obtain the Surat Keterangan Jalan at main town police station such as Jayapura, Merauka, Timika, Biak, Nabire, Monokwari and other main city. The permit of lasts will depend on your request, from 1 week until 1 month or even longer. Please prepare copies of your passport, recent photograph and list of places you wish to visit. Its easy to get the Surat Keterangan Jalan, because the officers are friendly and helpful.

You can ask your travel agent to arrange the Surat Keterangan Jalan.

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Papua is the largest province of Indonesia, comprising a majority part of the western half of the island of New Guinea and nearby islands (see also Western New Guinea). The province originally covered the entire western half of New Guinea, but in 2003, the western portion of the province, on the Bird's Head Peninsula, was declared by the Indonesian Government as a separate province named West Irian Jaya (now West Papua). The legality of this separation has been disputed as it appears to conflict with the conditions of the Special Autonomy status awarded to Papua in the year 2000, but it has already resolved as of early 2007.

"Papua" is the official Indonesian and internationally recognised name for the province. During the Dutch colonial era the region was known as part of "Dutch New Guinea" or "Netherlands New Guinea". The province was known as "West Irian" or "Irian Barat" from 1969 to 1973, and then renamed "Irian Jaya" (roughly translated, "Glorious Irian") by the Suharto administration. This was the official name until "Papua" was adopted in 2002. Today, natives of this province prefer to call themselves Papuans rather than Irianese. This may be due to etymology (variously identified as a real etymology or a folk etymology) of the name Irian which stems from the acronym Ikut Republik Indonesia, Anti Nederland (join/follow the Republic of Indonesia, rejecting The Netherlands).[citation needed]

The name "West Papua" was adopted in 1961 by the New Guinea Council until the United Nations Temporary Executive Authority (UNTEA) transferred administration to the Republic of Indonesia in 1963. "West Papua" has since been used among Papuan separatists and usually refers to the whole of the Indonesian portion of New Guinea. The other Indonesian province that shares New Guinea, West Irian Jaya, has been officially renamed as "West Papua".

The province of Papua is governed by a directly-elected governor (currently Barnabas Suebu) and a regional legislature, DPRP (Dewan Perwakilan Rakyat Papua). A unique government organisation that only exists in Papua is the MRP (Majelis Rakyat Papua / Papuan People's Council) that was formed by the Indonesian Government in 2005 as a coalition of Papuan tribal chiefs, tasked with arbitration and speaking on behalf of Papuan tribal customs.

Indonesian governance of Papua is controversial with international opinion varying a great deal. Some view it as naked colonialism, others maintain that Indonesia represents a legitimate authority with a willing people.[citation needed] Frank expression of views is complicated by the delicate and troubled relationship many nations have with Indonesia. The Free Papua Movement strives for independence of the area from Indonesia. Like the rest of Indonesia, governance of the province has traditionally been strong and centralised from Jakarta. Papua was a major beneficiary of a nation-wide decentralisation process started in 1999 and the Special Autonomy status introduced in 2002. Measures included the formation of the MRP and redistribution of resource revenues. The implementation, however, of the Special Autonomy measures has been criticized by many as only being half-hearted.[citation needed]

In 1999 it was proposed to split the province into three government-controlled sectors, sparking Papuan protests (see external article). In January 2003 President Megawati Sukarnoputri signed an order dividing Papua into three provinces: Central Irian Jaya (Irian Jaya Tengah), Papua (or East Irian Jaya, Irian Jaya Timur), and West Papua (Irian Jaya Barat). The formality of installing a local government for Jaraka in Irian Jaya Barat (West) took place in February 2003 and a governor was appointed in November; a government for Irian Jaya Tengah (central) was delayed from August 2003 due to violent local protests. The creation of this separate central province was blocked by Indonesian courts, who declared it to be unconstitutional and in contravention of the Papua's special autonomy agreement. The previous division into two provinces was allowed to stand as an established fact. (King, 2004, p. 91)

In January 2006, 43 refugees landed on the coast of Australia and stated that the Indonesian military is carrying out a genocide in Papua. They were transported to an Australian immigration detention facility on Christmas Island, 360 km south of the western end of Java. On March 23, 2006, the Australian government granted temporary visas to 42 of the 43 asylum seekers (the 43rd, who had a Japanese visa at the time of his arrival, finally received an Australian visa in early August 2006). [2] On March 24 2006 Indonesia recalled its ambassador to Australia.

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