Cruising Back in Time
Bontohari, a town in the Bulukumba regency of South Sulawesi, is the birthplace of the Pinisi, a traditional wooden sailing vessel that once dominated the high seas. Initially used as a cargo vessel, the Pinisi was traditionally built on the beach, where the logs came from the forests of Sulawesi and Kalimantan. Over centuries, the Pinisi has been able to adapt and change with time. Today, craftsmen earn their livelihoods by building these ships as cruise vessels. Orders come in from around the world. For this edition of Outreach, Tempo spoke with people about getting into the business of cruise ships. A report from South Sulawesi.
January 11, 2012
From Pinisi to Cruisers
THE sound of hammers intermingled with the noise of scraping saws at the shipyard of Tanjung Bira in Bontohari. As they chatted along, workers were attempting to hurriedly transport wooden blocks to build apinisiboata traditional Indonesian sailing craft. In the past two weeks, they have been working against time to meet a deadline and finish up with a special order to build this craft. It is the largest cruiser ever to be
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