While some tourists follow a guide through the streets of Rome or Paris, others go for completely different experiences. Let’s say, visiting the aborigines. You can get acquainted with amazing culture and customs and try to explain to the locals what a smartphone is for.
However, you can’t just fly into the Herero International Airport, take a taxi and book a suite with a view of the settlement. You can visit the natives either in small groups or with an individual guide who will help with translation. So the first step to getting to know the tribes is to fly to the nearest large city. All local trips are already organized on the spot; all you have to do is choose a specific operator or find a suitable guide. And we have found five of the most interesting tribes that you can meet and who will be mutually happy to see you.
Mursi
This tribe lives in Ethiopia, its population is just over seven thousand people. The tribe is considered wealthy – it raises livestock and does not experience any problems with food. Less affluent tribes living in the neighborhood are either on the verge of extinction or relying on humanitarian aid. Tourists began to frequently visit the lands of the Mursi, and some natives began to take advantage of this: for example, they may ask for money for a photo with them. It is important to show your peaceful attitude: give a few gifts – for example, razors. You will immediately be treated as an honored guest. Tourists are also advised to go to little-known Mursi settlements, which have not yet been spoiled by the attention of tourists and are not tired of foreigners.
Mursi are widely known for their appearance. This is especially true for women – they insert a porcelain disk, which is sometimes called a plate, into their lower lip. There are several versions explaining this feature. The most popular one says that hundreds of years ago, in this way, the tribe wanted to make their women less attractive in the eyes of slave traders. Now it is believed that the larger the plate, the more beautiful and respected the woman is by the tribe. Saucers are inserted only on important occasions – for the arrival of guests, for holidays. Another distinctive feature of the Mursi is the patterns of convex dots on the body. Incisions are made on the skin into which ash is poured. That’s why, by the way, the tribe values sharp blades as gifts.
Hamer
Another Ethiopian tribe, more numerous than the Mursi – about thirty-five thousand people. The Hamers also quickly realized that tourists bring not only trouble, but also money and gifts. Get ready to pay for photos; the Hamers definitely haven’t heard of the right to take pictures in public places.
The people are considered very friendly to tourists compared to the Mursi. But in any case, you will be accompanied by a person who knows the language of the tribe and the rules of etiquette.
Here the women do not wear a plate in their lip, but their backs are scarred. The number of wounds indicates respect and honor among men. This is preceded by a ritual: women drink something like beer all night, which is made from the grains of the sorghum plant. Then they need to piss off the men who will hit them on the back with rods.
A man’s life is also not easy: to undergo the initiation rite, when a teenager becomes a man in the eyes of the tribe, you need to run over the backs of bulls four times. The difficulty is that the bulls are not tied up, and the animals can simply disperse on their own. If you fail, you will have to wait a whole year to repeat the ritual.
Fox
The Lisu people are large – more than seven hundred thousand people. Some of the settlements are located in China, the rest in Myanmar and India
and Thailand. The ancestors of the Lisu came to these lands from Tibet, and for hundreds of years the way of life of the tribe has not changed. The family plays a dominant role in their lives. Men are allowed to have several wives, so Lisu have numerous families.
Unlike the Hamers and Mursi, the Foxes do not practice rituals that are wild in the understanding of modern man. And although foxes are generally quite shy, they always welcome strangers.
The Lisu are known for the fact that some time ago they lived mainly by growing opium, which in these places serves as a cure for many diseases. But now they have switched to tourism and the cultivation of other plants – for example, corn. Agriculture is carried out using the slash-and-burn method, which is no longer found almost anywhere. This method destroys the soil within a few years, and the fox is often forced to look for a new place to live.
Herero
Women of this tribe wear dresses in the fashion of the late 19th – early 20th centuries: wide skirts, loose sleeves, unusual patterns. On the head there is a scarf folded in a special way, similar to a cocked hat. Men can be found in German military uniforms from the early 20th century. They believe that such clothing conveys the strength of the Germans to its owner.
The fact is that at the beginning of the twentieth century, German colonial troops killed 80% of the Herero (approximately 65 thousand people) during the suppression of the uprising. The current population of people is quite large – about 240 thousand. The Herero are usually engaged in cattle breeding and handicrafts. The attitude towards tourists is friendly.
Mentawai
From the more civilized Herero and Lisu we return to yet another eerie rituals and traditions. The Indonesian Mentawai people have specific ideas about female beauty. Here, the “shark smile” – pointed teeth – is considered spectacular. It looks unusual until you think about how the teeth get that look. It’s simple: they are cut out and chipped off.
Mentawai respect nature, trying not to unnecessarily cut down trees or kill animals unless absolutely necessary. The tribe is friendly to tourists and enthusiastically introduces its traditions. If the Herero and the Fox seem too “civilized”, and you don’t feel like traveling to Ethiopia, the Mentawai tribe will be the best choice for an exotic trip – a good attitude towards strangers will guarantee that you will not need for anything.
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