Travelling to the districts is a big part of life and work in Timor Leste.

But the good news is that you can recreate the rush of emotions a trip to the districts brings from your very own home, anywhere in the world.

You need:
– A crazy broken washing machine from the 1950s that violently lurches around your laundry and shakes when it is on.
– A laptop computer with internet connection
– A fish grilled on a stick with some rice that has been sitting in the sun for many days
– A broken plastic stool partially melted by the sun

Step one

Sit on the crazy broken washing machine and turn it on

Step two

Play this song on loop on your laptop computer (you can also mix up different versions of this song, like the techno version, or the version that is allegedly in English)

Step three

Continue for three hours.

Step four

Turn off washing machine, sit on broken plastic stool trying to hold up your own body weight and eat fish on stick and questionable rice.

Step five

Return to washing machine and Ai Se Eu Te Pego shuffle playlist for another three hours.

Step six

Get off washing machine, look at the pictures on my blog.

Step seven

Repeat in opposite direction

PS. There will be nowhere for you to go to the loo for the entire trip. You may want to try going on the street outside your house. If a crowd forms, then that’s a genuine experience. If you are arrested, sorry, that’s not quite authentic.