The local pronounciation is: ma �" oo- rolay, as we found out whilst listening to speeches at an unexpectedly well organised gala dinner for the fleet. Diomedea had arrived at this unpromising location, primarily to receive our passports with the new visa extensions. To our pleasant surprise, we found an excellent local tourist operation run by Vincent and Ferdinand of Flores Adventrip (+62 813 34330155, HYPERLINK "mailto:floresadventrip@gmail.com"floresadventrip@gmail.com) . A stall with information brochures was manned and ready for business. They organised local tours including up to Kelimutu lakes and some hot springs, as well as a short trekking tour to a traditional village followed by a walk through various plantations. We did this walk and enjoyed every minute of it. We were enthralled by stories of a two-faced Portuguese sailor, drowned on this shore centuries ago. His bones were said to be contained within a structure that appeared like a bird house in the traditional village. Indeed, inspection revealed some human like metacarpals. The structure had enormous animistic significance for the village. There was also an elaborate meeting house with carved human, fish and animal figures. Some locals also demonstrated their climbing talents and taut six-packs by scaling a palm tree with a machete to send down some fresh coconuts. Small notches are cut in the tree to allow purchase with the feet and the hands grip the trunk. There are no safety devices of any sort. The climber wields the exceedingly sharp machete with the sword arm at 25m above the ground, hanging on with the other hand. The water from the coconuts straight off the palm is excellent. We are shown coffee beans drying in the sun, cashew nut trees being harvested, rice paddies about to be harvested and being harvested, cocoa trees, kapok trees and others. The cashews are roasted for us and we eat them. Yum. The amount of labour required to fill a packet in Coles with cashews is really staggering. We are also treated to roasted Plantain bananas served hot (would have been good with Nutella dipping sauce though). As the heat of the day builds we move back to Maurole for morning tea at a small resto and then seek the shade of the boat. The gala dinner is a lot of fun. It seems as though the entire village is there. All the senior political figures and leaders of the Ende regency, and their wives have also come over the mountains from Ende on the south coast, an arduous three hour drive. Interesting speeches from the bupati (village chief) and the vice regent are followed by good quality food. Bintang beer is available. Afterwards come the dancers from the school showcasing traditional themed stories from the region. Finally it is our turn. We join the mob on the dusty arena and whirl around with colourful cloths. In a rather surreal moment, I find myself dancing in this way with a heavily built chief of police, wearing an equally heavily built pistol. Nonetheless, he has a cherubic face and a nice smile so we sashay around for a while. The celebration draws to a close, having been a complete success for all concerned. A column of headlights preceded by the flashing and wailing of a police car disappear up the hill on the road back to Ende and we fumble our way in the light of the full moon back to our boats. Our last engagement in Maurole was an educational session with 15 year olds from the high school in Ende. Accompanied by their very enthusiastic teacher it was a time for the meeting of cultures. We tried to reinforce the notion of rubbish control in villages as an important concept in improving the tourist potential of Flores. The region has plenty to offer we feel but it does need to meet at least the minimum standards of cleanliness that modern tourists expect. Overall we had a great time in Maurole and would recommend this as a stop for yachts in the future.