Capital of the Covalima municipality, Suai is a moderate sized town by the south coast of Timor-Leste. It was an interesting place to spend a few nights thanks to a work trip, particularly the day trips out to the remote areas of Fatumea and Fatululic by the Indonesian border, which I’ll cover in separate posts.

The closest place to a tourist destination is the beachside community of Suai Loro, 10 minutes drive from Suai. This is a pleasant stretch of coastline, home to many crocodiles. Along by the water are a series of seemingly interchangeable restaurants where you can pick your fish from a freezer for a tasty dinner. I loved the LED coloured two story dinning areas and unusual tsunami sign.

Randomly there is also a model of the Eiffel Tower, a long way from Paris!

Avé Maria Cathedral is one of the larger churches in a country full of churches. It was closed unfortunately when I visited but looking through a window it seemed relatively plain inside. It is an impressive place though, easily the largest building in Suai.

Outside kids were practicing their marching drums for the upcoming Independence Day celebrations.

Nearby the sobering Monumento Massacre Septembro Negro 1999 commemorates the 245 people killed by militia while sheltering inside the original Avé Maria church on 6th September 1999.

Between the two is the Mercado de Suai, lined with alleyways filled with all manner of things to buy.

Suai, and Covalima more generally, was home to more traditionally thatched Timorese buildings than I’d seen anywhere in Timor-Leste in my first three months in the country.

Modern Timorese buildings are a little difference.

A few other sights from wandering around Suai, including an unusual Virgin Mary shrine, a guerilla fighter roundabout, locals watching football from their scooters and motorbikes, and a government building decked out for Independence Day.

I left Suai from Xanana Gusmao International Airport, which was much more modern than the far busier (a relative term in Timor-Leste) Dili airport. It was significantly upgraded in 2017 to support investment in the oil and gas industry, but it currently serves little more than a MAF light aircraft a few times a week.