Bawomataluo means "sun hill" — the village sits on a 400-metre ridge reached by a long flight of stone steps. It is the most impressive surviving traditional village on Nias: two rows of huge timber houses on tall wooden piles face each other across a stone-paved central avenue, with the chief's house (omo sebua) at the head. Built in the late 19th century, the omo sebua is one of the largest pre-industrial wooden buildings in Indonesia.
Visitors come to see the stone-jumping ceremony (fahombo), now performed for tourists by young men in warrior dress with feathered headdresses. The performance is set up by arrangement with the village. Walk around afterwards — the megalithic stone benches and chairs in the central square, where village elders once held court, are at least as interesting as the jumping.