Danau Toba is the largest freshwater lake in Southeast Asia, one of the highest in the world, and also really, really big. It was created when a gigantic volcano exploded 100,000 years ago. The caldera is now Samosir island (really a peninsula), which is about the same size as Singapore.
We're staying in Tuk-tuk, the peninsula on a peninsula. Our hotel is very nice and has great views and a great swimming area. The lake water is cool but not cold, but if you go below the shallow thermocline then it is quite chilly. Yesterday we sat on our butts and read. I had a delicious lunch of sak-sang, a traditional Batak dish that is pork in a spicy coconut ginger sauce. I'd like to learn how to make it, but apparently the pepper that gives the dish its spice only grows along the shores of Lake Toba.
Today we walked to a village called Ambarita that has a circle of stone chairs where the village council used to meet and sometimes behead people. But all that remains today are the stone chairs and a string of tacky tourist stalls selling "Lake Toba" t-shirts.
Tomorrow we are walking to another village in a different direction. If I can convince myself that the beautiful carvings I see won't break in my backpack during the rest of the trip, I might get some of those too.
Thursday, September 03, 2009
Tuesday, September 01, 2009
Karo Highlands
On Tuesday morning, we left Berastagi by a private hired minibus, an uncharacteristic luxury. We hired our own transport so that we could visit the interesting sights along the way to Parapat, rather than just careen to the ferry point for our next destination.
Our first stop was to a small village called Dokan. Many of the people in this village still live in traditional Batak longhouses, which have arched pointy roofs and intricate carvings on the outside and a large multi-family open space on the inside. Seeing the inhabited houses was interesting, but I felt uncomfortable as a supertourist in a poor village. I still took pictures, though, because that is what supertourists from America are supposed to do.
Next, we visited the Sipiso-piso waterfall, which plunges 120 meters into Lake Toba. We didn't climb down the stairs to the base because our legs were still really tired from the previous two days' volcano treks.
We then stopped at what was called the King's Palace, which were some very well preserved but deserted Batak longhouses and other buildings.
We arrived in Parapat around 1:30 and caught the 2:30 ferry to Samosir Island.
Our first stop was to a small village called Dokan. Many of the people in this village still live in traditional Batak longhouses, which have arched pointy roofs and intricate carvings on the outside and a large multi-family open space on the inside. Seeing the inhabited houses was interesting, but I felt uncomfortable as a supertourist in a poor village. I still took pictures, though, because that is what supertourists from America are supposed to do.
Next, we visited the Sipiso-piso waterfall, which plunges 120 meters into Lake Toba. We didn't climb down the stairs to the base because our legs were still really tired from the previous two days' volcano treks.
We then stopped at what was called the King's Palace, which were some very well preserved but deserted Batak longhouses and other buildings.
We arrived in Parapat around 1:30 and caught the 2:30 ferry to Samosir Island.
Monday, August 31, 2009
Berastagi
Berastagi is a great city. The weather is cool, it hasn't rained too much, and there are plenty of things to do nearby.
On Sunday we climbed Gunung Sinabung, an active volcano that is about 2400 meters high. The ascent through a fern and orchid filled forest was very steep and took 4 hours. The summit was very cloudy, and we only had amazing views for about 30 seconds. But on the plus side, the constant clouds and smell of sulfur made us feel like we were on another planet. The descent wasn't much fun and our legs were in pain when we left the mountain around 5:30 PM.
So much pain that we decided to climb another volcano today, Gunung Sibayek. Sibayek is smaller - about 2000 meters, and the ascent wasn't very interesting or difficult when compared to the previous day. The summit was filled with sulfur-spewing fumaroles, and the sky was clearer so we had some great views of the surrounding valley. After exiting the trail, we stopped off at some hot springs for a relaxing dip and hopefully didn't pick up a skin infection.
Tonight is our last in Berastagi. We hired a car to take us to some villages tomorrow and drop us off at the jumping off point for Danau Toba, a big mountain lake and the largest in SE Asia.
On Sunday we climbed Gunung Sinabung, an active volcano that is about 2400 meters high. The ascent through a fern and orchid filled forest was very steep and took 4 hours. The summit was very cloudy, and we only had amazing views for about 30 seconds. But on the plus side, the constant clouds and smell of sulfur made us feel like we were on another planet. The descent wasn't much fun and our legs were in pain when we left the mountain around 5:30 PM.
So much pain that we decided to climb another volcano today, Gunung Sibayek. Sibayek is smaller - about 2000 meters, and the ascent wasn't very interesting or difficult when compared to the previous day. The summit was filled with sulfur-spewing fumaroles, and the sky was clearer so we had some great views of the surrounding valley. After exiting the trail, we stopped off at some hot springs for a relaxing dip and hopefully didn't pick up a skin infection.
Tonight is our last in Berastagi. We hired a car to take us to some villages tomorrow and drop us off at the jumping off point for Danau Toba, a big mountain lake and the largest in SE Asia.
Saturday, August 29, 2009
Bukit Lawang
We made a quick overnight trip to Bukit Lawang. The town isn't conducive to a quick overnight trip since it took 4 hours to get here, but we decided to cut our time short since we opted not to do a jungle trek. Instead, we just wanted to see the orangutan rehabilitation center.
The center lived up to its promise - an orangutan sighting sort of in the wild. We saw a mother with a baby who was hanging out by the feeding platform for twice-daily bananas and milk. The food offered is intentionally boring because the park wants to encourage the animals to seek out more interesting fruits in the forest. But this mama certainly snarfed down her share of bananas, peeling each with her lips. She was a little more dignified with the milk, since she used a cup. We also saw a poisonous green viper on the trail leading to the platform.
This morning after breakfast we made the long trip to Berastagi, where I am now. Berastagi is cool and in the mountains. We're here to climb some volcanoes.
The center lived up to its promise - an orangutan sighting sort of in the wild. We saw a mother with a baby who was hanging out by the feeding platform for twice-daily bananas and milk. The food offered is intentionally boring because the park wants to encourage the animals to seek out more interesting fruits in the forest. But this mama certainly snarfed down her share of bananas, peeling each with her lips. She was a little more dignified with the milk, since she used a cup. We also saw a poisonous green viper on the trail leading to the platform.
This morning after breakfast we made the long trip to Berastagi, where I am now. Berastagi is cool and in the mountains. We're here to climb some volcanoes.
Medan
We arrived in Sumatra early Thursday evening after a very tight connection in Jakarta. Medan is a bustling, sultry city of 2 million people, and it is noticeably poorer and more chaotic than Yogyakarta.
After checking into our hotel, we had dinner at a street stall in a Ramadan fair right beside the main mosque in the city. The Ramadan fair was THE place to be, and we attracted a fair amount of friendly attention. In addition to dinner, my traveling companion purchased a pair of designer Gurci sunglasses and a pair of Converse flip flops (no trademark-infringing suit thwarting misspelling).
We left Medan early in the morning for Bukit Lawang.
After checking into our hotel, we had dinner at a street stall in a Ramadan fair right beside the main mosque in the city. The Ramadan fair was THE place to be, and we attracted a fair amount of friendly attention. In addition to dinner, my traveling companion purchased a pair of designer Gurci sunglasses and a pair of Converse flip flops (no trademark-infringing suit thwarting misspelling).
We left Medan early in the morning for Bukit Lawang.
Wednesday, August 26, 2009
Yogyakarta, part II
Our two days in Yogya were good. On Tuesday evening, we went and saw a traditional Javanese ballet performance of Ramayana, a love story involving gods, bad guys, and a monkey kingdom whose subjects were dressed like Power Rangers.
On Wednesday we walked around the city, visited the sultan's palace, and went shopping for batik and leather puppets. The good stuff is expensive, so it is a good thing that our perfectly decent hotel (with a swimming pool) cost only $9 a night.
We're leaving Yogya on an afternoon flight to Medan via Jakarta. I'm ready for Sumatra, and am ready to see how the islands differ.
On Wednesday we walked around the city, visited the sultan's palace, and went shopping for batik and leather puppets. The good stuff is expensive, so it is a good thing that our perfectly decent hotel (with a swimming pool) cost only $9 a night.
We're leaving Yogya on an afternoon flight to Medan via Jakarta. I'm ready for Sumatra, and am ready to see how the islands differ.
Tuesday, August 25, 2009
Yogyakarta
I'm now in Yogyakarta. We arrived in this central Java city on Sunday and tried to get to Borobudur, but by 4:30 all the buses already left. So we took a "Trans," a municipal bus with fixed stops that operates more like a metro than a bus, to the suburb of Prambanan.
Prambanan is a bit of a hole. Our hotel offered rooms by the hour as well as by the night, but it was reasonably clean and had friendly staff. And it was only for one night. On Monday morning, we got up at the crack of dawn to see the eponymous Hindu temple complex which was amazing. Some of the temples had been damaged by the 2006 earthquake and thus did not allow entry, but they were still very beautiful and really cool looking. We visited two more nearby temples, and by noon we returned to Yogya and left for Borobudur.
Borobudur is a much nicer town, and our hotel was a lot nicer, too. This morning, we again woke up at the crack of dawn and visited the eponymous Buddhist temple, which is gigantic spire built around a big hill. Again, it was really cool. Both Prambanan and Borobudur were built in the 9th or 10th century and had been restored.
Yogya is a friendly, mid-size city. We aren't doing anything today. Tomorrow we will visit the sultan's palace and maybe see a Javanese dance performance.
Prambanan is a bit of a hole. Our hotel offered rooms by the hour as well as by the night, but it was reasonably clean and had friendly staff. And it was only for one night. On Monday morning, we got up at the crack of dawn to see the eponymous Hindu temple complex which was amazing. Some of the temples had been damaged by the 2006 earthquake and thus did not allow entry, but they were still very beautiful and really cool looking. We visited two more nearby temples, and by noon we returned to Yogya and left for Borobudur.
Borobudur is a much nicer town, and our hotel was a lot nicer, too. This morning, we again woke up at the crack of dawn and visited the eponymous Buddhist temple, which is gigantic spire built around a big hill. Again, it was really cool. Both Prambanan and Borobudur were built in the 9th or 10th century and had been restored.
Yogya is a friendly, mid-size city. We aren't doing anything today. Tomorrow we will visit the sultan's palace and maybe see a Javanese dance performance.
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