Watched the whole thing and obviously understood it all as a fellow Indonesian haha.
One of the things that I am trying to cultivate as I grow older is a sense of appreciation for the rich culture of Indonesia. I am ashamed to say that I've always preferred traveling to Singapore or Australia or something... rather than Manado, Labuan Bajo, or the Samosir island in the video... I've never been to those places. I've been to Bali and seen the temples, but that definitely doesn't count considering Bali is a worldwide tourist attraction. I am currently a sell-out Indonesian I guess. As I grow older these places become more interesting to me. Maybe we just naturally get more curious about our roots as we grow up... there's something to that.
I was hoping the video was going to get into the food of the Batak people, that would have been interesting. Peripherally I seem to recall some sort of connection between the Batak people and the Padang (Minang) people, they both have roots within the island of Sumatra. Padang food is just damn addictive (in the best sense of the word), I wonder if Batak food is similar.
I was the same way about how I used to be more impressed with foreign places like Europe and America than with Indonesia. While I still love those places, I am also trying to cultivate my own appreciation for places in Indonesia.
To my own shame, I know very little about Batak food other than tidbits like saksang or pork - we love our pork (though so do the Manado, I think).
Cool video! I was able to understand a lot of it, mostly because I read your description first and thankfully, the narrators spoke clearly and slowly. I had trouble understanding the fellow at the desk, so I skipped a lot of him. Part of that was sound quality, part speed and diction, more so my loss of the language after so many years. I thought the visuals and artwork were great.
Probably due to something I missed, but I’m not sure where this building/monument/shrine/cultural center with the figures is located. Is it on Samosir? Do you know when it was built? I don’t think it was there in the late 90s when we made several excursions to Toba seeking relief from the rest of Sumatra’s heat. We did see the Batak dancing, either at Toba or Berastagi. Too long ago! And ate lots of Batak food in Medan with good local friends. Now I’m missing it :( Waaaa! Somewhere buried in my storage unit is a small watercolor I did of a Batak house. Wish I could find it. Thanks for posting this. Such a beautiful location and fascinating history!
Hi Lausanne. Thanks for your comment. I'm glad you enjoyed this post. It's been years since I went to Lake Toba myself, so I do miss it too.
As for the place with the statues, I assume you're referring to "Sopo Guru Tatean Bulan". The video didn't go into where exactly it is, but I did look it up on Google. It's in the Samosir Regency but not in the Samosir island itself. The exact place is called Sianjur Mula-Mula, which is west of Lake Toba.
Ah, so it was there in 1998-2002. Funny that no one directed us to it. As you noted, it might have been still under construction. Thanks for that link and clarification.
Great video recommendation!
Watched the whole thing and obviously understood it all as a fellow Indonesian haha.
One of the things that I am trying to cultivate as I grow older is a sense of appreciation for the rich culture of Indonesia. I am ashamed to say that I've always preferred traveling to Singapore or Australia or something... rather than Manado, Labuan Bajo, or the Samosir island in the video... I've never been to those places. I've been to Bali and seen the temples, but that definitely doesn't count considering Bali is a worldwide tourist attraction. I am currently a sell-out Indonesian I guess. As I grow older these places become more interesting to me. Maybe we just naturally get more curious about our roots as we grow up... there's something to that.
I was hoping the video was going to get into the food of the Batak people, that would have been interesting. Peripherally I seem to recall some sort of connection between the Batak people and the Padang (Minang) people, they both have roots within the island of Sumatra. Padang food is just damn addictive (in the best sense of the word), I wonder if Batak food is similar.
I was the same way about how I used to be more impressed with foreign places like Europe and America than with Indonesia. While I still love those places, I am also trying to cultivate my own appreciation for places in Indonesia.
To my own shame, I know very little about Batak food other than tidbits like saksang or pork - we love our pork (though so do the Manado, I think).
Cool video! I was able to understand a lot of it, mostly because I read your description first and thankfully, the narrators spoke clearly and slowly. I had trouble understanding the fellow at the desk, so I skipped a lot of him. Part of that was sound quality, part speed and diction, more so my loss of the language after so many years. I thought the visuals and artwork were great.
Probably due to something I missed, but I’m not sure where this building/monument/shrine/cultural center with the figures is located. Is it on Samosir? Do you know when it was built? I don’t think it was there in the late 90s when we made several excursions to Toba seeking relief from the rest of Sumatra’s heat. We did see the Batak dancing, either at Toba or Berastagi. Too long ago! And ate lots of Batak food in Medan with good local friends. Now I’m missing it :( Waaaa! Somewhere buried in my storage unit is a small watercolor I did of a Batak house. Wish I could find it. Thanks for posting this. Such a beautiful location and fascinating history!
Hi Lausanne. Thanks for your comment. I'm glad you enjoyed this post. It's been years since I went to Lake Toba myself, so I do miss it too.
As for the place with the statues, I assume you're referring to "Sopo Guru Tatean Bulan". The video didn't go into where exactly it is, but I did look it up on Google. It's in the Samosir Regency but not in the Samosir island itself. The exact place is called Sianjur Mula-Mula, which is west of Lake Toba.
As for when it's built, the Indonesian wiki says 1995. So it's possible that it was still breaking ground when you were there. Here's the link: https://id.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sopo_Guru_Tatea_Bulan
-Michael P. Marpaung
Ah, so it was there in 1998-2002. Funny that no one directed us to it. As you noted, it might have been still under construction. Thanks for that link and clarification.