To Danua Toba

Having spent a day and night at Berastagi, we decided that it was time to set out for Lake Toba (the supposed highlight for this trip). After making some arrangements with the guesthouse where we stayed at, we set off for the ferry point in Parapat - a small town found on the edge of the great lake.

Our driver made a few stops along the way to Parapat; included in the price paid at the guesthouse receptionist. The first stop was a local village where there was a mix of traditional homes and slightly more modern ones; the villagers went on with their daily lives as we walked around to get a slight idea of how they lived their lives, they seemed to be rather used to the presence of tourists like us.

#1 Laundry hanging outside one of the slightly more modern homes.

#2 A slightly more traditional home on the right in the background

#3 

#4 More laundry

At the end of our very brief walkabout, someone came up to us with a logbook and asked for donations to improve the lives of the villagers. I definitely hope the little money that we'd contributed will help the villagers improve their lives in some way, even though I wouldn't be surprised if they don't get a cent of it.

Following, our driver drove us to see a waterfall. There was quite a heavy drizzle when we arrived and the visibility was quite bad. When our driver told us that the waterfall was right across from where the car was, I thought he was making it up to myself. Nonetheless, we got off the car for a toilet break, an guess what we saw minutes later...

#5 Sipiso-piso Waterfall! (I looked the name up)

#6 Completely covered by the thick fog just minutes ago.

A minute later, I felt bad for doubting the driver :x

We took a short (but tiring) walk along a footpath that led to a better view of the waterfall, and took funny pictures like that:

#7 He totally looks like he's been photoshopped into the picture

#8 This waterfall is located on the north side of Lake Toba and water falls from a height of 120metres to lake level. Its name Sipiso, means "like a knife", and that probably is describing the waterfall's appearance.

#9 Lake Toba shrouded in mist. A lot of mist.

As we made our ways back to our driver, some friendly locals who were in uniforms (looked like rangers of some sort) called out to us and offered us some durian/coconut/jackfruit (I can't remember what was it).

It was a short ride from the waterfall to Parapat, where we'd head to Samsosir Island from, a large island (the size of Singapore) in the middle of Lake Toba.

#10 Passengers of another kind

#11 Yvonne and Doris

#12 Doris and me

#13 Lake-front holiday houses on Samosir Island.

#14 More lake-front houses

#15 A view from Samsosir now

There's not too much to do on Samsosir Island itself since most of the people who head there are really just looking for a quiet place to unwind, swim in waterfalls and hotsprings, or just to immerse themselves in the local traditional Batak culture so we went cycling on the 2nd day.

#16 Fresh start

#17 Beautiful rice-fields and rich green hills

#18 It was a very nice cycling experience indeed.

#19 Traditional Batak houses that we passed by along the way. Something interesting about the Bataks is that they used to engage in cannibalism rituals a long time ago; they would eat the flesh of either criminals or war prisoners. Of course, it's long been banned since the 1800s when the Dutch took over.

#20 Toba hound.

#21 Taking a breather

#22 One of the common sights that were seen while cycling

#23 :) Thanks for waiting up!

#24 I was so so so tired from the uphill slopes, but I wouldn't mind doing it again with great company like this.

#25 My lovely new friends.

#26 One of the two lakes within Samsosir Island itself

The cycling left me breathless and perspiring madly by the end of it; it was quite a pathetic sight, me hopelessly panting and gasping for air. But like what I said three pictures ago, I wouldn't mind doing it all over again. Besides, taking a dip in the cold waters of the majestic Lake Toba after cycling made me forget about whatever tiredness or soreness I experienced after the 5-hour cycle.

#27 We had some Bintangs (explaining the flush on my face) in the evening, sang and danced with the performers who performed some traditional dances and songs for us. I did quite badly trying to follow their graceful movements (what's new hur), but it was all good fun and I was happy beyond words to have them extend their Batak hospitality towards us.