Exploring Tuk Tuk

Early morning at Tuk Tuk on Samosir Island.

Tuk Tuk Peninsula is located on the eastern coast of Samosir Island, in Lake Toba. It is the main tourist village on the island, and it is here that tourists to Samosir find most of the accommodation, from simple guesthouses called losmen to upmarket resorts.

It is not difficult to understand why Tuk Tuk is the tourist centre of Samosir Island, for it is by far the most picturesque part of the island. When I was there, I stayed at Hotel Silintong, which sits on a promontory with breathtaking views of the lake. Every now and then, we could see boatmen rowing past our hotel.

Tuk Tuk is located across a bay from Tomok, another village where there are ferry services to Prapat. A small country road leads from the Tuk Tuk peninsula to the rest of Samosir Island.

We happened to have a few hours on hand, so we did a walking tour along the peninsula. Along the way, we found a number of losmen as well as souvenir shops. The scenery across the lake was great. At one point, I heard church bells. When I saw the locals dressed in their best clothes walking towards a village church, I realised it was Sunday morning and they were going for services. So I decided to join them, to see how church is like on Samosir.

The little church building was packed with worshippers. I found out later that its name was Gereja Santu Alfonsus. Some come by motorcycle, but the majority simply walked. I had the chance to take a look at their bible and hymn book. All are in their language. It was a marvellous experience to attend church in Tuk Tuk.

Tuk Tuk Photo Album

Lake Toba, as seen from Tuk Tuk peninsula.



The view from Tuk Tuk peninsula, far left, across Lake Toba towards Tomok, on the right.



Ferryboat crossing Bagus Bay with passengers going to Tuk Tuk peninsula.



The country road around Tuk Tuk peninsula

Left: View across Bagus Bay from Tuk Tuk peninsula. Below: Boys of Tuk Tuk on the bicycles.

These boys have a school assignment: they have to go around Tuk Tuk looking for tourists so that they can practise their English.



On the north side of the Tuk Tuk peninsula, I came across these boys giving their motorcycle a washing.



A sign of joy in living.

Exploring Tomok

Traditional Batak house in Tomok, with grain being dried in the yard, and a less-than-traditional satellite dish at the back.

Tomok is one of the main towns on Samosir Island, in Lake Toba. It has a jetty for ferries coming in from Prapat, which is 30 minutes away on the eastern bank of the lake.

Hugging the Tomok jetty are souvenir shops, again every store selling almost the same items. Tourists thinking of buying cheap t-shirts should try them out before purchasing. What I discovered was that the Indonesian sizes are much smaller than back home, so the same size might not fit.

The main draw of Tomok must surely be the King Sidabutar's tomb. Apart from that, there are also traditional Batak houses with the curved roor ridges to be found here. Further inland is a Batak Museum that was being made ready. When I visited, the workmen were putting on the finishing touches to the museum.

A short distance from the jetty, and within sight of it, is a church. While waiting for the ladies in our group to be done with their shopping, I went over to the church to explore it.



Another ancient Batak tomb, this one located near the lakeside in Tomok.

Exploring Samosir Island

Rows of resorts and hotels in Tuk Tuk, Samosir Island.
Samosir Island is an island located more or less at the centre of Lake Toba. At 630 sq km, Samosir is just slightly smaller than Singapore, which is 714 sq km. Samosir holds the distinction for being the largest island within an island, and the fourth largest island within a lake.

Lake Toba is believed to have been formed 75000 years ago, following the biggest eruption ever known. A second eruption 30,000 years ago pushed up Samosir Island, and formed the peninsula that is now Prapat.

Samosir Island Photo Album

A Toba Batak village on Samosir Island.



A small island adjacent to Samosir near the village of Simanindo.



View of the Samosir landscape.

Exploring Prapat

The town of Prapat, as seen from our chartered boat on Lake Toba. We stayed at the Danau Toba International Cottage, which is the row of building with red roofs at water's edge.
Prapat, also written Parapat, is a small town on the eastern shore of Lake Toba, about 170km from Medan, in North Sumatra. Since colonial times, Prapat has been a weekend getaway and resort town for those escaping the heat and bustle of Medan. In my opinion, although some places in Prapat, especially along the shore, is quite scenic, on the whole, it is not a pretty town. In fact, there is no good reason to remain long at Prapat. Despite being a tourist town for generations, there is actually little in terms of attractions that is available to visitors to Prapat, and tourists are well advised to proceed to Samosir Island.

I explored Prapat with a small group of AsiaExplorers members, on our way to Lake Toba. We spent a night here before crossing over to Samosir Island the following day. While in Prapat, we stayed at the Danau Toba International Cottage, a 2-star establishment which is already one of the better hotels in Prapat. It is centrally located with rooms right at the water's edge. The creative comfort was very basic. There was no air conditioning, so it was quite warm for us at night.

Our hotel is located close to the Prapat market, so it offered us an opportunity to explore and find out how the locals live. Prapat is situated on a hilly decline, and many of its houses cling to the slope, linked by the narrow hill roads. Their zinc roofs sprout a multitude of satellite dishes. There was a small number of shophouses in Prapat, but I could not find a single shop that sells guidebooks, maps or even postcards.

For want of something better to do, we chartered a boat to go out into the lake, where we enjoyed a lovely sunset view of Prapat and Samosir Island.

On the following morning, I walked along the edge of Lake Toba to explore another section of Prapat which is separated by the hills. I saw big sections of the lake overgrown with water hyacinths. There was another market on this part of town, but it lacks any particular charm to leave a lasting impression in me.

To reach Samosir Island from Prapat, we were provided with another chartered boat that took us sightseeing in different parts of Samosir Island. Otherwise, visitors can take the ferry that goes from Prapat to Tomok, one of the main villages on the eastern coast of the island.

Prapat Photo Album

The lanes in Prapat slope down towards Lake Toba.



The houses in Prapat hug the slope while sprouting a flowering of satellite dishes.



Boatman negotiating through a sea of water hyacinths.



Workman hauling boat back to shore in Prapat.

Exploring the Batak Museum

A new Batak Museum was being set up in Tomok.

Batak Museum in Tomok is one of the three that I have visited. The other two are in Simanindo and Pematang Purba. Both the museums in Simanindo and Pematang Purba are former residences of Batak rulers, whereas the one in Tomok, although located a short walking distance from the Tomb of the Sidabutar kings is one specially set up to showcase the Batak culture in Tomok.

The Batak Museum in Tomok displays Batak handicrafts such as masks as well as household items including basketware, pots, spears, and tribal effigies. Also on display are musical instruments such as the gongs and drums. When I was there, the museum was still being made ready - I think it is not officially open to the public yet, but visitors are welcome to enter and admire the artefacts.

Batak Museum Photo Album

The items on display at the Tomok Batak Museum.



The Batak Museum in Simanindo used to be the former residence of the Simanindo ruler.



A Solu Bolon, or royal boat, is exhibited at the Batak Museum in Simanindo.



The Batak Museum of Pematang Purba, also a former royal residence, showcases Batak craftsmanship in their architecture. More details of this royal residence available on the Pematang Purba page.

Ambarita Photo Album

Restored Toba Batak houses in Ambarita. Unfortunately the roofing does not match the architecture.



A closer view of the tribal houses reveal intricate carvings.



Victims awaiting their fate is imprisoned behind the wooden bars below this house.



This is either the tomb or monument to the Siallagan kings. It is at the entrance to the tribal village. Unfortunately I cannot determine it for sure.



This is another monument, or perhaps tomb, to Laga Siallagan, the first ruler of Ambarita.



With the help of a volunteer, our guide demonstrated how a victim is disemboweled.



And here, he showed where a victim is beheaded.



Tim standing at the stone passageway into the tribal village. Entrances are kept narrow to thwart intrusions.

Exploring Ambarita Stone Chair Village

The stone chairs of Ambarita where tribal elders held council.
Ambarita is an ancient Batak tribal village on Samosir Island, in Lake Toba. It is located an hour's walk northwest from Tuk Tuk or about 20 minutes by boat. I visited it together with a small group of AsiaExplorers members.

What makes Ambarita interesting, from an anthropological standpoint, is that during ancient times the Toba Batak people of Ambarita practised a form of carnibalism. What remains today is the cluster of stone chairs where the village elders held council. Whenever an enemy was captured, the elders would invite the rulers of neighbouring villages to a conference, to determine the fate of the victim. The victim is held in behind bars under one of the houses.

If it is determined that the victim deserved death, he is taken to a dining table where he is clobbered to death. There is a boulder where the victim is beheaded. After that, he is chopped up, his flesh is cooked with buffalo meat, and served to the tribal council, who completed the meal with a beverage of the victim's blood!

We arrived at Ambarita by boat. From the jetty, we were first shown the tomb of Laga Siallagan, the first raja of Ambarita. From there, we were led to the ancient Batak village where there is a row of traditional Toba Batak houses. As I examined the houses, which are still used today, I find that many of them have zinc roofing, somewhat removing the romanticism I would associate with visiting this place. I suppose zinc roofing would be more long lasting, although I would have preferred that the villagers retained the original roofing which I assume should be ijuk thatch made from coconut fibre.

From the row of traditional houses, we moved on to view the stone chairs and the cage where victims are incarcerated. I am surprise to see that there is also a stone figure sitting on one of the chairs, and we had our photos taken with "him".

A short distance from the stone chairs is the place where victims meet their death. Our guide demonstrated how the Bataks go about with the procedure. He also showed us the Batak calendar and other tribal implements. On the hill above are the graves of the tribal elders as well as a monument to Raja Laga Siallagan. From the appearance of the monuments and graves, it appears that the tribal elders have embraced Christianity, but I could not determine whether these Christian elders are the ones who were still practising carnibalism.

Beyond the stone "human kitchen" are souvenir stalls selling T-shirts and other trinkets. My observation about all the souvenir stalls in Samosir island is that all of them seem to carry the same items. And I can name them: t-shirts and wood carvings. I could hardly find anybody selling good guidebooks on Samosir or Lake Toba anywhere in sight! Thus, I had to depend on information drawn from my guide as well as my own research down outside Lake Toba to furnish the information on this page.