We arrived in Danau Toba roughly five hours after leaving Medan. The advice to visit this area came from Patt and Craig. This lake is the largest lake in Southeast Asia covering 1700 square km. In it's middle is a wedge shaped island surrounded by high crater walls left from an eruption that happened over 30,000 years ago, and may have caused the last ice age. We found lodging at Samosir Cottages. Our room overlooked the lake and had a balcony large enough to hold a small party. The next day we walked to the next town ( Tomok) to a traditional market and to see a museum and graves of a Batak king ( King Sidabutar) who adopted christianity. While visiting Sumatra keeping covered is always a concern for women but here it isn't the same because the Batak people adopted Christianity. All the other vices are allowed as well (liquor). We both got sick--Karen worse than me--which set us back a little. After our recovery, we set out with Zach--a young American teaching English to the the Chinese on his Chinese New Years break--to see the island and get to a viewing tower called the Tele. We each rented scooters; and with Karen on the back, we set out to do some exploring. Along the way, we stopped to see a field being planted in rice. One of the planters felt I should join them; and never wanting to be shy, I removed my shoes and joined in the fun. They had a good laugh at my ineptness, and we left on good terms. The traditional homes they live in are built above ground with what could serve as a corral formed below the floor to shelter their livestock. The roof is often described as boat shaped. Each Wednesday and Saturday nights, a band made up from the staff along with young women entertain the guests in traditional music and costume.
We leave for Kota Kinabalo on the island of Borneo to explore the darkest jungle, home to the descendants of cannibals, headhunters, and blowpipes with poison darts.
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