INDEPENDENCE DAY CARNIVAL HIGHLIGHTS LAKE TOBA CHARM by Fardah

Jakarta, Aug 23, 2016 (Antara) - Cheers and joy were in the air as hundreds of decorated vehicles  carrying beautiful ladies and gentlemen wrapped in Batak traditional clothes took part in an Indonesian Independence Day Carnival dubbed Lake Toba Charm in Balige, Toba Samosir District, North Sumatra province, on Aug. 21.

         They joined a parade covering a 3.5 km-long route which started from Balige and finished in Parapat, Simalungun District, with a view of Lake Toba all along on one side.     
   In addition to the decorated cars, scores of decorated boats on Lake Toba also enlivened the carnival.

        President Joko Widodo (Jokowi), flanked by First Lady Iriana, kicked off the carnival, organized to promote Lake Toba and surrounding regions as an international tourist destination.   
    Wearing traditional woven clothes of Batak, President Jokowi and spouse were greeted by a number of Batak artists performing traditional dances.

        "This carnival must be held annually. We can see various cultures in our country here," he said before an audience among whom most people were wearing traditional Batak cloth "ulos" and a headband.   
   Among the audience were Coordinating Minister for Maritime Affairs Luhut Binsar Pandjaitan, Minister/State Secretary Pratikno, Public Works and Public Housing Minister Basuki Hadimuljono, Transportation Minister Budi Karya Sumadi, State Enterprises Minister Rini Soemarno, Tourism Minister Arief Yahya and Environmental Affairs and Forestry Minister Siti Nurbaya.

        A majority of North Sumatra's population belongs to the Batak tribe comprising several ethnic groups including Batak Karo, Batak Toba, Batak Mandailing, Batak Pak Pak and Batak Simalungun.  
  Linguistic and archaeological evidence indicates that Austronesian speakers first reached Sumatra from Taiwan and the Philippines through Borneo and/or Java about 2,500 years ago, and the Batak probably descended from these settlers.

        They speak distinct languages that belong to the Austronesian language family and share a common writing system.

        Batak culture and arts are very rich. Among the famous ones are Tor-tor magical dance, and traditional musical instruments called gong and Saga-saga.

         The carnival featured not only Batak arts and culture but also arts from the rest of the country.

        "Here, we can clearly see the diverse range of our culture. There are Mandailing, Karo, Toba, Simalungun and so on. But, those differences are in fact a glue that unites us," President Jokowi said.

        Held to also celebrate the 71st anniversary of Indonesia's Independence Day, the carnival was participated in by some four thousand representatives of the country's 26 provinces, seven districts located around Lake Toba, eight sub-ethnic groups, and various cultural communities.

        A number of national singers and musicians such as Sammy Simorangkir, Edo Kodologit, Dewa Budjana and Tohpati, Oppie Andaresta, JFlow and Slank also performed during the carnival.

         Thousands of people, mostly from Balige and surrounding areas, enthusiastically watched and cheered the carnival, which was held for the first time in North Sumatra.

         The presence of President Jokowi and the First Lady was also a huge attraction and lauded by the local public. The Head of State even joined the parade in a decorated truck. 
    The carnival, which began at 3 p.m. local time and ended at 6 p.m., was considered a great success.

         Johannes Silalahi, an inhabitant of Siantar, went to see the carnival with his wife and children. He said he wanted to show his children Indonesia's rich cultures and arts.

        "It's very interesting, if only it could be held annually," he said.

        Lake Toba, with the unique Samosir Island located in its midst, has a huge tourism potential that is yet to be exploited for the welfare of the local community.

        The government has vowed to develop Lake Toba as one of the nation's 10 priority tourist destinations, along with Borobudur, Mandalika, Labuhan Bajo, Bromo-Tengger-Semeru, Seribu (One Thousand) Islands, Wakatobi, Tanjung Lesung, Morotai and Tanjung Kelayang. They are called the ten "new Balis."
   No doubt, Lake Toba deserves attention on priority because it is not just an ordinary lake, but is the largest volcanic lake on Earth.

         The lake has been formed by a steep-walled caldera produced during the Toba volcano's eruption, the largest known volcanic eruption on the planet in the past two million years.

        The powerful eruption, an extremely rare event, is called a supervolcanic eruption.

       When viewed from space, the Toba caldera is one of the most striking volcanic craters on Earth, measuring 100 x 30 kilometers.

         The ancient lake's uniqueness, beautiful natural scenery and the rich coastal culture of North Sumatra's people living around Lake Toba have attracted domestic and foreign tourists.

        To boost the tourism development of Lake Toba, President Jokowi has instructed upgrading and building of local airports, seaports and toll roads to improve connectivity to Lake Toba, making it more accessible. ***1***
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(T.F001/A/BESSR) 24-08-2016 00:05:10