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Indonesia: Lake Toba, a natural wonder nestled in the middle of a crater
Head to Indonesia to discover Toba, the largest volcanic lake in the world. In the middle is an island as big as six times Paris. A Christian tribe, the Bataks, lives on the banks of the lake and feeds on… miraculous fishing.
(France 2)
Head to Indonesia to discover Toba, the largest volcanic lake in the world. In the middle is an island as big as six times Paris. A Christian tribe, the Bataks, lives on the banks of the lake and feeds on… miraculous fishing.
Lake Toba (Indonesia), the largest volcanic lake in the world, looks like an ocean. It is nestled in the hollow of a gigantic crater, formed 74,000 years ago. As a symbol of its excess, the lake shelters in its center an immense island, six times the size of Paris. To reach it, it takes almost an hour to cross. The island of Samosir is still preserved from mass tourism. It has only a hundred thousand inhabitants, a single main road and green rice fields at the foot of the cliffs.
The cultivation of rice and fishing
Rice is one of the main crops. Indonesia is the third largest producer in the world. For eight generations, Posman Rumahorbo’s family has managed rice fields. “Rice grows in unspoiled nature. We pay attention to it. The land we cultivate is what feeds us”, he confides. On Lake Toba, residents also make a living from fishing.
Like most of the lake’s residents, Hotman Situmorang belongs to the Batak tribe. Tradition dictates that fishing is practiced in absolute silence. “I am careful not to make too much noise while paddling, not to pollute and to practice responsible fishing. We must respect this lake because we believe that it is here, in these waters, that our ancestors live”he said.
The Bataks have inhabited these lands for millennia. In this country which has the largest Muslim community in the world, this Christian minority has settled in small villages.
