Sent on Feb. 3, 2003 from Medan, Sumatra.

US$ = 8,700 Rupiahs, Rupees, like elsewhere on
Indonesia.

SUMATRA is considered as the Island of Plenty
of Indonesia, due to its abundant natural resources,
wildlife, jungles, architecture, and diversity of its
people.  Lake TOBA is one of its most spectacular sites. It
is some 176km south of the MEDAN, north Sumatra's capital
and Sumatra's 3rd largest city, positioned on the STRAIT of
MELEKA between Sumatra and the Malaysian peninsula (at
about 3-deg Latitude, 109E Longitude).

Some 100,000 years ago, a giant volcano collapsed on itself
after a violent eruption, forming a giant crater.  The
flooding of the crater formed the largest lake in Southeast
Asia, covering 1700+ sq.km., that is 459m deep at places.
Out of the middle of this huge expanse of water rose Palau
(Island) Samosir that is nearly as big as Singapore.  Due
to its 800-meter altitude the air is cool here, unlike the
steamy-hot climate all around. The lake is surrounded by
steep mountains and ridges and pine-sheltered beaches. The
town of PARAPAT is on the eastern edge of LAKE TOBA, on the
mainland, also the departure point for ferries to the
island.  The Toba lake and the Samosir Island is home to
the TOBA BATAK people who are gospel-singing Christians. 
There wooden homes are of rectangular shape, covered by a
saddle roof, both ends of which are formed to a steep
A-frame, leaning forward, the ends very elaborately carved
all over.  The village of Tuk Tuk is on a small
spoon-shaped peninsula on Samosir Isl., facing Parapat on
the mainland.

2. RECOMMENDED. Parapat, Lake Toba, and Tuk Tuk are one of
the most idyllic, scenic, relaxation-inducing places I have
seen. If you are an Australian or New Zealander and want to
celebrate your honeymoon, or have a second honeymoon, or be
with your date/mate say for a week, do it on Tuk Tuk, BUT
arrange your trip thru a travel agent. The reason is that
Parapat is about 4 hours of driving distance from Medan,
and the trip on public busses is arduous.

HINTS.

* If you want some drizzle and misty conditions come in Dec
to Feb; if you want the dry season and open skies, come in
June, July, Aug.  The rain season in other SE Asian
countries may be different.

* Train service is practically nonexistent, bus stations
are like huge junkyard, bus travel is chaotic.  AND the
bus station in Medan is some distance from the city-center,
which will cost you about 25,000 ($3)by taxi or minibus,
just for that distance.  Then you will be asked to pay
30,000R for bus to Parapat.  The bus stops everywhere to
collect passengers, until you feel in a sardine can. 
Coming back is even worse.  Therefore, have a travel agent
fix you with nice air-cond. transport from Medan to Parapat,
and back.  The agent charges about 45,000R ($5) for this
ONE-WAY.

* In TUK TUK. Get a room at the CAROLINA HOTEL right next
to the tiny boat dock on TUK TUK.  There are other good
hotels in Tuk Tuk, but I liked the Carolina the best
(Phone: 0625-41520, Fax=0625 41521), for its location, layout.
Room rates are from 77,000 Rupees ($9) to 150,000 Rupees ($18).

* Rent a motorbike on the island take a tour going north
along the coast (in counterclockwise direction) to the
other (west) side, at about center, then cut back thru the
mountains to the east to Tuk Tuk--rather than continue to
the south.  (The Southern side, I was told, is not as
interesting, BUT you can see for yourself; bikes are
cheap.)

* On the drive from Medan to Parapat, the 1st hour is
uninteresting.  Then follow rubber tree and oil palm
plantations say for another 90 minutes.  The real scenery
starts about an hour before Parapat when you start climbing
steep mountains, even more beautiful in the last 30
minutes, when you drop rapidly to shores of Lake Toba, with
parts of Parapat on this side and Samosir Island (across
the lake) in sight continuously.

* Indonesia is very cheap, except in Medan where they seem
to think dumpy rooms become high class when you charge high
prices for them.  And neither the taxi drivers nor hotels
negotiate.  Rooms for which we paid merely $8 to $15 in
Hanoi, with better surroundings too, are priced much higher
here.  The Hotel SARI DELI recommended by Lonely Planet is
a dump, now with higher prices (58,000 -78,000).  The
better-looking 3 to 4-star hotel right across is even
worse. The air cond. in their executive rooms (175,000R =
$20) merely blow hot air.

* HOTELS in MEDAN. The area around MASJID RAYA (Raya Mosque
with its black domes) is probably the nicest part of Medan.
Either get a classy hotel, or do it as must westerners do
and stay (Double=30,000R = $4) at ZAKIA Hotel at Jl.
Sipiso-Piso 12) right next to the Raya Mosque, and
recommended by Lonely Planet.  Or try GECKO'S nearby
at 59/81A Jl. S.M. Raja, where rooms go for 25,000R ($3)
to 35,000R ($4). It is right across from the MAJESTYK Bakery.
 
3. CELL PHONES. In all the countries I visited so far, even
supposedly backward ones like Laos, the entire country is
covered by 1 or 2 cell services. My own USA-based tri-mode
Motorola almost always got signal abroad, though
surprisingly NOT in long stretches of the USA.  I dont use
it for calls but for text messages, because the per-minute
call charge (by the USA-based T-Mobile) is something like
$1.99/$1.79/$1.49 per minute if I use the cell to call home
from abroad, instead of the very cheap (e.g., 8 cents per
minute from Thailand) if I call USA from an international
phone.

One article I read in an English paper here mentioned how
many developing countries are technologically LEAPFROGGING
some advanced countries, especially the USA, in these
services.  For example, an Aussie with a cell phone can use
his or hers for a standard LOCAL fee from anywhere on
earth, except to/from the USA. The problem is in that the
USA service companies WANT to CHARGE much more and do not
want to subscribe to a standard fee.  This is same with our
cable services, satellite connections.  In Jordan, you can
get selected USA channels, also ones from Europe, from
Japan, from anywhere AT A MUCH CHEAPER MONTHLY RATE than we
pay at home for many dubious--e.g., 5 channels of Home
Shopping Network--USA-BASED channels.  Similarly, Canada
can negotiate cheaper prices for US drugs than our own Fed.
or State governments do for us at home.  Sock it to the
American consumer every-which-way is apparently the motto
in USA. And why not, as long as many Americans who are not
rich enough to vote Republican (protector of business
interests), do so anyway on some other issue.