Batak Dance

In front of an open terrain a more tourists are gathered than we saw in total the last couple of days. And in front of a scale model of a traditional Batak house are a group Batak people dancing. Well, dancing is a big word for the small movements they make. The program indicates multiple dances, but we see little variation. When some tourists join them, we hardly see a difference. And then a dancing doll enters the scene, making more moves than the dancers themselves. The tourists are supposed to give a donation to the doll, which is rewarded with a loud “Horas”. And that is the most exciting part of the exhibition.
The accompanying Batak museum isn’t much either. A little disappointed we hop pack on our motorbikes and move on. What amazes us most is that this place attracts most of the tourists around Lake Toba.
We move on along the outside of the island, passing many traditional houses, most of them with zinc roofs. Also many impressing grave towers, with on top of them a miniature traditional house.