10 Things You Should Know About NiasHis name isoften heardon televisionandprintmedia, especiallysincesome ofthe disasters thatoccurredin the island.Due totheisolatedlocation, Nias, whichin the local languagecalledTanoNiha, is one of thegemsequatorwithnatural and cultural richnessthat is stillmaintained continuity, through the lens ofa camera, here are ten thingsyou should knowbeforedeciding togoto one ofthe tropicalsurgebestin Asia.OriginalTextbyBarryKusuma, executivesummarybyDarmansjah
HowToGet There
From Jakarta, youcould usesome airlinessuch asLionAir,BataviaAir, CitilinkAirlines, GarudaIndonesia,SriwijayaAirtothefield. Once there, youcan travelsea or airto reach theisland ofNias. The fastest wayto theislandlocated westof Sumatra Islandisalongjourneyby plane50 minutes.Airlines servingthe routeMedan-Nias(Gunung Sitoli) isMerpatiAirlinesandWingsAir.Forseajourney, youwill departfrom the Port ofSibolgainCentral Tapanuli. Running timeis 10 hoursby shiporferrypassengerbaisa, orabout 4hours byfast boat.
HowToExplore
In Niasgenerally veryrarevehicle. Ifyou're lucky, BinakaAirport, youcan use the'motorcyclerental', public transportis very limitedin numberand are alwayspackedfull ofpassengers. Therefore, before leavingyou shouldfirstbooka rental vehicle. Onething to noteisthe condition ofunevenroad constructionand neverfinisheduntil whenever, wherenot all villagescan be traversedusingfour-wheeled vehicles. Ask thecarrental facilityto the hotel whereyoustay.
Where ToStay
You can choose from dozens of hotels and inns in the town of Gunung Sitoli. These include: Wisma Soliga-Wisama Soliga Soliga located about 4-5 km from the city center and has a meeting room, restaurant, tennis badminton and mini zoo. You can rent cars and buy plane tickets at this hotel. Diponegoro 432 road, mountain Sitoli T. 0639 21815/081361230001 e.mail: Wisma_soliga@yahoo.com. Miga Beach Hotel, surrounded by beautiful gardens, this beachfront hotel offers a natural feel thick and buildings that look like old buildings. Jalan Diponegoro 507, Mount Sitoli T. 0639 21460/081397648200 F. 0639 22500 e. mail : migabeachhotel@yahoo.com
NIASISLANDis located125 kilometersto the west ofthe island of Sumatra, directly facingthe Indian Ocean.NiasIslandhastwoouter islandsimmediately adjacent to theIndian Ocean,theislandSimuk in TelloIsland, SouthNiasregency, and the Wunga island ofNias district inthe North.Withits positionjust above thelineof firerings, Nias Island in addition to havingunpredictability of the weatherrisk for disasters. After theIndian Ocean tsunamiin 2004that impactthe deathsof hundreds ofpeople inNiasand the earthquakein March 2005that destroyedmost of the villageon the island ofNias, a series ofnatural eventsin asmaller scaleoften occurin these islands.ButthelocationisisolatedNiassurgeforadventuretravelenthusiastsasunspoilednatural.
REACHINGFORNIASISLAND, youcanchoose the path ofseaor air.There aresome airlinesthatconnect theairportBinakaGunungSitoliinNiastoMedan's Polonia Airport, with aflight timeof about 55minutes.Alternativelyyou can useocean transportationaboard theferryfromSibolgatoGunungSitolidengna8-10 hourslongjourney. To reachSouthNias, use theroadwith the distanceof 2 to3 hours.
'Ya'ahowu", soa typicalgreetingresidentsof Nias.Oftentranslated as'blessed hope', saysthis meansattention to thehappiness ofothers withthe hopetobe blessedbythe Almighty. Anothermeaning ofbrotherhood. This expressionwillbe theopening sentenceto starta conversationwith apopulation ofNias.
One of theworld's bestsurfinglocations. Sorakebeachis verypopular amongsurfers, mainly fromAustralia, becausethe waves areverychallenging. It liesdirectly opposite theIndian Oceanmakeswavesheight ofwavesreaching3-5 meters. Interestingly, highwaves andithas fivelevels ofdifficultyandis not affectedbythe ebb and flowof the windandseawater. Not sofar from SorakebeachthereLagundriCoastsurferswhoare alsoin demand bythe worldbecausethe waves arespectacular. Bothbeaches areoftenhostsinternationalsurfingchampionshipin the Botohilitano villageis locatedabout 13kmfromTeluk Dalam, the capital of SouthNiasregency. In addition tothe abovetwobeaches, Niasalsohas manyothersurfingsiteslikePulauAsu, BawaandPulauTelo.
Bawomataluois one ofthe traditional villagecultureas well asthe storyvillagehasexisted since ancientmegaliths. Has meaningsunrise, thevillage locatedatan altitude of 400meters above sea levelithasenoughcoolairandpanoramicSorake Beach and Lagundri beautifulbeach. Uniquelythis villagelookslikeavastlandfilled withrows ofhousesfacing each other. Ofstairsinto the village, wecouldsee a row oftraditional housesNiasresidentsandhousekingon the leftandavillage hallon the right. Althoughcenturies old, these buildingsare stillintactandwell preserved.The buildingswere neverrestoredunlessa roofis replacedwithzincto make it moredurable.
WARDANCEtermedFaluaya. This dance isperformed by themenwhoserved ask nightwitharmorattribute. Their bodies aredecoratedwithvarious trinketsthat add tothe impression ofhorrortoscarethe opponent. Right handholding aspearormacheteisa major weapon, whilehis left handholding a shieldto deflectenemy attacks. Under the command ofa commander, of hundreds ofresidentsto startpreparingthe formation ofa dynamicdancewavingmachetesandspears.
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Aculturethat characterizesHomboBatu. Tradition thathaslasted forhundreds ofgenerationsissomewhat uniqueandinvitingthe curiosityof tourists visiting theBawomataluoandother traditionalvillagesinNias. There'san interesting storybehind thetradition ofa six-footjump overa stonewhich is alsoreferred tothisfahombo. According tolocaltraditionwas createdas a forumforphysicalandmentaltestof theyoung menbefore theage of consent. Wearingtraditional dress, theyshouldbe able tojump overthe stoneusinga particulartechniquewiththe risk ofmuscleinjuryorbroken boneswhenlandingthe wrongpremises. It isanhonor forthe familyif theboycanjump overa stone, becauseit meanshehas reachedasufficientagetomarryorgo intobattle.Althoughthe currentwar between thevillagewasnever againoccur. HomboBatustillcontinuedas a form ofritualceremoniesandculturalsymbol ofthe people of Nias.
CRAFT Wood Cut, carved animal motifs such as lizards, monkeys, snakes crocodiles and humans can easily be found on the walls of traditional houses. Population of Nias, as the Balinese and Asmat, is known as a reliable craftsmen. From a young age they have termpil wall carvings or sculptures made of wood.
HERITAGE MUSEUM NIASis a place that should not be missed by lovers of history. Located in the largest city of Mount Sitoli, the museum stands thanks to the hard work of Pastor Johannes M. Hammerle, German citizen who has lived in Nias 36 years, has a collection of objects of cultural heritage of Nias, which amounted to thousands. The collection consists of artifacts household appliances, megalith statues of wood and stones, jewelery, traditional weapons, currency, custom clothing, symbols of nobility to the original traditional houses called Omo Hada Nias. In addition to providing various facilities such as public library, cafeteria, up to a mini zoo, visitors can snorkel comfortably from the edge of the pier that is in this museum. Not only that, in this museum you can experience how to live in traditional houses with a tariff of about $ 15 per night.
Megalithic relicsare scattered on the slopes of the hills near the valley of the river. Among the houses there were human statues, menhirs, dolmen, sakofagus and results of megalithic culture are being created to honor the ancestors and are believed to protect people from misfortune. Variations in the megalithic heritage Orahili Gomo has its own characteristics different from other megalithic culture, both in Indonesia and the world.
