Sometimes I like snooping through my past trips, immersing myself into memories, and as you know mine are often linked to Africa, my lovely Africa…but what about Asia?!
Today I decided to dream a little bit, planning an ideal itinerary across a very popular destination, Indonesia, exploring a less beaten tourism area though: Sumatra Island.
Dreams of Indonesia: exploring Sumatra
Why Sumatra? Well, because I have no knowledge of it.
I know its name because of the catastrophic tsunami of 2004 but nothing more. I’ve never read anything about Sumatra, I’ve never seen any pictures of it or met someone that had visited this island.
I can only imagine…dream…and let my imagination work.
I would start my trip from the city of Medan, where the airport is. I imagine it to be a chaotic asian metropolis, like Colombo, in Sri Lanka, which I visited a few years ago: smog, traffic, smell of fried food, and at the same time the 
real Indonesian soul.
real Indonesian soul.It’s a modern city with a handful of crumbling Dutch-colonial-era charms and a couple of worthwhile museums.
An example? The fascinating Maimoon Palace, a 30-room building built by the sultan of Deli in 1888.
The JW Marriott Hotel Medan would be the perfect place for a relaxing stay before going ahead with the tour.
I’d continue to Bohorok, one of the largest national parks in the world, famous for its orangutans rehabilitation centre.
I’m sure that it would be an incredible experience, a once-in-a-lifetime wildlife encounter. Save a morning to feed and learn all about orangutans from local guides.
I imagine tall trees, luxurious vegetation and the sound of water that pours and flows in the river where animals go to drink and refresh.
The opportunity to see those magnificent animals in person would simply be a dream come true!
Then I’d reach Berastagi for sunrise, to hike up Sibayak Volcano and admire the stunning view of its valley and countryside.
I’ve read that Berastagi is a picturesque hill town, where you can feel the authentic atmosphere of Sumatra.
It would be great to spend an afternoon walking along the streets and markets, catching the colors of vegetables and fruits exposed on the stalls: a perfect opportunity to do some shopping and interact with local people.
The last stage would be Samosir Island, a volcanic island in the Lake Toba.
They were both formed after the eruption of a supervolcano 75,000 years ago and Samosir is the largest island within an island in the whole world. It’s the centre of the Batak culture where you can still find many of the Toba Batak traditional houses.
I would like to take a trip back in time and visit the tomb of King Sidabutar in Tomok, discovering his legend and visiting the other royal tombs.
Where to sleep in Samosir Island? I’d find the best room to stay in the Samosir Villa Resort, an elegant design hotel with 2 swimming pools and an awesome view on the lake.
This is how I imagine my trip to Indonesia would be, an exciting yet relaxing adventure; perhaps one day I’ll get to experience my itinerary or…maybe you will before I do!
