Nias: Between waves and stone age

Nias hosted an international surfing championship between July 19 and 23. Located west of Sumatra, Unspoiled beaches, traditional houses and stone jumping are among the main tourist attractions of the island. Ibnu Basori gives the following account.

NIAS (JP): Have you ever really looked at the Rp 1,000 note? The picture on one side depicts a man jumping over a high stone column and the caption reads Lompat Batu Pulau Nias (Stone Jumping of Nias Island).

Nias is almost always associated with stone jumping, a unique custom that can only be found on the island. In the past, jumping over the 1.5 meter-high stone was considered an outstanding achievement. Today, the cultural tradition is simply a tourist attraction. Which is a pity, because stones occupy a special place in the life of the Nias people as a symbol of unity and cooperation.

Aside from its famed stone jumping, Nias, an island to the west of Sumatra, is also noted for its gorgeous beaches, said to be some of the most beautiful in the world. Sorake beach in Teluk Dalam has become one of the most important surfing regions in the world next to Oahu and Maui in Hawaii, Bell's Beach and Kirra Beach in Australia, Raiatea and Huahine in Tahiti, Jeffreys Bay in South Africa, Plengkung in East Java and Uluwatu in Bali. Periscopes Beach and Dessert Point in Sumbawa as well as Asu island west of Nias, are the other surfing areas in Indonesia.

For the second time this year, the perfect waves off of Sorake, Nias attracted an international surfing championship. The event was held between July 19 and 23.

Guide books concentrate on the traditional villages in Teluk Dalam, the megalithic stones in the original village of Gomo and the surfing at Sorake. To travelers looking for pure and exotic places, Nias is a dream to be pursued.

It is said that Nias, resembles Bali in the 1960s. Hopefully Nias won't go the way of Bali. The Nias war dance, a traditional ritual of the villagers, should continue to be performed only on request.

Bali has produced in the last 30 years a newly rich elite. Development in Nias spells great concern for the local people who still live below the poverty line.

"The per capita income of the Nias population is Rp 500,000 per year, compared with Rp 1.2 million in North Sumatra. The total number of isolated villages is 478, or 72.5 percent of the total of villages in the region," said Nias Regent Tal Larosa.

The presence of foreign tourists has encouraged the local people to pursue a better life. The inhabitants around Sorake, which in the 1970s was still a virgin coast packed with coconut trees, were quick on the uptake. The hill dwellers of Botohilitano came down from their village to build simple cottages on stilts to rent to the surfers. The coastline is now lined with reasonably priced cottages or homestays. The first cottage established in Sorake was Ja'ahowu.

A new livelihood replaced selling sweet potatoes and coconuts which have hardly any market value in Nias. One and a half liters of rice equal 25 coconuts. Nias imports 20,000 tons of rice every year.

Bawomataluo village, which had survived on coconuts, sweet yams, bananas and pig farming, now depends on hustling carvings and other souvenirs along Sorake's 10 kilometer-long beach.

Another tourism pioneer, Agus Mendrova, saw an opportunity in transportation. He has since developed his small business into the only travel bureau, "Nias Holidays", on the island. A four day and three nights package takes tourists to the most important sites in Nias and are enlivened with war dances.

The war dances reflect life in the southern villages of Nias. Spears and shields add to fierceness of war dances. They still use the spears to hunt wild boars.

The layout of the villages also are reflection of a life gone by. According to tradition villages are built on a hill and are accessible only from two directions. The 10 meter-tall gates of piled stones discourage hostile villagers from entering.

Nias is a rising star. However, cottage owners in Sorake beach have begun to fear that their lucky star has also been drawing unwanted attention from capital-strong business men, marketing people and the government.

A major plan is underway which will destroy the whole Sorake area and Moale beach to make way for an integrated tourist region to be managed by a foundation.

Although the small entrepreneurs along the beach will definitely suffer, the plan might benefit the people of Teluk Dalam. There are at least 10 cruise ships which visit the traditional villages or megalithic stone sites. Most come once a year for one day. Among holidaying liners to Nias are, Ms Berlin, Ms Europa, Ms Arkona, Ms Seabourn Spirit, Ms Ocean Pearl, Ms Maxim Gorky and Ms Marcopolo, whose last visit was on July 4.

Development may also mean that a number of traditions may disappear, which the locals are not aware of yet. The one hundred year-old stone statues are almost all gone, since they became a trading commodity for as little as few hundred thousand rupiah. If the daro-daro stone seats and the nitara'oe were not so heavy, they might go the same way.

Ibnu Basori is a reporter of Jakarta Jakarta magazine. This article was written exclusively for The Jakarta Post.