Toraja set to cultivate its tourism potential
Toraja set to cultivate its tourism potential
Text by Johannes Simbolon and photos by Mulkan Salmona
In conjunction with its 13th Anniversary, The Jakarta Post is
holding a Toraja cultural exhibition, Tammuan Toraya (Toraja's
Gathering) at Bentara Budaya Jakarta from April 25 to May 5.
Earlier in March, the Post's reporter Johannes Simbolon and
photographer Mulkan Salmona visited Tana Toraja to learn
firsthand about the culture of the Torajans, the people of the
beautiful land in the northern part of South Sulawesi. They
report on their trip in the following stories and photographs.
More stories and pictures on Pages 7, 8 and 9, including two
stories on Toraja's architecture and effigies by Stanislaus
Sandarupa, a Torajan anthropologist who teaches at the University
of Hasanuddin in Ujungpandang.
JAKARTA (JP): A French tourist describes Tana Toraja as
follows: "In many parts of the world, the old traditions can be
seen only in museums. In Toraja, the old tradition still exists,
is still lived."
Torajans, who live in the regencies of Tana Toraja, Enrekang,
Luwu, Poleweli and Mamasa in the mountainous area of South
Sulawesi and Central Sulawesi, have long been famous for their
culture and their land.
Although its natural beauty is breathtaking, Toraja is
primarily famous for its culture.
The "jewel from Celebes" began sparkling after Dutchman Van
Rijn visited it late last century. He was the first European to
visit the area. Since then, anthropologists from around the world
have gone there to study its unique culture. They have been
followed by tourists, who grow more in number every year.
The most unique elements of the Torajan culture are the
customs concerning the dead and burial. They don't bury the dead
right away but wait for months, and in some cases years, until
they have enough money and time to stage grand burial ceremonies
which last for days. Over a hundred buffaloes can be sacrificed
during one ceremony. No less unique is the way they bury the
dead, in cliffsides, caves, big stones, and trees.
The exotic culture originates from Toraja's traditional
religion, Aluk Todolo, which is now categorized by the government
into Hinduism, but touted by the hoteliers as animism in order to
attract tourists.
Although the number of followers of this religion's has
decreased -- they are mostly elder Torajans -- due to the arrival
of more contemporary religions to the area, Torajans still cling
to the old rituals, regardless of which religion they follow.
Joseph Tangke, vice chairman of the Indonesian Guide
Association in Tana Toraja, said that during the Pacific Asia
Travel Association's 1974 conference in Jakarta, the Indonesian
government declared Toraja a tourist destination.
"Some tourists had come earlier, if in small numbers," Joseph
said.
The most visited tourist site in the area is the Tana Toraja
regency in South Sulawesi. Other regencies are rarely visited
because they lack tourist facilities and are not very accessible.
To reach the town of Mamasa in the Poleweli and Mamasa
regency, for example, people must trek all day and there is only
one telephone line available.
Rudy Badil, a Kompas journalist who recently visited the
Mamasa area, said, "There are about 40 potential tourist spots
there, where you can see coffins and graves, but they are only
accessible by trekking."
By contrast, all tourist spots in Tana Toraja are accessible
by car.
They include the unique rock graves hewn out of the cliffside,
large rocks and there are the cave graves with open coffins,
exposing human bones and skulls.
These can be seen in almost all the villages, including the
most well-known of Ke'te' Kesu, Londa, Lemo and Bori. Other
attractions include the child mummy in Sangalla; megalithic
menhirs in Bori; and old tongkonan (boat-shaped houses) in Palawa
and Ke'te' Kesu.
Visitors who prefer panoramic views can travel to Batu Tumonga
on Mt. Sesean, from which they can look down on the breathtaking
scene of Rantepao and its surroundings.
"There are 59 tourist spots in Tana Toraja. Most of which
display the culture," said Dalipang, chief of Tana Toraja's
tourism office.
Tourist facilities in Tana Toraja are plentiful. There are
about 1,500 rooms available, including star-rated hotels, economy
hotels and homestays, with prices ranging from Rp 7,000 (US$3) to
Rp 231,700 ($100) per day. The star-rated hotels are concentrated
in Rantepao, the main tourist spot, and Tana Toraja's capital,
Makale.
About 100 guides, local youths who speak English, French,
German and Italian, are available in Rantepao, with fees ranging
from Rp 25,000 to Rp 50,000 per day.
For visitors who want to travel the area alone, a tour service
in Rantepao, Jet, which is managed by the local branch of
Indonesian Guide Association, hires out bicycles at Rp 7,000 per
day and motorbikes at Rp 30,000 per day.
The number of visitors is steadily increasing. According data
from the Tana Toraja Tourism Office, about 12,500 foreign
tourists and 84,000 domestic tourists arrived in the regency in
1984. Ten years later, foreign tourist arrivals have risen to
55,000 and domestic tourists to 200,000.
Sam Lande, manager of the Toraja Garden Cottages in Rantepao,
Tana Toraja said that during the peak season, from June to
September, all accommodation in the area is fully booked.
"Some tourists end up sleeping in hotel lobbies," he said.
France has sent the largest number of visitors, followed by
Germany, the Netherlands, the U.S., and Italy. Tourists from
Asia, including Japan, Malaysia, Singapore and Taiwan, who are
generally considered as not being very interested in culture,
have also recently begun arriving.
Stanislaus Sandarupa, a lecturer at the Hasanuddin University,
who moonlights as a guide, said, "French tourists are very
special. They never look bored, moving from one village to
another where they see the same things. Tourist from America will
usually comment 'it is a repeat',"
The regency, which is expecting to earn Rp 400 million from
tourism this year -- a quarter of its total revenue -- is now
planning ways to develop the sector and especially to increase
lengths of stay. This task has been handed over to the newly-
formed Tana Toraja Tourist Promotion Board.
On average, tourists who come in groups stay for about two
days and backpackers stay 10 days.
Tana Toraja's regent, Tarsis Kodrat, said "We have many
stunning mountains, hills and jungles which remain uncultivated.
We call on the interested private sectors to cultivate these
potential tourist sites."
One problem faced is that Tana Toraja can't make a definite
calender of events because most cultural events, which are all
organized by the local people, can't be scheduled a year ahead.
The funeral ceremony, which attracts many tourists, can suddenly
be canceled by the family holding it, even though it has been
prepared for months.
"So, if tourists are lucky they can get to see a funeral
ceremony, meaning they arrive at a time when there is a funeral
ceremony being held," said Joseph.
Although Tana Toraja can be reached by land, sea and air,
transportation is another problem.
Most visitors prefer traveling the 350 kilometers from
Ujungpandang to Rantepao by car, which can take seven to eight
hours.
Others go by ship to the town of Pare-Pare and continue on to
Rantepao by car for another three hours. The road stretches along
the coast but there are no spectacular views that help pass the
time, except in the area close to Tana Toraja.
Flights from the airport in Hasanuddin to Pongtiku airport in
Rantepao, which take about half an hour, provide spectacular
views. Unfortunately, the runway at Pongtiku is too short to
serve large airplanes. One 17-seat Cessna flies the route once a
day.
"Extension of the Pongtiku runaway is now in progress, which
will enable bigger airplanes to land. When completed, we hope
more people will come here," said Tarsis.
The saying "Toraja After Bali" has repeatedly been mentioned
to promote the area. Toraja has far to go to realize the dream.
If access to the area is not improved, there might be a new
saying: "It's a long, long way from Bali to Toraja".