Mentawai Tattoos

The Mentawai are an ancient tribe that for thousands of years has lived on Siberut Island. Although 19th century Christian and Muslim missionaries converted most of the Mentawai living on the neighboring southern islands of Sipora and the Pagai’s (which are relatively flat), the traditional culture of the Mentawai living on rugged (and somewhat mountainous) Siberut has remained relatively intact. The Mentawai said that their tattoos (titi) allow their ancestors to recognize them after death. More importantly, however, many forms of tattooing are specifically believed to protect their owners from evil spirits lurking in the jungle.

Tattoos are applied by a designated tattoo artist called a sipaniti or “man who makes the needle” at specific stages in life. Traditionally, when a girl or boy reached the age of seven, they received their back tattoos; now this practice begins in the mid-teens, if at all. Then, after waiting one or two years, their upper arms and the backs of their hands were marked. Next, the tattooing of the upper thighs and legs was executed (note: traditionally these marks were made just before marriage), and followed by the intricate tattoos of the chest and neck. The final stage of tattooing, which usually commenced after the individual reached forty years of age, was completed when the calves, shins, and the forearms were tattooed.

Of course, different Mentawai clans observed their own customs when it came to the different stages of tattooing. Bai Lau Lau, Aman Lau Lau’s wife, who is from a different region of Siberut told me that her hands were tattooed first (all in one day); then she waited one year and her chest and back were tattooed (all in one day)!

Traditionally, Mentawai tattoo artists sometimes used a sharpened piece of bark taken from the karai tree as their skin-plying tool. Others used a lemon thorn set into a small bamboo stick which was hand-tapped into the skin with a wooden mallet. Among the indigenous Atayal and Paiwan of Taiwan, and the Kalinga of the Philippines, thorns of the mountain orange tree were used in this capacity. However, the coastal peoples of Papua New Guinea, who are essentially Polynesian, also used the lemon thorn as a tattooing tool. ( source: https://larskrutak.com/titi-spirit-tattoos-of-the-mentawai-shaman/ )

The Mystery of Tana Toraja

Once upon a time I was stranded in mysterious highland somewhere in South Sulawesi where is The Torajans live after 8 hours driving from Makassar. This ethnic is known for their special death ritual that different from any other ethnic in the world. Toraja people who have died are rarely buried in the ground. The corpses were buried in family graves or placed in or outside caves. These caves are belief to be a places that bring the afterlife closer to the world of the living. When I arrived in Londa, I didn’t feel scare at all even I saw many skull everywhere and dead body hanging in the cave. I found very peaceful atmosphere that I never felt before. Amazing!

The Torajan has a ritual known as Ma’nene that takes place each year in August. The bodies of the deceased (dead people) are re-exhume to be washed, groomed and dressed in new clothes. The mummies then being carried around the village. By doing this, the Torajan will be blessed with good luck and a long life. Another ritual is Rambu Solo which is a traditional ceremony for the death of Tana Toraja community aimed to honor and deliver the spirits of the people who have died to the spirit realm, to return them to eternity with their ancestors in a resting place. The ceremony is also called a death enhancement ceremony because the person who has died is deemed to actually died if the entire procession of the ceremony is fulfilled. If not, then the deceased person is only considered a “sick” or “weak” person, so he is still treated like a living person, laid them on a bed and given food and drinks and even invited to talk.

In Toraja community, funeral ceremonies are the most important and expensive one. The richer and more powerful a person is, the more expensive the funeral service will be. This tradition can last for several days according to the social status of the families of the Rambu Solo organizers. When I was in Tana Toraja, I came to Kete Kesu, a beautiful village in the North Toraja and visiting a huge and beautiful house. Knock..knock… anybody’s home….. Then when I opened the door, there was a skull hanging in the wall smiling at me and said please, come in….. I said nice to meet you… I admired this traditional house called Tongkonan. The word “Tongkonan” comes from the Torajan tongkon which means “to sit”. These ancestral houses stand high on piles of wood. On the top of it layered with shape of split-bamboo roof in a sweep of curving arc. While on the exterior walls, it is incised with red, black, and yellow detailed wood carvings. After visiting Toraja I found a good quote from Isaac Asimov….. “Life is pleasant. Death is peaceful. It's the transition that's troublesome." Hmmmmmm.......

2024 Walking Tour Recap

Tahun 2024 kulalui dengan mengikuti walking tour untuk menambah jam terbang rute pejalan kaki nasional di kawasan Bandung, Semarang dan Surabaya. At least, udah naklukin tiga propinsi di pulau Jawa begitulah harapannya. Diawali dengan mengikuti rute Gedung Sate Omstreken di jantung kota Bandung lanjut dengan mengunjungi rumah ibu Inggit Garnasih melalui Her Story. Sebenarnya udah lama pengin nyoba Her Story bahkan udah sempat daftar tapi cancel karena pilih belanja di pasar baru hehehe sehingga untuk kali ini mau tidak mau it's now or never.

Rute Gedung Sate dimulai dari taman inklusi seputaran GOR Saparua pada suatu pagi di tengah rintik hujan bulan Mei.Begitu syahdu menyusuri jalanan kota Bandung yang cantik dan teduh penuh pepohonan, kawasan perumahan yang dulunya tempat tinggal tuan-tuan dan noni noni Belanda. Sampe sana kita diceritakan sejarah berdirinya gedung putih bertusuk sate itu beserta pernak-perniknya yang membawa kita kembali ke jaman kolonial. Sedangkan untuk rute Her Story sepanjang 2 kilometer diawali dari penjara Benceuy, sekolah kautamaan istri Dewi Sartika hingga kunjungan rumah ibu Inggit. Kisah hidup ibu Inggit dapat kita saksikan melalui foto-foto yang dipajang di rumah tersebut. What a warm and beautiful story.............

Dari Jawa Barat kita bergeser ke Semarang yang merupakan ibu kota Jawa Tengah dengan memilih rute Kota Lama, City Center dan Multicultural. Tiga rute disabet sekaligus mumpung long wiken lah yaaa.... Sore pertama di kota lumpia itu dilalui dengan menyusuri old town Semarang yang dipenuhi bangunan tua nan megah dengan vibes sangat Belanda sehingga tidak mengherankan jika kawasan ini dijuluki Little Netherland. Setelah puas dengan sejarah kota ini, kita ganti jalur menyusuri jalan Pemuda-Pandanaran untuk menikmati kegiatan warga lokal di alun-alun, taman Indonesia Kaya, berolahraga di Gor Pandanaran, masjid Baiturahman sampe ke pertokoan hits tahun 90-an. Rute ketiga adalah Multicultural dimana kita bisa eksplore kampung pecinaan, Arab dan Belanda. Puas banget dengan kisah 3 budaya tersebut walaupun harus berpanas-panas di tengah teriknya matahari Semarang untuk mengikuti walking tour selama 2 jam.

Jalan-jalan terakhir saat mengunjungi Surabaya dengan mengikuti rute Surabaya Riverside. Kupikir ini rute dari sungai ke sungai hehehe tapi ternyata hanya di sepanjang sungai Kalimas yang penuh dengan bangunan tua beserta cerita di baliknya. Kisah kelam Plaza Surabaya yang dulunya merupakan bekas rumah sakit jaman penyakit kolera di mana kematian mengancam setiap waktu. Kemudian kita menyusuri sungai Kalimas, stasiun Gubeng Lama dan Gubeng Baru. Jadi tahu perbedaan keduanya melalui theme song stasiun tersebut. Jika kita ada di stasiun Gubeng lama lagu yang bakalan kita dengar adalah Surabaya oh Surabaya sedangkan di Gubeng Baru kita bakalan denger Rek Ayo Rek dengan musik yang sangat cheerful. So, 2024 Walking Tour Recap : 1. Gedung Sate Omstreken 2. Her Story: Inggit Garnasih 3. Kota Lama 4. City Center 5. Multicultural 6. Surabaya Riverside

Last Summer in Surabaya

Last summer I went travelling to Surabaya, the second biggest city in Indonesia which famous for its historical story and called as City of Heroes. First destination was Monkasel - Monumen Kapal Selam or Submarine Monument which located in the heart of Surabaya. It's only 1 mile away from my hotel in Tunjungan Street so I reached there just in 5 minutes drive.  

In Monkasel, there was a great KRI Pasopati 410, an original Russian submarine made in 1952. Measuring 76,6 meters long and 6,3 meters wide, this submarine was capable of diving to a depth of 300 meters. It was also equipped with steam torpedoes and used by Indonesia Navy's Eastern Division since January 1962.   It was such wonderful time to be the part of submarine life. So I knew how to life under the sea and sang one of my favorit song from The Beatles " we all live in yellow submarine... yellow submarine...."

 submarine life

After submarine tour, I got lunch in a beautiful restaurant in west Surabaya which presenting multicultural atmosphere from Chinese-Javanese-Balinese united into one called Kahyangan Art Resto. We chose Indonesian cuisine such as gurame suka nirwana, cumi bakar madu, kakap goreng mangga etc. The place was very comfortable and food all delicious.

At night, I hang out along Tunjungan Street taking some culinary experiences and enjoyed the city night lights. And of course I got lost at Tunjungan Plaza because it's soooo wide space and famous for the second biggest mall in this country. No shopping at all but it was such a good night at Tunjungan. Then I started singing.... " Rek ayo rek mlaku mlaku nang Tunjungan... Rek ayo rek rame rame bebarengan..... Cak ayo cak sopo gelem melu aku... Cak ayo cak golek kenalan cah ayu...."

Night at Tunjungan

From Braga with Love

 

 

 

Menyusuri jalan Braga di Bandung seperti masuk ke dalam lorong waktu penuh kenangan hitam putih jaman kolonial Belanda. Vibes old town nya begitu kuat dan mempesona sehingga pengen jatuh cinta lagi rasanya wkwkwkwk Menikmati kota tua nan cantik ini memang bisa menumbuhkan rasa cinta dibalut nuansa nostalgia masa lalu.Sayup-sayup terdengar sebuah lagu Irlandia di kuping saya......

I've been spending my money
In the old town
It's not the same honey
With you not around
I've been spending my time
In the old town
I sure miss you honey
Now you're not around
You're not around
This old town
Ola!

Kebetulan saya menginap di Kimaya Braga dengan view Hotel Savoy Homann yang begitu ikonik nan menarik. Sementara sisi kanan kiri jalan tersebut dipenuhi oleh gedung-gedung tua, kompleks pertokoan dan cafe cafe cantik ala kota Paris. Nggak heran kalo Bandung disebut Paris in Java karena memang secantik itu kotanya. Salah satu bangunan indische di kawasan itu adalah gedung Merdeka, tempat historis yang menjadi saksi bisu konferensi terbesar bangsa-bangsa Asia Afrika.

Konferensi Asia Afrika dilaksanakan pada tanggal 18-25 April 1955 di Gedung Merdeka, Bandung. Konferensi ini dihadiri oleh 29 negara, termasuk 5 negara sponsor yaitu Indonesia, Filipina, Thailand, India, dan Pakistan. 

Tujuan konferensi Asia Afrika antara lain mengembangkan saling pengertian dan kerja sama antara bangsa-bangsa Asia dan Afrika, meninjau masalah-masalah hubungan sosial, ekonomi, dan kebudayaan dalam hubungannya dengan negara-negara peserta, mempertimbangkan masalah-masalah kepentingan khusus dari bangsa-bangsa Asia dan Afrika serta meninjau kedudukan Asia dan Afrika serta rakyatnya, serta memberikan sumbangan untuk meningkatkan perdamaian dan kerja sama internasional.

Negara-negara peserta lainnya antara lain Saudi Arabia, Turki, Birma, Republik Rakyat Cina, Vietnam Utara, Mesir, Vietnam Selatan, Sri Lanka, Ethiopia, Yaman, Afganistan, Ghana, Kamboja, Iran, Laos, Irak, Libanon, Jepang, Liberia, Yordania, Libya, Sudan, Nepal, dan Syiria.

Jadi tidak usah bertanya-tanya kenapa di depan Gedung Merdeka banyak tiang bendera, karena negara pesertanya memang sebanyak itu. Kebayang dong betapa heroiknya kalo semua bendera dari berbagai bangsa dikibarkan di sana. Betapa warna-warni bendera menggambarkan banyaknya perbedaan suku bangsa, bahasa ataupun warna kulit di kawasan Asia Afrika namun mereka memiliki kepentingan yang sama untuk mewujudkan perdamaian dunia.

Konferensi ini menghasilkan beberapa kesepakatan seperti kerjasama di bidang ekonomi, kebudayaan, hak asasi manusia, dukungan terhadap bangsa-bangsa yang belum merdeka serta menciptakan perdamaian dan kerjasama di dunia.

 Sekian laporan dari Braga.... Sejenak mempelajari sejarah dunia....😁