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