TdS 2013, 7 Stages Through 17 Beautiful Districts

Photo: @indonesiainparis | Instagram

The Tour de Singkarak (TdS) 2013 is one of prestigious cycling races in Asia, even world . TdS 2013 have 7 stages  through 17 of West Sumatra’s best scenic & culture rich districts.

Here we present profile of 17 supporting cities and regencies.

1. Bukittinggi
   Bukittinggi is comfortably city situated in the Minangkabau highlands, 90 km by road from the West Sumatran capital city of Padang. It sits near the volcanoes Mount Singgalang and Mount Marapi. Bukittinggi  is one of the top tourist destinations in Indonesia. There are many famous tourist attractions in this city such as Jam Gadang Monument, Sianok Canyon, Lobang Jepang Cave, Taman Bundo Kanduang Park, and Museum of Bung Hatta Birthplace.

2. Sawahlunto
   Sawahlunto located 90 kilometers from Padang,  known as a coal mining city. This city is a unique tourist destination that offers nostalgic traces of an old mining town.

3. Padang
   Padang is the capital and largest city of West Sumatra. This city became point of transit and transport hub for traveler visiting tourist attractions around West Sumatra, served by Minangkabau International Airport, Port of Teluk Bayur and Bengkuang Bus Terminal. Travellers can try surfing or trekking on the Batu and Mentawai islands, or heading to the hill town of Bukittinggi or to Kerinci Seblat National Park. Padang itself is well-known for ‘gastronomic and shopping tourism’.  Rendang which is listed number one dish in the list “The World’s 50 Most Delicious Foods” by CNN International in 2011 originated from Padang. The other beautiful tourist objects in this city are Air Manis Beach, Padang Beach, Museum Adityawarman and Sarasah Banyak Gariang Waterfall.

4. Limapuluh Kota
   Limapuluh Kota located in the northern part of West Sumatra. In this regency traveler can enjoy the magnificent Harau Canyon which offers beautiful scenery of valley with dark-brown-colored rocky cliff surrounded by paddy fields and lush green trees. There are also fascinating megalith sites in Limapuluh Kota regency, in the bowl-shaped Mahat Valley. This valley is surrounded by steep mountains with hundreds or maybe even thousands of megaliths.

5. Pariaman
   Pariaman is a coastal city in West Sumatra, Indonesia. The popular annual festival of Tabuik is celebrated by people in this city every 10 Muharram of Islamic calendar (the Day of Ashura – please check the website as the exact date changes every year). In the festival, two such beautifully-decorated effigies or “Tabuik” are carried through the city. Named Tabuik Pasa and Tabuik Subarang, the effigies are swayed accompanied by 12 tasa kettledrums beaten in a spirit-rousing rhythm. In the afternoon, both Tabuik are moved to the coast and lowered into the sea before sunset. After they are thrown into the sea, many people go swimming looking for ‘memories’ of the Tabuik to keep. This festival has become important tourism agenda, endorsed by Pariaman city government every year.

6. City of Solok
   City of has many interesting tourist objects, such as Sarasah Batimpo Waterfall, Pulau Belibis Natural Park and Rumah Gajah Maharam which is one of the oldest traditional Gadang houses in West Sumatra.

7. Solok Regency
   Solok Regency is well-known as the largest rice production center in West Sumatra. The famous Lake Singkarak as is the second largest lake in Sumatra, Lake Diatas and Lake Dibawah are located in this regency. Solok Regency is also home for many traditional Gadang house, namely Rumah Gadang 20 Ruang di Sulit Air, Rumah Gadang Cupak, Rumah Gadang Paninggahan, etc. Those houses are now used as cultural centers where various cultural activities are held.

8. Agam
   Agam is a regency in West Sumatra. Lake Maninjau, a crater lake, is the landmark of this regency and is used as a site for paragliding. Tourism in Agam is generally split into three regions: west, central, and east. The west region champions sea and coastal tourism such as recreational beach, water sport and marine culture. In central region, Lake Maninjau is top tourist destination. It offers several challenging adventure attractions like paragliding, off-roading, racing river craft and others. The eastern region dedicates their focus on agro tourism such as fruit and cocoa plantations.

9. Pesisir Selatan
   Pesisir Selatan is a regency famous for its beautiful marine tourism along its coast line, such as Carocok Beach, Cubadak Island and Karabak Island. There is also Timbulun Waterfall which consists of 5 levels and becomes favorite place for tourists. Pesisir Selatan is the place where we can see The Root Bridge (Jembatan Akar). This bridge is uniquely made from interwoven roots of banyan trees with a length of 25 meters and 1.5 wide. This bridge was built in 1916 to connect two villages which were separated by river. Currently, tourists can test their adrenaline by rafting down the river.

10. Padang Pariaman
    Padang Pariaman is the home for several Minangkabau cultural arts, such as Indang Folk Dance, Randai Martial Arts, Luambek Martial Arts, Rabab Galuak Traditional Music Performance and Gandang Tasa Traditional Drum Attraction. Those arts are usually performed in many festivities and traditional ceremonies in this regency, including the welcoming reception for government’s guest. Another top tourist destination in Padang Pariaman is The Tomb of Syekh Burhanuddin, the burial places of Syekh Burhanuddin who played an important role in disseminating Islam among the Minangkabau people in 17^th century. He was venerated by people for his wisdom, preaching abilities and vast knowledge about Islam.

11. Padang Panjang
    Padang Panjang is located in the cool highlands of West Sumatra, inland from the provincial capital Padang. It sits on a plateau beneath the volcanoes Mount Marapi and Mount Singgalang. It has an area of 23 km² and a population of over 40,000 people. The main road through Padang Panjang links coastal Padang and the highland capital, Bukittinggi. This town is the base of famous performing arts conservatorium, Sekolah Tinggi Seni Indonesia (STSI) Padang Panjang (college of traditional Indonesian arts). The town is also home for the Minangkabau Cultural Documentation and Information Center (Pusat Dokumentasi dan Informasi Kebudayaan Minangkabau – PDIKM).

12. Payakumbuh
    Payakumbuh is a city located in the north east of Bukittinggi. It has an area of 8043 km² and a population of over 99,300 people. Payakumbuh is known for flying duck races and gelamai food, a sweet coconut pal-sugared snack. Flying duck races have become part of the tourism agenda that attract many domestic and overseas travellers.  Bendi, a traditional transport vehicle using a horse is still widely used by people in this city. The agriculture sector makes a significant contribution to the economy of this city and the main agricultural commodities of Payakumbuh are rice, cattle, and palm sugar.

13. Tanah Datar
    Tanah Datar is regency that has a population of 334,000 people, living in an area of 1,336.60 km² and the government of this regency seat in Batusangkar. Tanah Datar has several tourist attractions including the Pagaruyung Palace with its museum which exhibits Minangkabau cultural icons, Sanskrit and Malay language stone inscriptions from the 14^th century. Tanah Datar also features several sites with megaliths and Pandai Sikat village where traditional songket is woven. The northern part of Lake Singkarak is also situated in Tanah Datar. There is also a beautiful and cool natural view surrounded by hills and pine forest located in Tabek Patah, around 19 km from Batusangkar.

14. Sijunjung
    Sijunjung is a regency in West Sumatra with total area of 3,100 km² inhabited by more than 180,000 people. The capital of this regency is Muaro Sijunjung. It is a popular tourist area for its beautiful mountains and it attracts many nature-lovers as well as tourists interested in ecotourism. Several tourist attractions in Sijunjung are Laguang Cave, Ngalau Talago Cave, Nago Waterfall and Silokek Waterfall. There are also cultural tourist attractions in Sijunjung such as the heritage buildings of Kerajaan Jambu Lipo, traditional houses of Rumah Gadang Kuto Piliang and Museum of Emergency Government of the Republic of Indonesia (Pemerintahan Darurat Republik Indonesia).

15. Dharmasraya
    Dharmasraya located in the southeastern part of West Sumatra and shares land borders with two provinces: Jambi and Riau. In the past, this regency was the location of an independent Kingdom of Dharmasraya which came into power after the decline of the Kingdom of Srivijaya in 1025. Nowadays, the ruins from this era still exist and are preserved as historical sites, such as Padang Roco Temple, Pulau Sawah Temple, the Tomb of Raja Siguntur, Rumah Gadang Kerajaan Koto Besar traditional house, etc.

16. Solok Selatan
    Solok Selatan know as The Land of A Thousand Rumah Gadang” because there still exist a lot of Rumah Gadang, traditional house built in the typical architecture of Minangkabau in this regency. Most Rumah Gadang are still used as residences by local people, while some others have already been transformed into museum, cultural center and government office. There is one village namely Perkampungan Seribu Rumah Gadang in which all houses in that area are built in Rumah Gadang style. Solok Selatan also has interesting natural tourism object such as Lake Bontak, Sapan Maluluang Hot Water Springs, Ulu Suliti Waterfall and Mitra Kerinci Tea Plantation.

17. Pasaman
    Pasaman is located in the northeastern part of West Sumatera, a unique regencies where the majority of population are Mandailing from North Sumatra not Minangkabau. In Pasaman there is Town of Bonjol,which is the birthplace of Tuanku Imam Bonjol, who is a National Hero of Indonesia.